Glass Tombstone and Queen Victoria's Friction Tube
Schoharie, New York
We were led to the Old Stone Fort Museum several years ago by Secret Caverns head guide Todd DelMarter -- he believed we really needed to see "Queen Victoria's Friction Tube." The museum mostly displays items of local interest, but we found two that were especially noteworthy:
Queen Victoria's Friction Tube: A little piece of brass from an Armstrong rifle presented by the Queen to Confederate President Jeff Davis in 1864. Why is it here? Maybe Jeff Davis threw it away, pissed that all he got was a friction tube when what he wanted was diplomatic recognition, heavy weapons, food, etc.
Plate glass tombstone: Daisy Schoolcraft was the daughter of a man who ran the local glass factory. She died in 1887, age 4. The unique all-glass tombstone stood in Schoharie Cemetery for 75 years and was even featured in Ripley's Believe It Or Not. Then it was smashed by vandals in 1962 -- a casualty of a turbulent decade. The Museum pieced it together and displays it in a wooden frame.