Gadgets Galore! Transforming the American Household

January 17 to June 7, 2026

​Possers, stereoscopes, and graphophones? At one time, each of these gadgets was a new invention – the latest and greatest item, and one everyone wanted to own. Uncover the histories of these strange objects, and how their invention led to the gadgets that are integral to our lives today.
 
A myriad of gadgets, both recognizable and strange, will be on display in  Gadgets Galore!, illustrating how industrialization transformed every American household in the 19th century. The invention of mechanical processes and the discovery of electricity and steam power would impact day-to-day life around the world. Mass production, faster communication, and more widespread transportation systems combined to industrialize the American household by inspiring the invention of the gadgets we rely on today.  Artifacts from the HCSCC collection on display include telephones, cameras, toasters, and much more! All of these were made possible thanks to changes made in how we move and create things.

Gadgets Galore! Transforming the American Household is a traveling exhibition from Exhibit Envoy, a nonprofit, and Heather Farquhar. This exhibition is based on its initial iterations at the Hayward Area Historical Society and Los Altos History Museum. Exhibit Envoy is a non-profit based in San Francisco, California. Their mission is to provide institutions with diverse and meaningful traveling exhibitions to strengthen their communities. Recent traveling and online exhibitions highlight topics as varied as the experiences of migrant farm workers, contemporary Native American artworks, African American histories in rural California, the impact of climate change on wildflowers, and voting rights in the Golden State. For more information, please visit exhibitenvoy.org. 

This activity is sponsored in part by the Alex Stern Family Foundation and the FM Area Foundation.