By V. Isabelle Miller

This article describes the dresses that were worn to a ball by two prominent women in 1780. It originally appeared in the October 1948 issue of American Collector magazine, a publication which ran from 1933-1948 and served antique collectors and dealers.

When Mrs. Gabriel Ludlow and her sister, Mrs. Abraham Walton, entered the ballroom about 1780 they must have created quite a sensation in the sophisticated little town of New York. Their brocaded silk dresses, entirely different in pattern, are each strikingly beautiful both in design and, particularly, in color. They have been preserved through six …

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By Jessica Lewis, Collectors Weekly Staff (Copyright 2009)

Robert Schleicher talks about Lionel model trains, including the history of the company and the various models and designs they produced. Robert has written multiple books on Lionel trains and slot cars. His newest, The Lionel Legend: An American Icon, was recently published by Motorbooks.

My dad got me a big Lionel train set when I was about 8. Prior to that, when I was a really little kid, he would take me to watch the train switching cars in the Burlington yard in Cheyenne, Wyoming. I played with Lionel until …

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By Thomas Hamilton Ormsbee

This article discusses the two conflicting opinions about Thomas Chippendale (some say he is not worthy of the fame he received, while others say he was a master of furniture design), also noting the stretch of his influence and the differences between Chippendale furniture created in the U.S. and in England. It originally appeared in the June 1941 issue of American Collector magazine, a publication which ran from 1933-1948 and served antiques collectors and dealers.

For over a generation there has been growing contention about Thomas Chippendale and the English and American furniture of his period. …

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By Carl W. Drepperd

This article discusses the packaging used for early American consumer products, describing some examples and noting their intrigue. It originally appeared in the December 1942 issue of American Collector magazine, a publication which ran from 1933-1948 and served antique collectors and dealers.

One of America’s famed industrial designers sat at his quite modern desk (which he thinks was designed in 1936 but which was already old stuff in 1836) and, with his nose well in the air, vented his pontifical spleen upon an humble chap who had suggested Early American designs for use in plastic materials. It …

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By Ruth Webb Lee

This article describes the 19th-century glass slippers and boots pictured, noting which are the rarest and most desirable for collectors. It originally appeared in the June 1942 issue of American Collector magazine, a publication which ran from 1933-1948 and served antique collectors and dealers.

In recent years collectors of antiques, particularly American, have displayed an ever-increasing tendency toward specialization. This may be due to the fact that our collecting tempo has steadily increased. So much so that the most sought after items can no longer be as readily acquired from owners of long-established households. Many of them …

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By Helen Simonds Johnson

This article notes the toys popular among 18th-century children, especially focusing on dolls and describing the different variations that were available. It originally appeared in the March 1943 issue of American Collector magazine, a publication which ran from 1933-1948 and served antique collectors and dealers.

With children of early America, deference to parents and other elders and unquestioning obedience to those in authority were of prime importance. George Washington’s mother kept a bundle of peach branches in her pocket to be used as punishment for offences against her ironbound rules. Deportment was taught at school and at …

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By Jean Lipman

This article describes folk art paintings detailing the Peaceable Kingdom by three notable American primitive artists. It originally appeared in the August 1945 issue of American Collector magazine, a publication which ran from 1933-1948 and served antique collectors and dealers.

With interest focusing today on plans for world peace, it seems timely to juxtapose three remarkable versions of the Peaceable Kingdom, as interpreted by three generations of native American artists.

Edward Hicks is the first of these. He was born in Attleborough, Bucks County, Pennsylvania, in 1780. He became, successively, a coach maker and painter, farmer, preacher, sign painter, …

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By James Brush Hatcher

This article focuses on the stamps created by the postmaster of the New York Post Office in the mid-19th century, noting how to determine how many stamps were originally on a sheet, how he signed stamps to prevent counterfeits, and how the stamp spread outside of New York. It originally appeared in the March 1943 issue of American Collector magazine, a publication which ran from 1933-1948 and served antique collectors and dealers.

The first American postmaster to take his cue from Great Britain’s “Penny Black” of 1840 and issue an adhesive postage stamp for interurban mail …

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By Thomas Hamilton Ormsbee

This article discusses the evolution of American chests of drawers, particularly their origins and the design styles, from Victorian to Greek Revival. It originally appeared in the April 1945 issue of American Collector magazine, a publication which ran from 1933-1948 and served antique collectors and dealers.

About a hundred and seventy-five years marks the span when the chest of drawers was being made by American cabinetmakers. During this time, step-by-step, the transition was accomplished from its predecessor the Hadley chest to the chest of drawers of the Greek Revival period.

Then came the Victorian years when, except …

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By Thomas Hamilton Ormsbee

This article on Bible boxes discusses their use as a writing surface and case for writing materials and describes their gradual evolution into a desk. It originally appeared in the November 1942 issue of American Collector magazine, a publication which ran from 1933-1948 and served antique collectors and dealers.

“I must write rudely,” stated Thomas Dudley of Massachusetts Bay colony in a letter to the Countess of Lincoln in the year 1631, “having no table, or other room to write in than by the fireside upon my knee, in this sharp winter; to which my family must …

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By Helen Cornstock

This article describes chairs made in England and America in the 18th century, noting their influences and how they compare to drawings in various craftsmen’s guides that were popular at the time. It originally appeared in the February 1947 issue of American Collector magazine, a publication which ran from 1933-1948 and served antique collectors and dealers.

It was the late R. T. Haynes Halsey who first noted that as early as 1775 there was a project in Philadelphia to publish working designs for furniture makers, a Gentlemen and Cabinet-Makers’ Assistant, in which John Norman was to engrave …

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By Julius Carlebach

This article describes the evolution of cosmetic cases for women – especially perfume bottles – in use from 3000 B.C. until the 18th century, noting their designs and materials. It originally appeared in the December 1942 issue of American Collector magazine, a publication which ran from 1933-1948 and served antique collectors and dealers.

The world over, at all times women have tried to be more beautiful than nature created them. They made their personality harmonize with their appearance by adding some special artistic note to the natural beauty.

In cosmetics, nothing of real importance has been invented in thousands …

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