Samplings: XLVII

VOLUME XLVII

(detail of sampler by Ruth T. Daman, page 7)

Copyright Š 2015 by M. Finkel & Daughter, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system now known or to be invented, without the permission in writing from M. Finkel & Daughter, Inc. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Welcome ...

We are delighted to present this issue of Samplings which is the 47th edition of our catalogue of schoolgirl samplers and needlework, produced semiannually since 1992.

It is our hope that you enjoy reading through this catalogue which presents 33 fine antique samplers and schoolgirl needleworks. We thank you all for your continued and growing interest in this field.

Schoolgirl samplers and needlework provide fascinating opportunities to collectors. A sampler acts as a window into the specific history of a young girl, her family, a teacher, a town, a region, and a tradition, and as such provides us with unusual insight. It goes without saying that samplers, from a simple marking piece to an elaborate scene, are also extremely visually appealing.

Each of our samplers has been fully researched and documented; it is well-known that we both conduct ourselves and have others engage in intensive genealogical research and often achieve important results.

When we describe a sampler or silk embroidery, we frequently refer to a number of fine books that have been written in this field. A selected bibliography is included at the end of the catalogue and is updated regularly. We also include a description page about our conservation methods and encourage you to call us with any questions in this area.

This year marks the 68th anniversary of the founding of our firm. We continue to value our positive relationships with clients, many of whom are now second generation, and strive to maintain our commitment to customer service. Buying antiques should be based in large measure on trust and confidence, and we try to treat each customer as we ourselves like to be treated. We operate by appointment and are at the shop Monday through Friday, and can be available on weekends, except when we are exhibiting at antiques shows. Please let us know of your plans to visit us.

We suggest that you contact us in a timely fashion if one or more of our samplers is of interest to you.

Please let us know if you would like us to email you larger photos than appear in this catalogue. The majority of the pieces in the catalogue have not yet appeared on our website so as to give our catalogue subscribers the advantage of having a first look. Should your choice be unavailable, we would be happy to discuss your collecting objectives with you. Our inventory is extensive, and we have many other samplers that are not included in our catalogue, some of which are on our website. Moreover, through our sources, we may be able to locate what you are looking for; you will find us knowledgeable and helpful.

Payment may be made by check or credit card. Pennsylvania residents should add 6% sales tax. All items are sold with a five day return privilege. Expert packing is included: shipping and insurance costs are extra. We prefer to ship via UPS ground or FedEx air, insured.

We look forward to your phone calls and your interest.

www.samplings.com Please check our website for frequent updates and additions to our inventory

Amy Finkel Jamie Banks mailbox@samplings.com 800-598-7432 215-627-7797

Are you interested in selling? We are constantly purchasing antique samplers and needlework and would like to know what you have for sale. We can purchase outright or act as your agent. Photographs emailed or sent to us will receive our prompt attention. Please call us for more information.

ALPHABETICAL LISTING OF CONTENTS Beulah Allen, Salem County, New Jersey, 1793................................................................... 3 AVM, Amsterdam, Holland, 1803........................................................................................ 16 Fanny & Anny Barr, Strasburg, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, 1817............................ 14 Martha Bentley, Ackworth School, Yorkshire, England, 1815........................................... 11 Selina T. Bishop, England, 1808......................................................................................... 27 Sarah Bowman, Ephrata, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, 1816........................................ 4 Sarah Stanley Brown, Honeybrook, Chester County, Pennsylvania, circa 1832................ 18 Family Register Sampler, Elesha Mary Bryant, Roxbury, Massachusetts, 1827................. 30 Emeline Castner, Merion Boarding School, Merion, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, 1819.......8 Lucy Selina Coles, High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, England, 1852............................. 24 Miniature Collet Fiché Embroidery, France, late 18th century......................................... 26 CS, Friesland, Holland, 1724.............................................................................................. 20 Ruth T. Daman, Scituate, Massachusetts, 1807.................................................................... 7 Kate Clayton “Granny” Donaldson, North Carolina, circa 1935........................................ 30 Emma Graf, German School, Sacramento, California, 1869............................................. 16 Fanny Harrelson, Yanceyville, Caswell County, North Carolina, 1852................................ 5 Mary Husband, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 1853.............................................................. 12 Sarah H. James, Elizabeth Passmore School, East Goshen, Chester County, Pennsylvania, 1820.......... 12 Elizabeth McFarland, Appoquinimink Hundred, New Castle County, Delaware, 1822...... 10 MH, Hebrew Alphabet & Darning sampler, Holland, 1805................................................ 21 Ann Norton, England, 1822............................................................................................... 29 Abigail Jane Purdy, Westchester County, New York, circa 1838........................................ 28 Mary N. Robinson, Marblehead, Massachusetts, 1808.......................................................... 2 Sampler Stretcher Frame, Tiger Maple, American, circa 1850.......................................... 15 Watercolor Birth Announcement for James B. Schmidt, Chambersburg, Franklin Co., PA 1856-57...........28 Margaret Shaw, Mrs. Elmendorf School, Kingston, Ulster County, New York, 1831......... 22 Miniature Sampler, Mary Smith, England, 1812................................................................ 23 Susanna Spencer, New Hartford, Litchfield County, Connecticut, 1761........................... 25 Mary V. Throckmorton, Freehold, Monmouth County, New Jersey, circa 1837................... 6 Sarah Thurgood, taught by Mrs. Lerpiniere, Danbury, Essex, England, 1768................... 19 Agness & Catharine Tweedie, Kirkby MacPherson, teacher, Lanark, Scotland, 1812.......... 1 Miniature Sampler, Elizabeth Webb, England, 1779.......................................................... 24 Clarissa West, Concord, New Hampshire, 1806................................................................... 9

(detail of sampler by Fanny Harrelson, page 5)

Agness and Catharine Tweedie, Kirkby MacPherson, teacher, Leith, Scotland, 1812 This is an extraordinary and highly significant sampler which features a visually compelling scene of an enormous sailing ship, an unusual subject; equally if not more significant is the fact that the sampler was worked by two sisters, a highly uncommon occurrence.

The three-mast ship is shown in full sail and the source was likely a published print; however, the town of Leith was the main port of Edinburgh and we can speculate that the Tweedie family may have had involvement in the shipping trade. The ship was formed with long satin stitches for the sails and rigging, and extremely fine tent stitches for the hull.

Noteworthy is the Union Jack flying from a mast at the stern and enormous figurehead of a lady at the bow, with an even larger parrot, tethered by a line to the bowsprit. The ship is set upon very fine silk gauze, which along with chenille stitches forms the sea, and two small vessels bob nearby.

The date, 1812, was stitched just above the framework that contains the verse and the names of the sisters who, together, worked this sampler. Interestingly, a slight change in the wording of this classic verse refers to the fact that this needlework was made jointly. The name of their teacher, Kirkby MacPherson, appears at the right end of the horizontal line that bisects the sampler. A large deer and many little animals prance amidst the characteristic Scottish trees on this same uphill line. Large leafy branches with flowers and buds embellish much of the upper register and a splendid, solidly stitched border frames the sampler well. From both an aesthetic and a technical standpoint, this sampler is a fine accomplishment.

The instructress named on this sampler, Kirkby MacPherson, was born in 1776 in Ratho, Midlothian, a parish just outside Edinburgh. She was the youngest of three children to Hugh McPherson, a weaver, and Mary Robertson. In 1813, one year after teaching the Tweedie sisters, she married Robert Cowan, a teacher in South Leith. They appeared to have no children. Robert was killed at the Leith docks on June 25, 1832. His death notice lists him as a teacher at North Leith. Kirkby died January 21, 1842.

