By Thomas Hamilton Ormsbee

This article focuses on the history of the sideboard table, noting its functions, varying designs, notable craftsmen, and the man who developed the first sideboard table, Thomas Shearer. It originally appeared in the July 1941 issue of American Collector magazine, a publication which ran from 1933-1948 and served antique collectors and dealers.

The early sideboard was more than a decorative piece of dining-room furniture. Functionally, it was the 18th-Century version of the modern serving pantry. In an era when course dinners were unheard of, this piece was literally a sideboard where the various fish dishes, roasts of …

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By John Marshall Phillips

This article describes sterling silver items (such as punch bowls and tankards) popular in New York in the late 18th and 19th centuries, noting their strong Dutch influences and the evolution of the design styles. It originally appeared in the October 1947 Special Sunnyside Edition of American Collector magazine, a publication which ran from 1933-1948 and served antique collectors and dealers.

In 1800 when Washington Irving, son of a Scottish born New York merchant, made his first trip up the Hudson he found that fertile river valley a land teeming with twilight superstitions, old Dutch legends and …

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By Edward Hungerford

This article on Wells Fargo stagecoaches gives a brief history and describes the way they were decorated. It originally appeared in the September 1941 issue of American Collector magazine, a publication which ran from 1933-1948 and served antique collectors and dealers.

The desire to have a model of an old-time Wells Fargo coach for my own collection of the railroads and other means of transportation at Pittsford, New York, came as a swift inspiration, rather than a long thought-out dream. For had I not been advertising manager of Wells Fargo & Co.; the first and last and only …

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By Richmond Huntley

This article discusses the social significance of the silver spoon throughout history and the different types of silver spoons made from the 12th through the 19th centuries. It originally appeared in the July 1941 issue of American Collector magazine, a publication which ran from 1933-1948 and served antique collectors and dealers.

From the Middle Ages down, the silver spoon has been a symbol of a certain standard of living. “Born with a silver spoon in his mouth” indicated a person who began life well shielded against the harsh winds of poverty. Silver spoons were the first investments …

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By Waldo Hopkins

This article discusses the use of dolls in models of historic events or locations, noting a display representing George Washington’s death as an example. It originally appeared in the July 1941 issue of American Collector magazine, a publication which ran from 1933-1948 and served antique collectors and dealers.

About a quarter of a century ago habitant groups and small-scale models of historic events and places appeared in our museums and similar public places. It was considered a most modern and dramatic way to present natural and recorded history to school children and the public at large. It still is, …

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By Eugene Clute

This article describes the history of the oil lamp, noting its evolution from Betty lamps to the Argand burner to a lamp with an oil reservoir in the base. It originally appeared in the September 1941 issue of American Collector magazine, a publication which ran from 1933-1948 and served antique collectors and dealers.

Among old-time lamps there are certain types that mark changes in the manner of living or that are representative of classes or occupations. Others are examples of the progressive development of light sources adapted to the different fuels burned as illuminants as they came …

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By Marius Barbeau

This article focuses on the French and later British influences on Canadian silver in the 18th and 19th centuries, noting important silversmiths and the spread of silver production from Quebec to Montreal. It originally appeared in the February 1941 issue of American Collector magazine, a publication which ran from 1933-1948 and served antique collectors and dealers.

The silver crosses discovered in the past hundred years in old Indian graves from Georgia to Wisconsin and Ontario are all of one type and bear such makers’ marks as C A and R C. Puzzled archaeologists at the time of their …

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By Mary Allis

This article discusses American folk art figurines, which were made one-at-a-time by local individuals as opposed to being mass-produced by a factory like other figurines. It notes the various influences on the figurines’ designs and the production process. It originally appeared in the January 1941 issue of American Collector magazine, a publication which ran from 1933-1948 and served antique collectors and dealers.

Decoration for the simple farmhouse or the village-dwelling artisan’s cottage in all countries began and generally remained within the realm of the folk arts. A man might be a potter or a country joiner accustomed to …

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By Richmond Huntley

This article discusses the history of samplers, which young girls were often required to work on daily in the 18th and early 19th centuries. It notes the evolution of the sampler from pieces of cloth with samples of various patterns to an elaborate expression of the sewer’s skill with a needle. It originally appeared in the April 1942 issue of American Collector magazine, a publication which ran from 1933-1948 and served antique collectors and dealers.

In one of those drippingly sentimental historical novels which were so numerous a generation or so ago, the woes of a little girl, …

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By Thomas Hamilton Ormsbee

This article notes the various designs and manufacturers of salt dishes, noting the slight differences between similar-looking items created by competing companies. It originally appeared in the June 1939 issue of American Collector magazine, a publication which ran from 1933-1948 and served antique collectors and dealers.

Greater variety of form and decoration are to be found in salt cellars than in any other piece of tableware made by American glassworkers. Over a thousand different designs are known to collectors and others are still being found. They range from 18th-Century examples, blown in clear or colored glass by …

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By Thomas Hamilton Ormsbee

This article notes the four major families that produced silver in 18th-century Boston (The Edwards, Reveres, Hurds, and Burts), focusing primarily on the lives and crafts of John and Benjamin Burt. It originally appeared in the August 1940 issue of American Collector magazine, a publication which ran from 1933-1948 and served antique collectors and dealers.

According to present-day standards, 18th-Century Boston was never more than a good-sized village. In 1700, it had an estimated population of 7,000; by 1800 it had multiplied only a little over three and a half times. But accomplishment and importance are not …

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By Stephen Decatur

This article focuses on silversmith Samuel Drowne and his involvement in the American Revolution and U.S. politics. It also provides information on the other silversmiths in his family. It originally appeared in the September 1940 issue of American Collector magazine, a publication which ran from 1933-1948 and served antique collectors and dealers.

Undoubtedly the name of Samuel Drowne is as well known as that of any of the early silversmiths of Portsmouth, N. H., but locally, at least, it is more generally remembered because of the prominent part its owner played in the affairs of his community during …

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