WITH RARE, EARLY WARTIME ADDRESS
The major suppliers of surgical sets during the Civil War such as Tiemann, Hernstein, Kern, Kolbe etc. had large contracts and produced many sets, which is evident by the relative abundance of their sets even today. The minor makers have always had a special place in my heart, however, and I am thrilled when I find a set made by one of them, even if the set is incomplete. Such is the case with this set.
Van Wyck Brinckerhoff (alternatively spelled “Brinkerhoff”) was a minor supplier of surgical instruments during the Civil War. Originally partnered with Peter W. Bain, in 1852 they formed the “New York Surgical Instrument Manufactory”. By 1856 he was on his own and worked at various addresses in lower Manhattan.
For only two years – 1860 to 1862 – he was located at the address on the label of this set – 88 William St. In 1863 he moved to 131 William St. where he worked until 1868. While not complete (and with a later period Tiemann bone forceps), because it is representative of a small manufacturer and was made only during a two-year window at the beginning of the Civil War, it is an uncommon set. While not a U.S. Army contract set, it is exactly the type of set that a contract surgeon (“Acting Assistant Surgeon”) might have brought with him when he offered his services during the Civil War.
For illustrative purposes, I have also included a photograph of a pair of scissors stamped “Bain & Brinkerhoff N.Y.”. These are likewise rare, having been made only between 1852 – 1855 .
