An authentic late 1800’s horsehair blanket has made its way from the Pacific Northwest to the River of Time Museum/library complex to adorn an 1890’s doctors carriage exhibited in the lobby.

Museum volunteer Bonnibeth Foltz formally presented the blanket Jan. 23 to museum board president Gerry Colbert.

Although not common in the Arizona Territories during that period, this doctor’s carriage was used by a Michigan doctor to perform rounds in his Midwestern community. Passed down through his family, the carriage traveled with a son to Arizona where it was purchased by local Quality Consignments owner Denise Smith.

When Smith renovated her store, she donated the carriage to the museum.

Heavy fur and wool blankets, called “lap robes,” were used to ward off the chill as a doctor made his rounds.

Made by one of the largest fur companies of the time, the Edes Tanning Company of Iowa, the blanket was donated by Paularose Riswold of Seattle.

Her husband’s father gifted this inscribed blanket to his mother. Horse hides were readily available during the time of the horse-drawn carriage. When an animal died, owners would honor them by having a blanket created with its hide.

The carriage and robe can be viewed free in the museum lobby from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Tuesdays through Saturdays.