Donation of 1896 Standard Sewing Machine
SCV Historical Society / Heritage Junction
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Sewing machine by the Standard Sewing Machine Co. of Cleveland. Most recent patent date May 26, [18]96. Donated 100 years later to the Santa Clarita Valley Historical Society by Priscilla Nielsen. Her handwritten note reads:
Treadle Standard Sewing Machine, circa 1900 [1896] This sewing machine came to Priscilla Nielsen through her mother, Marion Forst Bishop, and her grandfather, Frank A. Forst, who, with his wife Matie [Kadniger] Forst lived in the Castaic area since 1911. The machine originally belonged to Theresa Forst, Priscilla's great-grandmother, who lived in Rosemead (then Savannah). It was used for and by the five daughters of Theresa and Anton Forst, and was in working condition until the treadle was broken in a recent move. Donated to the Historical Society by Priscilla Nielsen, May 1996.
At the time of the donation, Priscilla Nielsen was the City of Santa Clarita's volunteer coordinator. Previously she was the arts and crafts program coordinator in the city's Department of Parks and Recreation. Later she taught art at Arroyo Seco Junior High School. Her mother, Marion Forst Bishop (1924-2010), grew up on the 1911 Forst homestead in Castaic. Marion wed Robert K. Bishop in 1947. They lived in Newhall until 1982 when they moved to Castaic. Marion taught in the Saugus Union School District for 34 years and was a member of The Sewing Circle and the Basketry Guild. Robert (1923-1994) worked for Oryx Energy Co., a successor to Sun Oil Company.
HS9034: Download original images here. Sewing machine located in the Newhall Ranch House at Heritage Junction (2020).
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