The specific identities of Agness and Catharine Tweedie remain elusive but their sampler stands as a testament to their education and great talent in the needle arts.

An excellent, recently published book, Remember Now Thy Creator: Scottish Girls’ Samplers, 17001872, by Naomi E. A. Tarrant (Society of Antiquaries of Scotland, 2014), retired long-term Curator of Costume and Textiles at the Royal Scottish Museum, later the National Museum of Scotland, is a wonderful addition to our reference library; we highly recommend this book.

Worked in silk and silk gauze on linen, the sampler is in excellent condition with some minor loss to the silk gauze. It has been conservation mounted and in is its fine, original rosewood frame.

Sampler size: 17” x 13”

Framed size: 22¾” x 18¾”

Price $24,000.

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Mary N. Robinson, Marblehead, Massachusetts, 1808 Linsey-woolsey samplers, worked on green fabric made of a combination of linen and wool, generally come from the coastal areas of New Hampshire and Massachusetts. This outstanding example boasts an excellent composition and execution; additionally it is of an unusual scale and is one of the largest linsey-woolsey samplers known. Large white flowers worked in lustrous crinkled silk predominate overall, and a graceful bouquet in a whimsical two-handled vase formed of eyelet stitches is flanked by branches of enormous blossoms. The inscription reads, “Mary N Rob / binson aged 11 / years may 8 / 1808,” and is surrounded by a delicate leafy octagon worked in pale blue. The outer border is particularly rhythmic and frames this large composition well.

The Robinson family lived in Marblehead, Massachusetts, where Mary Neal Robinson was born on June 11, 1797.

She was the second of six children of Benjamin Robinson (17721815) and Anne (Wooldridge) Robinson (1770-1862) and vital records of the town indicate that were married there in 1794. On January 22, 1829, Mary married Benjamin Wooldridge (1794-1852) and they had a son, William, born in 1836. Mary remained in Marblehead and outlived her husband by many years; she died in 1883 at age 86.

The sampler was worked in silk on linsey-woolsey and is in excellent condition. It has been conservation mounted and is in a mahogany frame with line inlay.

Sampler size: 26½” x 19”

Framed size: 31½” x 24”

Price: $28,000.

Beulah Allen, Salem County, New Jersey, 1793 A visually compelling sampler, this was made by Beulah Allen, a young lady from a Quaker family in southern New Jersey. Interestingly, the sampler shows influence of those made in Philadelphia, the closest large city, and we presume that Beulah’s teacher learned her samplermaking skills and acquired her tastes there, earlier in the 18th century.

A large composition of a checkerboard two-handled urn of flowers dominates the sampler, with blossoms of varying scale. The verse, a version of one that was used by other samplermakers, was worked with the first letter of each word in uppercase and in a color that contrasts with the following letters in the word, one of characteristics of early Philadelphia samplers. The inscription reads, ““Beulah Allen Daughter of David And Rebecca Allen Her Work Wrought in the 11th year of her age 1793.” A narrow sawtooth inner border leads to a stunning, wide outer border of intricate composition, in which various flower blossoms, buds and fronds embellish a tightly designed framework.

The daughter of David and Rebecca (Thompson) Allen, Beulah was born on June 2, 1779 in Mannington Township, Salem County, New Jersey; she was the 6th of their 9 children. The family descended from Ralph Allen who was born in England in 1594 and who died in Massachusetts in 1698.

His son, Jedidiah Allen (1646-1712) removed to New Jersey. David and Rebecca were married at the Salem Monthly Meeting on August 1, 1765 and a copy of the Quaker handwritten marriage record accompanies the sampler. Meeting records inform us that Beulah died, unmarried, in 1821.

The sampler was worked in silk on fine linen gauze, again, in keeping with some 18th century samplers made in Philadelphia. It is in excellent condition and has been conservation mounted into a mahogany frame with line inlay.

Sampler size: 15¾” x 12½”

Framed size: 19¾” x 16½”

Price: $16,000.

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Sarah Bowman, Ephrata, Lancaster Co., Pennsylvania, 1816 The Pennsylvania German families of southeastern Pennsylvania, particularly Lancaster County, generally retained their German language and culture long after many American populations assimilated. Our samplermaker, Sarah Bowman, was from such a family and her sampler reveals her decided lack of familiarity with the English language. The inscription reads as follows: “Sarah Bowman is my name ephrata is my station, amarica is my dwelling placn Christ shall be my salvation, the rosees are rad the leves are green the days are past which i haw seen, and when i am dead and in my grave and all my bones are rotten the lord remember my dear soul at least i be for gotten, Sarah Bauman” “Sarah bauman was dorn in the year 1812 of aur lord Ganweary the 18 this sampler she seaet in the yer 1816,” “Susanah Bauman, Lebeth Bauman, guly anah Bauman, Mary Bauman”

Sarah Bowman was born on January 18, 1801 to Jacob and Elizabeth (Baer) Bauman in Ephrata, a prosperous town northeast of Lancaster. As of 1816 when she made her sampler, her sisters were Susannah, Elizabeth, Juliana and Mary. The Journal of The Historical Society of the Cocalico Valley, 1994, published an article entitled The Bauman / Bowman Family of the Cocalico Valley: Printers, Papermakers and Tavernkeepers. We have learned much information about the family and Sarah’s ancestor, John Bauman (1703-1771).

A copy of this Journal accompanies the sampler.

Sarah married John Bollinger and they had at least one child, Martin (18241848). Sarah died on December 9, 1878 and is buried in Bowman’s Cemetery in Ephrata.

The sampler is wonderfully appealing; a lovely wide border of openblossomed flowers surrounds the inscriptions. Red and tan silk cording was carefully couched down to the linen, providing an inner border and further compartments. This is an aesthetically striking sampler which combines the Anglo-American tradition of samplermaking with the Pennsylvania German culture of Lancaster County.

The sampler was worked in silk on linen and is in excellent condition. It has been conservation mounted in its excellent original curly maple and cherry corner block frame.

Sampler size: 14¾” x 17¼”

Framed size: 17¾” x 20¼”

Price: $9000.

Fanny Harrelson, Yanceyville, Caswell County, North Carolina, 1852 Far fewer samplers were made by schoolgirls from the southern states than northern ones, and curators and scholars have tracked and studied the known examples for many decades. One particular type of sampler that was indigenous to the United States was the Family Record, and these samplers were made predominantly in New England, where the form enjoyed great popularity. Few were made in the Mid-Atlantic States and Family Record samplers made south of Virginia are extremely rare. We are pleased to have recently reacquired this remarkable sampler, a fine Family Record, which we first owned in 1996. It documents the family of James C. Harrelson (1809-1885) and Mary A. (Powell) Harrelson (1810-1856), who lived in the northern part of central North Carolina, in the town of Yanceyville.

Harrelson ancestors were Danish and immigrated to America in the early 18th century, living initially in Hanover County, Virginia; by the 1750s family members migrated to Caswell County, North Carolina.

The sampler was made by Fanny Harrelson, who was born on March 1, 1837 and given the name Martha Frances Harrelson; she was the tenth of the twelve children that the Harrelsons had between 1834 and 1853.

The name of another family member, Nancy Weatherford, is stitched on the sampler as well. Nancy was an older sister of James Harrelson and had married Hiram Weatherford in 1818. Hiram died in 1851 and Nancy very likely was the teacher responsible for instructing her fifteen-year-old niece one year later.

