James:
 
     I vaguely remember a number of references to Jew's harps on fur
     trading sites in the American West. In particular I think of Fort
     Colville, now in Idaho, excavated by someone from the University of
     Idaho (I don't think it was Roderick Sprague), Fort Vancouver in
     Washington (probably Lester Ross or Bryn Thomas), and Bent's Old Fort,
     now in Colorado (dug first by Jackson "Smokie" Moore, and later by
     Doug Comer). I purchased a reproduction from the trade store in the
     reconstruction of the latter fort. We folks out west tend to forget
     there was a Civil War, so I had always associated these artifacts with
     the early 19th century fur trade.
 
     Cathy Spude
     NPS
     Santa Fe
 
 
______________________________ Reply Separator _________________________________
Subject: Mouth harps -Reply
Author:  James Moore <[log in to unmask]> at NP--INTERNET
Date:    12/4/97 9:20 AM
 
 
Lynn Evans:
 
I, also, have been trying to find out more about 'Jew's Harps'. They are
also called 'Juice Harps', which I believe was the original or "proper"
terminology, with 'Jew's harps' being more of a slang term. I don't know
how long they have been around, but they are pretty common in Civil
War campsites.  White Star Consulting recently recovered eight of the
brass note scales, from Jew's Harps,  in a late 1862 Union camp in
Newtonia, MO.  We did not recover any of the iron frames or bodies,
whatever they are called, and all of the brass scales are different
lengths (3 to 8 cm).  I am trying to finish the artifact write-up, and would
like to know more about them myself. I have not been able to find any
photos or references for them except in Civil War artifact books.