posted by Kim
Jane Phillips loved jigsaw puzzles. More than likely, if you walked into the library at her home on Cherokee Avenue, you would find a jigsaw puzzle being assembled on a bridge table close to a comfortable chair. “I would drop by to see Granny almost every day after school” said Marcus Low Jr., the Phillips’ grandson. “It seemed like she always had a puzzle she was working on”. This fall the Home will be placing Jane’s puzzle collection on exhibit for only the second time.
“The puzzles are not only beautiful, but also record the events and attitudes of their time” notes Jim Goss, Director/Curator of the Home. Jigsaw puzzles for adults were first seen in the early 1900s and were quite a challenge. Puzzles were cut along color lines and were not interlocking. There was no picture on the box, and the title of the puzzle was very nonspecific. At the time the Phillips home was built (1908-1909), Parker Brothers introduced their Pastime Puzzles, which featured figural pieces in recognizable shapes. These were so popular that Parker Brothers stopped making games and devoted its entire factory to puzzle production in 1909. Following this craze, puzzles continued as a regular adult diversion for the next two decades.
It is not known when “Aunt Jane” became interested in jigsaw puzzles or how many she had. She was known to give puzzles away to friends and employees. Most of the 26 puzzles she kept were of the Pastime Puzzle brand and their themes reflect her interests and the current events of the time. The Frank Phillips Home Docents began the project of putting the puzzles together more than four years ago. When completed, monies were raised to frame the puzzles according to proper museum standards. The last puzzle to be framed is a two-layer puzzle given to Jane as a Christmas present. The exhibit designer was Karen Smith Woods. The exhibit framer was Pat Kerbs.
Watch for this upcoming exhibit in September and October 2011!
