basket, picnic
Object
Accession Number
2023.006Description
One wicker and wood refrigerator picnic basket with a detachable hinged lid secured with a heavy cotton webbing and metal strap. The metal interior has been painted white. Between the metal lining and the wicker basket is a lining of felt and undisturbed asbestos. The overall condition of the object is very good, with no damaged areas. Surface finishes, aside from the painted interior, are original.Narrative
This picnic basket was made by the Burlington Basket Co. of Burlington, Iowa in about 1903. The design was patented on November 4, 1902 (No. 712,921). This example is missing a removable metal “ice tank” which was intended to hold ice. Between the metal interior and the outer woven basket is a lining of felt and asbestos. These materials formed an insulating layer that the manufacturer claimed would “keep the basket cooled down to 58 degrees (F) for 24 hours”.Various members of the Dunsmuir family have been photographed enjoying picnics. The 28-acre grounds of Craigdarroch would have included many pleasant secluded areas in which to enjoy a picnic prepared in the Castle's kitchen.
History of Use
This picnic basket was acquired and used by the donor's grandparents (parents of her father Charles Edgar Brooks), Mr. and Mrs. Charles Chandler Brooks in Montreal, sometime after their emigration from England to that city in 1912. Mr. Chandler had taken the position of Agent for Waring & Gillow, a high-end furnishing and antique dealing company based in London, England. He later formed Charles Brooks Company, a maker and purveyor of fine furniture, carpets, silk lamp shades and general interior decorating services based in Montreal. Many of his clients were the monied class in the Westmount district of Montreal. They moved to Victoria from Montreal in 1968. Precisely when they acquired the basket is not known. It was probably used before they acquired it. It is known that they took it with them on road trips around Quebec and into the United States.Charles Chandler Brooks was a veteran of WW1, having served in the Canadian Army. Deemed to be too old for warfighting during WW2, he trained other soldiers at Camp Borden instead. He retired with the rank of Colonel. His father had been an Inspector at Scotland Yard in London.