The Heritage of Caswell County North Carolina, (Caswell County Historical Association, 1985) documents much about the family. In 1857, Fanny married Elisha G. Paschal (1825-1865), a farmer and miller whose ancestors were French Huguenots who arrived here in 1709, settling in Warren County, North Carolina. Four children were born to Fanny and Elisha between 1858 and 1864.

Unsurprisingly, the Civil War tragically affected the Harrelson and Paschal families. Fanny’s husband, who joined the Yanceyville Greys, and two of her brothers, James and Basley, died during the war.

Another brother, Peter, was taken prisoner of war. Fanny didn’t remarry and remained in the area, raising her four children in the small town of Locust Hill, just south of Yanceyville. Their lives, like those of so many others from the former Confederate states, would have been difficult for many years.

Fanny died on May 1, 1926.

The sampler was worked in silk on linen and is in excellent condition. It has been conservation mounted and is in a beveled maple frame with a cherry outer bead.

Sampler size: 17¼” x 17”

Framed size: 21¼” x 21”

Price: $14,500.

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Mary V. Throckmorton, Freehold, Monmouth County, New Jersey, circa 1837 An outstanding sampler featuring an unusual and handsome house and a fine graphic diamond-format border, this was made by Mary Vought Throckmorton of Freehold, New Jersey.

Flanking the wreathed verse are baskets and birds, importantly one is an eagle classically portrayed as the Great Seal of the United States with a shield for the body and arrows and olive branch in its talons. The arrangement of the alphabets and numbers is also uncommon and highly appealing, contributing to the composition as an outer framework.

Mary was the daughter of a farmer, Joseph Throckmorton (1790-1853) and his wife, Mary (Lloyd) Throckmorton. The family history is well documented in Throckmorton Family History (Bloomington, Illinois, 1929) and began with John Throckmorton who arrived in America in 1631. The family consisted of John, his wife Rebecca and two young children, who sailed on the ship, Lyon, out of Bristol. John and the renowned Roger Williams became good friends while on the ship and the Throckmortons followed Williams to Salem, Massachusetts and then in 1636, when they became disenchanted with the Puritans, moved with Williams to Rhode Island. The Throckmortons helped to establish the first settlement at Providence Plantation. The family had many business interests and circa 1643, with a land grant from the Dutch, developed an establishment east of Manhattan. This was called Throckmorton’s Neck and the name later changed to Throgs Neck.

The family then removed to New Jersey after the Monmouth Patent was signed in 1665, and John’s sons, John Jr. and Job, became important pioneers of this area. Many members of ensuing Throckmorton generations were prominent citizens of Monmouth County, active in both business and civic affairs.

Five generations later, Mary Vought Throckmorton was born, circa 1823. She states on her sampler that she was “Aged 13 years and 8 months” when she completed it and this was likely in 1837. It seems as the date on the sampler may have been stitched somewhat later, quite possibly by Mary herself. She married a farmer, James W. Emmons, of Monmouth County and they lived in Hopewell, where they had at least two sons. She died in 1916.

The sampler was worked in silk on linen and is in excellent condition. It has been conservation mounted and is in a cherry beveled frame.

Sampler size: 16¾” x 17”

Framed size: 20¼” x 20½”

Price: $11,000.

Ruth T. Daman, Scituate, Massachusetts, 1807 Ruth Tilden Daman, a twelve year old from Scituate, Massachusetts, a town 28 miles southeast of Boston, worked this outstanding sampler in 1807; it very closely resembles the sampler made by her older sister, Desire Ells Daman in 1804. Both samplers were in the Theodore H. Kapnek Collection and were published in A Gallery of American Samplers by Glee Krueger (Dutton, 1978), Ruth’s as figure 54. This work has been a favorite of ours since we first saw it exhibited at the Museum of American Folk Art, as a part of the Kapnek collection, in 1978.

The sampler depicts a classic double-chimney Federal house, featuring a notably detailed cast iron cresting along the roof line. Worked in a palette representing various shades of brick, with teal blue windows and details, the front yard features an excellent cast iron fence and gate. A pair of nicely evocative, folky weeping willow trees arch over urns set on striped grass. Alphabets and unusually well-featured vowels appear above the samplermaker’s inscription, a much loved couplet that encapsulates the values that instructresses hoped to impart to their young pupils.

A graphic border and various sprigs of flowers and branches of berries further embellish the sampler. The overall freeform qualities further the sense of whimsy of this praiseworthy needlework.

The Daman / Damon family is well documented in many genealogical publications.

Genealogy of Six Generations of Descendants of John Damon of Scituate, Massachusetts by D. Bradford Damon (1935) tells us that John Damon arrived in Scituate as early as 1628, having sailed with a maternal uncle. In 1644 he married Katherine Merritt and their son, Zachariah, was the great grandfather of our samplermaker. Zachariah was an officer in King Philip’s War and was a Conahasset Partner, one of the original landowners in the area.

Ruth was born on December 3, 1795, the youngest child of Calvin Laban Daman and his second wife, Mercy Ells. She married a distant cousin, Harris Damon, a housewright, also of Scituate, on July 4, 1819 and they had eight children born between 1819 and 1831. She died in 1855 and is buried in nearby Hingham at the First Parish Cemetery.

The sampler was worked in silk on linen and is in excellent condition. It has been conservation mounted and is in a cherry and maple frame.

Sampler size: 19¾”

Framed size: 24½” x 21½”

Price: $18,500.

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Emeline Castner, Merion Boarding School, Merion, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, 1819 A notice regarding a Quaker school, the Merion Boarding School, was published in 1816 in a Pennsylvania newspaper and later reprinted in the Friends’ Intelligencer and Journal. It states that the Merion Boarding School was located, “in a pleasant and healthy situation about six miles from Philadelphia … In this seminary the Latin, Greek, and French languages are taught by an experienced teacher … In the English Departments are taught the English language, Arithmetic, Geography, and with the use of Globes, Algebra, Geometry, Mensuration, Surveying, Navigation, Spherics, Astronomy, Mechanics, Hydrostatics, Optics, etc.”

This most impressive curriculum also included needlework taught to female students, as evidenced by three known samplers, all dated 1819. Two were made by sisters, Sarah and Margaret Bowman, and are in the collection of the Chester County Historical Society. We are pleased to offer the third, this sophisticated and beautifully worked example by Emeline Caster.

The samplers are filled with outstanding quintessential motifs that well represent the finest Quaker designs from the early 19th century - sprays of flowers, baskets filled with fruit and pairs of gliding white swans embellish all three of the needleworks. Miss Castner may have been a bit more advanced than the Bowman girls as her composition includes a few more intricate elements, also characteristic Quaker motifs. The fine medallion rising between the swans is one of these, and contains the date 1819, as well as the initials of Emeline’s parents, JC and HC. Her parents were Jacob Castner (1779-1862) and Hannah (Wilson) Castner (1783-1864) and she was born in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania on December 28, 1807. Jacob served as captain of two militia companies for several years in the early 19th century. The Castner ancestor who began the branch of the family in America was Paul Castner, born in Germany or Holland and died in Pennsylvania in 1717. He was a Friend as early as 1692 according to a mention of him in Yearly Meeting records.

Emeline’s parents must have been very proud of her accomplishment as they had it placed in a gold leaf frame made by a Philadelphia framer, Spencer Nolan of 78 Chestnut Street. This frame retains part of its original label from Mr. Nolan’s shop. Emeline died young, at age 21, in 1828. After her death the sampler remained in the family for many generations as evidenced by a note written by the grandson of her younger brother.

