St. Dunstan's Child's Reins with Bells made by war blinded soldiers

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Overview

St. Dunstan's Child's Coloured String Safety Reins with Bells made by war blinded soldiers in colourful cardboard box.
The box cover is brick red with blue borders, illustrations and writing. The graphic shows a young child running while wearing the reins. It is a cold scene, as the child is wearing a beanie, jumper and thick pants. The child is pulling along a toy horse on wheels. The base of the box is plain brown cardboard.
The string reins are beautifully made and have three attached bells. The set shown on the box lid has five bells, but there don't appear to be holes to indicate any are missing. There are two gold metal loops through which the reins are threaded. Although the box lid implies that the string is coloured, this example appears to be either made from natural string or has faded over time.

Historical information

St. Dunstan's was established in 1915 by Arthur Pearson (later Sir Arthur Pearson) to address the significant number of soldiers, sailors, and airmen blinded during World War One. The institution provided rehabilitation and training including the teaching of braille and the use of typewriters, as well as vocational activities such a boot-making, weaving, basket making, carpentry and gardening.
There are several examples in the collection including a wooden tray with inserted ceramic tiles and attached metal handles, a timber and metal trouser press, a metal ashtray, and this knotted string harness for toddlers. There are also photographs showing the blinded men making string bags and out gardening with their white canes.
In addition to providing practical skills, St. Dunstan's offered social activities, such as sports, dancing, and debates, to help veterans adapt to civilian life and build camaraderie.
There are also examples of these activities in the collection with medallions issued to the winners of billiard and tennis competitions and lawn bowls badges.
Postcards, buttons, pins, badges, matchbox covers, Cinderella stamps and books were among the items sold to raise money for St. Dunstan's, all of which are displayed in the collection.

Details

Registration number

cwa-org-119-RoW00542

Item type

Themes

Social History
War and Conflict

Material