Gadgets Galore! Transforming the American Household

Various gadgets, both recognizable and strange, will be on display in Gadgets Galore!, illustrating how industrialization transformed every American household in the 19th-century.

The invention of mechanical processes and the discovery of electricity and steam power would impact day-to-day life around the world. Mass production, faster communication, and more widespread transportation systems combined to industrialize the American household by inspiring the invention of the gadgets we rely on today. Some of the most fascinating gadgets on display are almost unrecognizable today. However, as becomes clear in Gadgets Galore! – and its scavenger-hunt style display, which encourages visitors to find the ancestors of many modern-day objects – each gadget we use today can be traced back to the inventions and technology from this period of industrialization.

In addition to widely known inventions, Mendocino County Museum will highlight 20th century and contemporary local inventors, such as Ed Burton, Richard Jergenson, and more!