The sampler was worked in silk on linen and is in excellent condition. It has been conservation mounted into its aforementioned, original gold leaf frame.

Sampler size: 19½” x 21¾”

Framed size: 21½” x 23¾”

Price: $7400.

Clarissa West, Concord, New Hampshire, 1806 The death of George Washington on December 14, 1799 generated a countrywide outpouring of grief, and it remained an important event to many Americans for years. Reference to his death appears on many schoolgirl samplers and mourning embroideries for decades into the 19th century. Clarissa West, a ten-year-old living in Concord, New Hampshire, worked this handsome sampler which features large and lovely teal green alphabets and a poignant memorial scene along the bottom.

Nestled into the grass are two inky black urns with downward drooping branches and the initials GW. Somewhat anachronistically, a cheerful basket of white flowers and leafy fronds is centered in the lawn.

The two-line couplet that Clarissa stitched, “Through thickest gloom look back immortal shade On that confusion which thy death has made,” is of great interest. It was written by famed African American poet Phillis Wheatley (1753-1784) as part of a poem penned upon the 1771 death of Dr. Samuel Marshall, a relative of Phillis’s adopted mother. In 1773 the poems of the remarkably talented young Miss Wheatley, this included, were published in London as Poems on Various Subjects, Religious and Moral. Interestingly, Phillis Wheatley and George Washington met once, in Cambridge, Massachusetts in 1776 at his Continental Army Camp. Miss Wheatley corresponded with General Washington regarding some poems and patriotic tributes that she had written about him. He wrote back and extended an invitation, which she accepted.

The instructress at the school that Clarissa attended in 1806 must have suggested that her students include a memorial to George Washington on their samplers. The assigned inclusion of a quotation from Wheatley’s memorial poetry indicates that this teacher likely knew of the Wheatley connection to Washington.

Clarissa was born on Dec 1, 1795 in Concord, New Hampshire. Her parents were John and Susanna (Eastman) West and she was the second of nine children. Her grandfathers, both Nathaniel West (1717-1775) and Moses Eastman (1732-1812), had roots in the area, and Eastman had served admirably in the Revolutionary War. Clarissa died in Concord on July 19, 1810 at age fifteen. Her sampler was subsequently owned by her sister and then a niece for whom Clarissa was a namesake.

The sampler was worked in silk on linen and is in excellent condition. It has been conservation mounted and is in a molded and painted frame.

Sampler size: 16¾” x 12½”

Framed size: 19¼” x 15”

Price: $3800.

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Elizabeth McFarland, Appoquinimink Hundred, New Castle County, Delaware, 1822 Delaware samplers were the subject of an exhibition at the Biggs Museum and its accompanying catalogue, Wrought with Careful Hand: Ties of Kinship on Delaware Samplers, by Lynne Anderson and Gloria Allen (Biggs Museum of American Art and Sampler Consortium, 2014) documents these well.

Elizabeth McFarland’s sampler was included in the exhibition and is published on p. 74 of this book. It is a fine Quaker sampler, with many characteristic motifs and sampler designs, most notably the pair of birds in the large medallion centered at the top. Elizabeth included three sets of initials, and as Dr. Allen remarks, they are likely the initials of her parents and her teacher; presumably, her father was Alexander McFarland and his wife is unknown, though her initials are stitched as LmcF. The other set of initials, CGB, are likely to be those of Elizabeth’s teacher. Another remarkably similar sampler, made by Sarah C. Corbit, notes these initials in the same composition. These families were members of the Friends’ Duck Creek Monthly Meeting.

Appoquinimink Hundred is the southernmost hundred of New Castle County; though the term “hundred” is no longer used to name a geographical subdivision in Delaware.

Quaker samplers are sought after by collectors for their careful workmanship, handsome composition and regional histories. The great majority of these were made in Pennsylvania and New Jersey; the well documented Delaware origin of this sampler renders it a great rarity. The rich teal, shades of greens and pinks used for the flower sprigs, birds and swans and graphic, linear border compliment the brown silk threads that formed the very precise Quaker-style lettering.

Dr. Allen’s next book, with the working title of Delaware Discoveries: Girlhood Embroidery, 17551855, and scheduled for publication in 2017, will be comprehensive and promises to expand our collective knowledge, similar to her extant books regarding Maryland and District of Columbia samplers and silk embroideries.

Worked in silk on linen, Elizabeth’s sampler remains in excellent condition. It has been conservation mounted into a cherry beveled frame with a black outer bead.

Sampler size: 16½” x 16”

Framed size: 20¾” x 20¼”

Price: $13,500.

Martha Bentley, Ackworth School, Yorkshire, England, 1815 The Ackworth School was founded in 1779 in northern England, with the purpose of providing an education for Quaker children from less affluent families; it was expected that both male and female students would receive an academic education, as well as skills that would help them find work after they left the boarding school. The girls learned needlework, both plain sewing and finer skills, and many of the Ackworth school sampler patterns became hallmarks of excellent samplermaking throughout England and the United States. Carol Humphrey’s book, Quaker School Girl Samplers from Ackworth (Needleprint, 2006), is an imporant source about the school and the samplers made there.

One particularly sophisticated type of sampler that was developed at the Ackworth School is the geometric medallion pattern; these samplers featured many interesting and complex full and half medallion motifs, some highly stylized and some enclosing swans, birds or flowers. Some Ackworth girls who made these samplers also filled the area between with classic Quaker motifs and might have incorporated letters of the alphabet scattered throughout the stylized images, as well. Martha Bentley included both the motifs and letters with her beautifully stitched medallions. Occasionally samplers of this type could include a small dedication or pledge of friendship – “MB to MS 1815”, “A token of love” were stitched inside wreaths and the initials of Martha’s sister, Phebe, also an Ackworth student, inside a medallion.

Detailed records from the Ackworth archives indicate that Martha Bentley entered the Ackworth School on Christmas Eve, 1813; she was from a Quaker family of Ipswich, the daughter of a brushmaker, John Bentley and his wife, Phebe. The family belonged to Woodbridge Monthly Meeting where Martha’s birth on December 12, 1801 was recorded. Five of her siblings also attended Ackworth School. Martha remained at the school until December 29, 1815. Prior to the coming of railways in 1847, there were no school holidays and the great majority of students stayed at Ackworth for the length of their education there. At age 23, Martha married Joseph Hill, a cordwainer and fellow Quaker; this ceremony was performed at the Woodbridge Monthly Meeting.

Martha’s sampler remains in excellent condition and has been conservation mounted into its original bird’s eye maple frame with gold liner.

Sampler size: 12¾” square

Framed size: 18” square

Price: $16,000.

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Mary Husband, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 1853 Mary Husband boldly stitched that she worked her sampler in Philadelphia using classic Quaker style lettering. She was born May 3, 1842 to Thomas Jewett Husband (1813-1898) and Mary (Richardson) Husband (1817-1874) in Byberry. Located in the northeastern-most corner of Philadelphia, Byberry is a small township settled in the 1600s. Thomas, a druggist, and his wife Mary wed at the Byberry Quaker Meeting and had nine children, Mary was their third.

The family moved several times throughout Philadelphia and maintained membership at their local Quaker Monthly Meetings, including but not limited to Byberry, Spruce Street, Green Street and Cherry Street. Sadly three of her siblings and Mary died young, and they are buried alongside their parents at the Fair Hill Burial Ground, a Quaker cemetery in North Philadelphia. Mary’s mother was fondly recorded in the Fair Hill Cemetery records, after her death in 1874. Mary’s death, at age 15, was noted in the Friends’ Intelligencer.

