Wallet
Object number2026.18.2
Datec. 1943
MediumLeather; Plastic; Applied decoration
Credit LineGIft of Fran Lopinsky
DescriptionBlack leather wallet or identification card holder. Rectangular black leather bifold wallet folds in half along the top edge. Interior of top half has black leather pocket with applied gold advertisement text on front. Interior of bottom half has pocket with clear plastic window.DimensionsHeight x Width x Depth (Closed): 2.938 x 4.375 x 0.25 in. (7.5 x 11.1 x 0.6 cm)Height x Width x Length (Open): 5.875 x 4.375 x 5.875 in. (14.9 x 11.1 x 14.9 cm)
InscriptionsInterior of top half has applied gold text "Joseph DeRoy / AND SONS / 311 / Smithfield St. / Opp. 4th Ave. P.O. / 6111 Penn Avenue / East Liberty / 544 Smithfield St. / Near Gimbels / CENTURY OLD Original DeROY JEWELERS".
Historical NotesJoseph DeRoy and Sons promotional ID holder, c. 1943, used by Edward Nozzolillo. Pittsburgher Edward Nozzolillo served in the United States Army during World War I, suffering an injury while in France during the Meuse-Argonne campaign, which was the largest and deadliest offensive in U.S. military history and part of the Allies’ Hundred Days Offensive. He was hit in the arm by shrapnel on September 27, 1918, the second day of the offensive, which he noted in the diary of his wartime experiences that he kept. During WWII, Nozzolillo volunteered as an Air Raid Warden for the Allegheny County Council of Defense; he kept his identification card in this promotional wallet from Joseph DeRoy and Sons. The DeRoy family immigrated to Pittsburgh in the 1850s from Amsterdam. The sons went into various lines of work in the retail industry but found their greatest success as pawnbrokers. While various historical accounts disagree on the precise dates, Israel and Joseph DeRoy started DeRoy Brothers, a shop on the first floor of a house at 49 Smithfield Street in downtown Pittsburgh around 1870. The brothers eventually parted ways and opened separate downtown jewelry stores: Jos. DeRoy & Sons and Israel DeRoy & Son. Jos. DeRoy & Sons operated downtown locations at 311 Smithfield and 544 Smithfield and a branch in East Liberty at 6111 Penn Ave.
Previous owner
Edward Nozzolillo
Related institution
Joseph DeRoy and Sons
Related institution
Allegheny County Council of Defense
Related institution
Gimbel Brothers
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