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USS TULARE Zippo lighter box

Manufacturer Zippo Manufacturing Company

Date1957

Object number00054801

NameBox

MediumInk on paper

DimensionsOverall: 82 × 60 × 14 mm, 12 g

ClassificationsTools and equipment

Credit LineANMM Collection Gift from Jeff Allan

Terms

DescriptionA cardboard box for a souvenir Zippo lighter from the USS TULARE (lighter 0054800). Handwritten on the inside of the box reads '1957 Christoff Petty Officer USS Tulare'. The box contains the original warranty and instruction manual.HistoryThis commemorative lighter for USS TULARE was part of collection belonging to Vanessa Roberson. Her story is told here by her grandson, Jeff Allan: "My grandmother spent her last 10 years in a fog of dementia, but I could still squeeze a memory from her, even a cackle, if I mentioned the navy balls of the '50s. They were the brightest spots in her life. She lived in Sydney's King Cross, just minutes away from where the navy - and visiting navies - used to dock their ships at the city's naval base. The excitement and glamour of an incoming fleet brightened an otherwise poverty stricken life. Vanessa Roberson, known as Zena to her family, Van to her friends, grew up in country New South Wales. Born in 1912, she married early and spent her days cooking for the farm workers on her property. She would rise early, collect eggs and milk, prepare breakfast for 20 men and take it out to the back paddocks, returning only in time to begin the process over again for a cooked lunch. The rest of her time was spent washing, cleaning and looking after her only son. Meanwhile, her husband openly slept around town and had little time for her. At some stage, in her late 30's, Vanessa left. She arrived at Sydney's Central station with a son under one arm and a wooden mantle clock under the other.SignificanceSouvenir of visit to Sydney in 1957 by USS TULARE AKA112 a Tulare Class Attack Cargo Ship which later saw action in the Vietnam War