The alphabets and pictorial motifs that Mary worked are neatly composed and exhibit an endearing simplicity. The overall aesthetic reflects the mid-19th century date, though the classic elements were certainly taught from earlier times.

Worked in silk on linen, this sampler remains in excellent condition, with some minor loss to the silk in the upper left corner. It has been conservation mounted into a period grain painted frame.

Sampler size: 15½” x 19”

Framed size: 19¼” x 22¾”

Price: $2900.

Sarah H. James, Elizabeth Passmore School, East Goshen, Chester County, Pennsylvania, 1820 A highly regarded group of samplers was made under the instruction of Elizabeth Passmore, a teacher in East Goshen Township, Chester County, Pennsylvania.

Worked in the 1820s, these are large, praiseworthy samplers, beautifully designed and executed with great skill. Many different stitches and techniques were employed by these makers and some of their samplers retain their original, extravagant silk ribbon borders with rosette corners. Betty Ring, writing in Girlhood Embroidery, Vol. II, (Knopf, New York, 1993) describes the Passmore School samplers and illustrates as figure 442 one made by Mary H. Garrett, also in 1820. Mary and our Sarah James must have been classmates and their stellar samplers are greatly similar. Mrs. Ring refers to our Sarah H. James sampler specifically and knew of it from an early publication, American Needlework, by Georgiana Brown Harbeson (Bonanza Books, New York, 1938), where it was illustrated opposite page 52. The sampler was then in the well-respected collection of Mrs. Francis Brinton, and the published description of it is flattering and extensive, providing the basis for information about Elizabeth Passmore as a teacher. (continued on the next page)

Sarah H. James, Elizabeth Passmore School, East Goshen, Chester County, Pennsylvania, 1820 (cont.)

One of the most notable characteristics of samplers made at the school is that within the listing of names of family members, the names of those who were deceased at the time were worked in white stiches with individually stitched black surrounds; this seems to have originated with the Passmore School. The overall composition and specifically the hilly lawn with a willow tree at center and French-knotted lambs, rabbits and large berry bushes are also signatures of this instructress. Some of the samplermakers who attended Miss Passmore’s school surrounded their inscriptions with a fine wreath of grape bunches and leaves and Sarah James’ version is particularly good. In her writings, Mrs. Harbeson describes this sampler as “an ambitious work in a jolly and decorative sampler.” We have handled other Passmore School samplers in the past and are delighted to be able to offer this outstanding example.

Born on July 2, 1805, Sarah was the daughter of Aaron and Mary (Mercer) James, residents of Westtown, Chester County.

As stitched on her sampler, her grandparents were Caleb and Mary James and Thomas and Jane Mercer. Sarah was one of eleven children, five of whom had died by 1820, as we can tell from their names on her sampler.

Sarah married Francis James (different families) on September 7, 1826 and they lived in West Chester.

Francis James (1799-1886) was a lawyer, elected in 1834 to the State Senate, later serving as well in Congress. In History of Chester County, Pennsylvania with Genealogical and Biographical Sketches,

by Futhey and Cope (Philadelphia, 1881), Francis James was noted for his strong anti-slavery position and described as, “a venerable gentleman, dignified, courteous, and modest.” Portraits painted of Sarah and Francis James by C. Burton and by John F. Francis are in the collection of the Chester County Historical Society. Sarah and Francis had one child, a daughter Anna M. James. Sarah died in 1870 and Francis in 1886.

Worked in silk on linen and retaining its original fine silk ribbon edging, the sampler is in excellent condition. It has been conservation mounted and is in a mahogany frame.

Sight size: 23¼” x 26”

Framed size: 27” x 29¾”

Price: $17,000.

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Fanny and Anny Barr, Strasburg, Lancaster Co., Pennsylvania, 1817

We are delighted to offer this recent discovery, a pair of outstanding samplers made in 1817 in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania by sisters, Fanny Barr who was born in 1803 and Anny Barr who was born in 1806. In 1822, these same sisters made two other wonderful pictorial samplers that are in the collection of the Lancaster County Historical Society and published in Historical Needlework of Pennsylvania, by Margaret B. Schiffer (Charles Scribner’s Sons, New York, 1968), on page 75. The Barr girls favored large, horizontal format samplers with alphabets, verse, large figures, birds, animals and, in the case of those made in 1817, houses. All four samplers are beautifully stitched and have excellent folk characteristics.

Fanny and Anny were daughters of Martin Barr (1756-1844) and Fanny (Neff) Barr (1763-1840), who married in 1788. The family lived in Strasburg, southeast of the city of Lancaster. Fanny, at age 19, married Jacob Neff (1793-1859), the son of Rev. Jacob Neff who was a brother of Fanny’s mother. They had a daughter, Letitia, who was born in 1824 and in 1826, Fanny died, age 23, following the birth of a son. Jacob Neff then married Fanny’s sister Anny, age 22, in 1828. They had seven children and remained in Strasburg. Jacob died in 1859 and Anny in 1874. They are buried in the Brackbill-Neff Graveyard in Strasburg. More information is published in Genealogical Record of Reverend Hans Herr and his Direct Lineal Descendants, by Theodore Herr (Lancaster, PA, 1908).

The samplers were worked in silk on linen and are in excellent condition. They have been conservation mounted in maple and cherry frames. (continued on the next page)

Fanny and Anny Barr, Strasburg, Lancaster Co., PA, 1817 (cont.)

Sampler sizes: Fanny, 16¾” x 21¾” Anny, 16½” x 21½” Framed sizes: Fanny, 21¾” x 26¾” Anny, 21½” x 26½” Price for the pair: $26,000.

Sampler Stretcher Frame, Tiger Maple, American, circa 1850 A remarkable find, this is a beautifully made and highly functional sampler or needlework stretcher frame. The set consists of six figured-maple lengths and four stretcher keys that kept it tight while in use. The two 18” vertical side pieces retain their original cloth woven tape secured with brass tacks; they each have mortise-like carved openings to allow for the pair that would be used for the horizontals. The shorter ones, 9”, would be used for more of a band sampler and the longer ones, 12”, for a wider sampler – they would slide through as would tenons. The four pieces would be secured with the accompanying finely carved keys. The samplermaker would then stitch the ground fabric of her sampler to the fabric tape on the sides and through the holes in the maple of the top and bottom pieces, which are just big enough for a needle to fit through. It is indeed notable that all of these pieces have remained together for these many years. A narrow, tape-woven ribbon accompanies the set and was used to wrap the keys.

Price: $800.

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AVM, Amsterdam, Holland, 1803 Dutch samplermaking can offer fine needlework and an outstanding array of pictorial motifs, and this example certainly offers excellence in both areas. According to noted Dutch needlework expert, M. G. A. Schipper van Lottum, the large variety of documented images that were worked onto 17th through early 19th century samplers came from European emblemata books that were published in the period. Patterns took their inspiration from Biblical stories, Christian symbols, political vignettes and motifs from everyday life. Those worked onto this sampler include the Kings of the Magi, Dutch Free Maiden with her cat, Spies of Canaan, the city crest of Amsterdam, facing rabbits under an arbor, open-tail peacocks, birds and, of course, many pots of flowers and baskets of fruit in a strong color palette and arranged in an excellent composition centered around a tall flowering plant in a striped, two-handled urn.

Like the great majority of Dutch needleworkers, the maker identified herself with her initials only, which in this case are enclosed within a wreath upheld by a pair of angels. The sampler was worked in silk on linen and is in excellent condition. It has been conservation mounted, now in a molded and painted frame.

