MIDDLE ROW - Field Cradle

Field Cradle, 1876-1886
Ford Johnson & Co.
Michigan City, Indiana

Donor: Mrs. C. VanVranken, 1947

A field cradle was designed to be taken outdoors so a farm wife could do chores while tending to her child. William and Martha McGregor, farmers in Cooper Township, cared for their children in this cradle. The couple married in 1885 and their first child, a son, was born the next year. 

From Cradle to Crib

Ford Johnson & Company of Michigan City, Indiana, patented this style in 1876. By the 1920s, stationary cribs were replacing cradles in popularity. 

An Heirloom

Like high chairs and baby buggies, cradles have become treasured heirlooms, given by one generation to the next as tangible pieces of family history. This cradle was passed down through the McGregor family until it was given to the Museum in 1947.