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This ingeniously designed globe mount was patented in 1875 by an American governess named Ellen Fitz, who also published a handbook for its use. It shows the length of daylight, twilight and nighttime hours at any place on the earth, and the changes of seasons and other astronomical phenomena related to the path of the sun.
The 12-inch terrestrial globe within two brass bands representing the twilight zone, raised on a round cast-iron turntable base with vertical bent-rod pointer, the round platter with engraved paper calendar, and having gold stencil Greek Key decoration on top and gold stencil repeating decoration on the edges, ending in four curved feet. Dakota is still one territory. Oklahoma is shown as Indian Territory in its entirety.
What made Fitz's design unique was the mounting. This globe was intended to show the changing daylight, twilight and nighttime hours of each point on the earth, incorporating seasonal changes due to the sun's path along the ecliptic. The globe is declined at a 66.5 degree angle relative to the paper calendar at the base. When the calendar index (pointer) is set to a particular date, the globe shifts to such a position that the solar index pointer corresponds to the point on the ecliptic that receives the most sun on that date. Two vertical rings mounted perpendicularly to the calendar and the solar pointer are intended to show which areas of the earth would experience daylight or twilight during given hours of the day (as displayed on hour ring) on the calendar day shown at the base.
The gores on the Fitz globes were mostly likely originally provided by Gilman Joslin (with a Fitz overlabel), and subsequently by W. & A.K. Johnston (with a Fitz printed label). This particular example may be attributed to Johnston because Oklahoma is called Indian Territory and because the globe has red and blue isothermal lines and white ocean current lines, all characteristic of Johnston.
Circular Label: FITZ GLOBE / Manufactured/ BY / GINN & HEATH/ BOSTON/ 1879
References:
Fitz, Ellen E. Handbook of the Terrestrial Globe or, Guide to Fitz's New Method of Mounting and Operating Globes. Boston: Ginn and Heath, 1878.
Dekker, Elly and Peter van der Krogt. Globes from the Western World (Zwemmer: 1993), pp. 128-9. |