Sampler size: 15¼” x 13¾”

Framed size: 17¼” x 15¾”

Price: $3400.

Emma Graf, German School, Sacramento, California, 1869 As the westward movement took hold, many American families left the comfort and security of the East and became pioneers, settling in territories throughout the Midwest and ultimately in California.

They were joined by immigrants from many parts of the world, and Europeans, as had been the case for centuries in the Americas, added substantial numbers to this population. The early history of the city of Sacramento, California, established in 1848 and named for the Sacramento River which formed it western border, was intertwined with Gold Rush that began at nearby Sutter’s Mill. The population of Sacramento just about doubled between 1850, when about 6800 people lived there, and 1860, when the population was about 13,800.

Just as schoolgirls back East had made samplers for many decades, the tradition continued, although to a much lesser degree, in California. Our large and handsome sampler was worked in 1869 by Emma Graf, a thirteen-year-old who was born in California in 1857. There are only a handful of documented California samplers known; we are aware of five including Emma’s and these were made between the late 1850s and the late 1870s.

(continued on the next page)

Emma Graf, German School, Sacramento, CA, 1869 (cont.)

The stitched inscription on this very well documented sampler includes the name of the school that Emma attended, the German School. History of Sacramento County California (Thompson and West, 1880), in the section entitled “The Pioneer School,” indicates that by 1858 one German school was in operation, along with a number of other private schools, including one French school and two for Black children. The composition of Emma’s work resembles that of earlier samplers made back East – various alphabets and an inscription worked in neat rows separated by narrow lines, with many classic pictorial motifs providing embellishment and further proof of the stitcher’s knowledge and skill. And, again, in keeping with the early sampler tradition, a house is centrally featured within the pictorial register.

Emma was the daughter of Andreas (who also used the anglicized Andrew) and Anna Mary (Plattner) Graf, both of whom were born in Switzerland.

Andreas was born in 1816 and Anna Mary in 1825 and they arrived in the port of New York on August 10, 1849, having sailed from Le Havre, France.

The couple immediately headed west and the 1850 census shows them in St. Louis, Missouri. Andreas was a butcher and they had a five month old son, born in Missouri. They continued further west and were in California by 1854. In 1860 the family, living in Sacramento, consisted of five children including Emma.

In July of 1878 in Sacramento Emma married William Henry Harrison Lee (1834-1879) and after his death the following year, married his brother, Willard Malcolm Lee (1837-1902). Emma died on April 4, 1903, and is buried, along with many noted California pioneers, in the Sacramento City Cemetery, which was established in 1850.

Worked in silk on linen, the sampler is in excellent condition. It has been conservation mounted and is in a beveled maple frame.

Sampler size: 16¼” x 26¾”

Framed size: 20¼” x 30¾”

Price: $22,000.

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Sarah Stanley Brown, Honeybrook, Chester Co., Pennsylvania, circa 1832

Many splendid, large pictorial samplers were made in Chester County, Pennsylvania in the 1820s and 30s and Sarah Stanley Brown’s work is a particularly appealing example. The composition centers on a beautifully stitched brick house set between a blue fence and a pair of highly stylized trees. Baskets, flowers, large birds, butterflies, poetry and moral admonishments provide further embellishment and it is all surrounded by a praiseworthy border of grape bunches and grape leaves on a rhythmic vine.

Sarah Stanley Brown included specifics about her birth and the names of her parents, James W. Brown and Sarah Brown, within her stitching. Recent research involving many sources allows us to know a great deal further about the family. Sarah was born on July 16, 1820, the fourth of ten children. Her parents, Sarah (Stanley) Brown and James Wilson Brown were both from prominent and well-to-do Chester County families. A maternal uncle, Matthew Stanley (1762-1844), was a general in the War of 1812, a member of the Pennsylvania Assembly, a Justice of the Peace, and considered a local patriot and a gentleman of influence. Sarah’s father, an important attorney in Honeybrook, inherited his grandmother’s plantation in West Caln in 1818.

Sarah married somewhat late, when she was 33 years old and this may account for the fact that she removed stitched numbers that identify specific years from her sampler. It was relatively common for a lady to choose not to have her age displayed on her schoolgirl sampler. Her husband was William Williams and they married on January 20, 1843 in Honeybrook, according to the Pennsylvania State Archives. Sarah died on February 28, 1861 and is buried at Laurel Hill, known for its horticultural plantings and rolling landscapes, and now a National Historic Landmark.

The sampler was worked in silk on linen and is in excellent condition with very minor loss to the linen at the outer edges. It has been conservation mounted into a molded and painted frame.

Sampler size: 17” x 23¾”

Framed size: 19¾” x 26½”

Price: $8800.

Sarah Thurgood, taught by Mrs. Lerpiniere, Danbury, Essex, England, 1768 This extremely fine sampler presents a very thorough inscription in which our maker notes: “This Sampler was work’d by Sarah Thurgood who was taught by Mrs. Lerpiniere at Danbury in Essex, in the Eighth year of our Sovereign Lord George III. by the Grace of God, King of Great….. Britain, &c. and in the year of our Lord God. 1768” Miss Thurgood’s faultlessly rendered sampler certainly reflects her skill as a needleworker, as well as the talent of her instructress. Fine alphabets and verse are separated by bands of flowers and leaves worked in gradient greens.

Trees, potted flowers, a dog and a bird support the composition along an undulating green ground, and beneath a blue and gray wavy sky, parted by the highly stylized central tree. A classic border surrounds this work on all four sides.

Research indicates that the maker was likely Sarah Thurgood, the third of thirteen children of Thomas and Ann (Dams) Thurgood. The family resided in Terling, Essex. Danbury, where Sarah attended school, is just seven miles due south of Terling. Mrs. Lerpiniere may have been the Mary Lerpiniere of Sandon, Essex, a town less than three miles due west of Danbury.

Further research conducted locally will likely reveal more about both student and teacher.

Worked in silk on linen, this sampler is in very good condition with some very minor loss to the alphabets. It has been conservation mounted into a black painted frame with a gold liner.

Sampler size: 14½” x 8” Framed size: 16¾” x 10¼” Price: $5800.

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CS, Friesland, Holland, 1724 The samplers of Friesland, a province in northwest Holland, are particularly sought after for the highly decorative needlework used to execute a wonderful assortment of intricate patterns and motifs that appear on samplers made in that area over a long period of time. These merklappen or lettermerklap include many alphabets, ranging from very small to positively out-sized, worked with letters that commensurately vary from simple fonts to extravagantly decorative ones.

Samplermakers rarely signed their work with their names, using instead their initials in highly embellished letters. Motifs include those with religious origins and those representing everyday objects, as well as many purely stylized designs.

Friesian samplers worked in a strongly vertical format are more unusual than horizontal ones, and tend to originate in the northern and western parts of the province. The presence of a dominant sailing ship further indicates the likelihood of a coastal origin.

Letter Voor Letter by Gieneke Arnolli and Rosalie Sloof (Fries Museum, Leeuwarden) states that when a threemasted sailing ship complete with crew members appears on a sampler, it expressed the wish for a good voyage through life, marriage and childbearing. Another notable emblem found on this excellent, early sampler is the wounded or pierced heart, signifying that love conquers all. The workmanship on this sampler is outstanding and a very good palette contributes to its strong aesthetic appeal.

Worked in silk on linen, it is in excellent condition. It has been conservation mounted and is in a molded and painted frame.

Sampler size: 24” x 12¾” Framed size: 26½” x 15¼” Price: $4200.

MH, Hebrew Alphabet and Darning Sampler, Holland, 1805 While there is no doubt that early samplers were made by girls from many different cultures, religions and races, it is extremely unusual to find specific reference to a Jewish background on the needlework itself. This sampler presents itself as the work of a young Dutch schoolgirl, with alphabets, numbers, various narrow bands and lines, three darned squares (one of them incomplete) and a center box with the maker’s initials MH, flanked by birds and the date, 1805.

It is the two Hebrew alphabets and one Hebrew word, “Kingdom” that render this a great rarity.

Beginning in the mid-17th century, Jews were attracted to Holland for its greater tolerance and found protection there during the reigns of William IV (1711-1751) and William V (1748-1806). Life began to improve for Dutch Jews at the end of the 18th century and by the early 19th century, with movements underway that hoped to change market-days from Saturday to Monday, to permit Jewish schoolchildren to attend public schools and to allow Jewish men to participate in general military service. Our samplermaker likely attended a school for Jewish children, or may have learned to make her sampler at home.

The sampler was worked in silk on linen and is in excellent condition. It has been conservation mounted and is in a molded and painted frame.

Sampler size: 13½” x 11¼”

Framed size: 15¾” x 13½”

Price: $9000.

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Margaret Shaw, Mrs. Elmendorf School, Kingston, Ulster County, New York, 1831 An unusual sampler on a lovely yellow linen, this is signed, “Margaret Shaw’s work. Aged Nine Years. July Eighth 1831 … Worked at Mrs. Elmendorf’s School. 1831.”

Featured are alphabets, numbers, a classic verse worked in tiny lettering, flowers on branches and a wonderful miniature pictorial row of animals, birds, baskets, flowers and a house. This is one of three known samplers made under Mrs. Elmendorf’s instruction; the others are both dated 1835 and all were made in Kingston, a town in Ulster County, on the Hudson River, about 90 miles north of New York.

Margaret Shaw was born circa 1821 to William and Hannah (Burhans) Shaw, who married in 1812.

Margaret married Cornelius Burhans (1821-1911), a merchant and coal and lumber dealer in Kingston in 1844. The History of Ulster County, New York by W. J. Van Deusen (1907) publishes much information about Margaret, as well as Cornelius who was a community leader. They had five children, and their son Charles (born 1846) is included in the book, Who’s Who in New York City and State, edited by John W. Leonard (New York, 1907). He was a successful banker, active in many civic affairs, as was his father.

The sampler was worked in silk on linen and is in excellent condition. It has been conservation mounted and is in its original mahogany frame.

Sampler size: 15¼” x 15¼”

Framed size: 18¼” x 18¼”

Price: $3800.

Miniature and very small samplers and needleworks are a genre unto themselves.

They could be made as gifts, tokens or presentation pieces, to document a certain event, or sometimes it seems, just for the sake of proving one’s skill, as tiny stitches require substantial technical ability. We have gathered six examples, four are English, one is French and one is American.

Miniature Sampler, Mary Smith, England, 1812

A charming little sampler with a well-developed border, this was worked by Mary Smith in 1812. A polychrome framework of a variety of vining flowers was worked on all four sides culminating with a pair of birds at the bottom facing inward to an overstuffed basket at the bottom. An additional interior checkered surround frames Mary’s verse, inscription and little motifs.

An inked note on the original backboard reads: “Worked by Mary Smith aged 11 or 12, 1812. Wife of John Butterfield Manningham Lane Bradford.” This led us to information identifying the maker as Mary Smith who was born in 1800 and married John Butterfield in 1820 in York, England.

Manningham Lane is an industrious main thoroughfare with much commerce in the town center of Bradford, West Yorkshire, England.

Worked in silk on wool, Mary’s sampler remains in excellent condition. It has been conservation mounted and returned to its original frame; of course the original backboard accompanies the sampler.

Sampler size: 6½” x 4¼” Framed size: 8” x 5¾” Price: $1800.

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Miniature Sampler, Elizabeth Webb, England, 1779 This gem-like, diminutive sampler was worked by Elizabeth Webb in 1779. A fully developed composition on a small scale with alphabets, numerical progression, pictorial elements and her inscription has been stitched inside a sawtooth border in pink and copper colors. Such a small token that Elizabeth’s first name wouldn’t fit on her inscription line; she abbreviated it as Elizth.

The pictorial elements include classic flowering plants, birds, crowns, diamonds and a heart. The band of crowns is notable for the unusual elongated center crown, which is then balanced by the same two on either side.

Worked in silk on wool, Miss Webb’s sampler remains in excellent condition and has been conservation mounted into a gold leaf frame.

Sampler size: 4¾” x 3½” Framed size: 6½’ x 5¼” Price: $1900.

Lucy Selina Coles, High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, England, 1852 Lucy Selina Coles stitched this letterperfect little sampler in 1852 in Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, England, as she so notes on her work. She was born in Watford, Hertfordshire in 1843 to Charles, a miller and journeyman, and Sophia Coles. The family then moved to High Wycombe, a large town in Buckinghamshire, and just west of London.

Lucy’s sampler features neatly stitched alphabets, numerical progression, and her inscription in tight red stitches, and each divided by an equally fine decorative band.

A geometric framework zigzags its way around all four sides in deep forest green cross-stitches.

Worked in silk on wool, Miss Coles’ sampler remains in excellent condition.

It has been conservation mounted into a black and gold frame.

Sampler size: 5¾” x 5”

Framed size: 8¼” x 7½”

Price: $950.

Susanna Spencer, New Hartford, Litchfield County, Connecticut, 1761 An interesting comparison to miniature English samplers and a very rare example is this one from colonial America, made by Susanna Spencer, who stitched on it the specifics of her birth date. The Spencer family lived in New Hartford, Litchfield County, Connecticut where Susanna was born. She was the daughter of John Spencer (1710-1780) and Mary (Hubbard) Spencer (1713-1802). The family descended from Thomas Spencer who was one of the earliest settlers of Hartford, in the eastern part of the colony, residing there by 1636.

Susanna married William Barrett, a fellow resident of New Hartford, when she was 34 and they had eight children. A daughter, Samantha Barrett (1786-1830) was a single woman who, along with a sister, operated an 85 acre farm. Her diary, kept from 1828 and 1829, is in the collection of the Connecticut Historical Society. Susanna died on October 10, 1832 and is buried, along with many family members, at the Town Hill Cemetery in New Hartford.

The sampler was worked in silk on linen and is in very good condition with very minor discoloration to the linen and one area of loss to the linen at the right edge. The letter D is intact but worked in ivory silk. It has been conservation mounted and is in molded and painted frame.

Sampler size: 4½” x 6½”

Framed size: 7” x 9¼”

Price: $2600.

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Miniature Collet Fiché Embroidery, France, late 18th century

Collet fiché is a form of needlework that originated in France at the end of the 18th century in convents of the Ursuline nuns. This technique involves precision embroidery on paper and is double sided, with the reverse of these pieces finished in the same manner as the front. The subject matter is always religious in nature, as is the case with this praiseworthy little piece, which depicts Agnes Dei, the Lamb of God, shown here on green grass between the shining sun and a looming cloud. A metallic thread was used to create the oval frame of the scene, as well as the sunrays. A fat blue bow holds the oval at the top, while fine sprigs tied with a bowknot frame the oval underneath. The reverse is, of course, the mirror image.

Worked in silk and metallic thread on paper, it remains in excellent condition; and is in its original pressed brass frame, now with glass on both sides.

Sight size: 3½” x 2¾”

Framed size: 4¾” x 4”

Price: $1700.

(Detail of verso)

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Selina T. Bishop, England, 1808 This small and neatly worked sampler offers an endearing simplicity.

Utilizing precise black stitches, Selina Bishop practiced her alphabets, upper and lowercase, as well as her compass points, north, south, east and west, and continents, Europe, Asia, Africa and America, all centered very nicely. We know of many samplers that duplicate published maps of the period and of a very few samplers that depict the multiplication table; it was not uncommon for teachers to incorporate academic subjects into the curriculum of their needlework lessons.

Selina’s instructress must have assigned segments of her overall geography lesson to her students and, in some ways, this sampler nicely resembles a printed page. A tightly worked scrolling wave border, stitched around all four sides and as precisely as the lettering, provides an excellent framework to this very appealing sampler.

Worked in silk on wool this sampler is in excellent condition. It has been conservation mounted into its very fine original bird’s eye maple and elm frame.

Sampler size: 7” x 4¼”

Framed size: 10¾” x 8”

Price: $1600.

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Watercolor Birth Announcement for James B. Schmidt, Chambersburg, Franklin County, Pennsylvania, 1856-57 While this beautifully made watercolor birth announcement isn’t needlework, its origin must have been strongly influenced by the traditions of both sampler and fraktur making.

The fine calligraphy inscription reads, “James B. Sohn of Georg his Wife Catharine Schmidt was born August the 18th 1856 and Baptised from Revd C. Baumann July the 5th 1857.”

Above is a wonderful twohandled pot of flowers, with cross-hatch shading to provide dimension. Pale pink roses fill the pot and it is all surrounded by a narrow stylized border.

The Schmidt family lived in Chambersburg, Franklin County, Pennsylvania at the time, having emigrated from Bavaria, where both Georg and his wife Catharine (Bittner) Schmidt were born.

They continued on to Pittsburgh where the 1880 census indicates that Georg kept a saloon.

This work on paper is in excellent condition with very minor foxing, and remains in its fine original maple corner block frame.

Sight size: 9½” x 7½”

Framed size: 13½” x 11½”

Price: $2800.

Abigail Jane Purdy, Westchester County, New York, circa 1838 This is a pleasing sampler dominated by a fine house and lawn scene and a verse regarding Industry, which is published in American Samplers, as no. 177, by Ethel Stanwood Bolton & Eva Johnston Coe (Boston, 1921). The scene, grounded by a white picket fence, centers on a well pump worked in ivory and light blue wool, which is offset by a tall coniferous tree and pink house on the one side and a dark willow tree and pink-breasted bird on the other. The farm house, depicted in three-quarter view, displays two chimneys along the roofline, mullioned windows including two dormers and a secondstory balcony, likely a known homestead to Miss Purdy. A robust border of full and leafy flower blooms frames the landscape well. (continued on the next page)

Abigail Jane Purdy, Westchester County, NY, circa 1838 (cont.)

We confidently attribute this work to Abigail Jane Purdy who was born in 1823 in Eastchester, Westchester County, New York to Robert and Phoebe (Tredwell) Purdy as the last of their three children. Abigail remained single and died at the age of 81 in 1904.

Worked in wool and silk on linen, the sampler remains in excellent condition, with very minor loss to the linen at the outer edges. It has been conservation mounted into its original dark stained wood frame.

Sampler size: 17¼” square Framed size: 21¼” square Price: $2800.

Ann Norton, England, 1822 This lovely English sampler depicts a variety of finely stitched pictorial elements, worked by Miss Ann Norton in 1822. Centered on a large basket of delicate flowers, the composition features a pair of Adam & Eve scenes with snake-coiled trees, other flowers, trees and animals. A detailed cartouche encloses Ann’s inscription under the flower basket.

Along the top spans a couple of alphabets and a fine verse. A well-developed flowering vine surrounds the work on all four sides, with a heart in each upper corner and a fan-tailed bird in each lower corner. The sampler holds the fine provenance of having been in the highly respected collection of Siva Swaminathan.

A note was written on the paper of the original stretcher naming “Mr. W. L. Naish of Piltown Farm, West Pennard, NR. Glastonbury, Somerset.” Interesting to add, this apple orchard farm is still producing cider. Ann Norton was likely a distant relative whose sampler was passed down in the family.

Worked in silk on wool, Ann’s sampler remains in very good condition with some loss to the wool ground, the needlework remains in excellent condition. It has been conservation mounted into its fine original gold leaf frame.

Sampler size: 12¼” x 16”

Framed size: 15¾” x 19½”

Prince: $2600.

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Family Register Sampler, Elesha Mary Bryant, Roxbury, Massachusetts, 1827 Elesha Bryant’s family record sampler is a handsome and very stylish one. It was worked in the town of Roxbury, Massachusetts and is date 1827. Some of the more interesting genealogical samplers exhibit designs of an architectural nature and frequently make use of the classical columns and archways favored by the Federal architects, cabinetmakers and designers. Such is the case with this work by Miss Bryant, with its vinewrapped reeded columns joined by an overriding arch. The sampler is further decorated with various naïve devices including flowers, trees, lawns, a large striped pot of a budding plant and two curious areas that seem to simulate sky and clouds.

The family documented on this sampler was that of Martin Bryant and Annastacia White who were married February 19, 1805. Their births and those of their four children are recorded on the sampler along with the death of Elesha's sister, Margaret Catharine, in 1825. A wonderful period verse was included as well, divided into two ovals and with letter-perfect stitches.

Martin Bryant seems to have been a rope maker and is listed in The Boston Annual Advertiser annexed to the Boston Directory of 1823. By 1830 the family resided in Roxbury as indicated by the census of that same year. And the Roxbury Directory of 1850 includes Martin Bryant, rope maker.

This sampler was worked in silk on linen and is in excellent condition with some very slight loss to the silk. It has been conservation mounted into a black painted, molded frame.

Sampler size: 14¼” x 17”

Framed size: 16¼” x 19”

Price: $3800.

Kate Clayton “Granny” Donaldson, North Carolina, circa 1935 Kate Clayton (1864-1960), known as Granny Donaldson, lived and worked in Marble, North Carolina. She was employed in the kitchen of the John C. Campbell Folk School when she was introduced to various international crafts by the Southern Highland Craft Guild – these included decorated blankets that were draped over cows in Italian parade festivals. In what one would consider Craft Revival, revitalized handicrafts were created in the Appalachian Region in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Granny was inspired, and utilizing her skill in the needle arts, she herself created cow blankets, which were draped over cows in the local parades of her own town of Marble. (continued on the next page)

Kate Clayton “Granny” Donaldson, North Carolina, circa 1935 (cont.)

Her cow blankets generally consist of richly colored crocheted folk elements applied in a floating composition to a handwoven wool fabric, and the appliqué elements tended to be numerous farm animals, people and variations on the Tree of Life. This is one of the best known examples of Granny Donaldson's work. The palette is complimentary blues and oranges on a neutral tan and a wonderful variety of animals and birds are scattered throughout the woven field, which is grounded by a couple, the man carrying a suitcase, and a Tree of Life, comprised of a more solid “five-fingered hand”-like tree, and an overlaying deep brown vining tree with sprouting leaves and sprigs of berries; this unusual double-layer is unlike any other of Granny’s known works.

Granny Donaldson’s work is sought after by institutions and collectors of folk art, and examples are in the Asheville Art Museum.

It is in excellent condition, and on a professional, contemporary stretcher and linen mount.

Mounted size: 39” x 30”

Price: $8000.

31

SELECTED NEEDLEWORK BIBLIOGRAPHY Allen, Gloria Seaman. Family Record Genealogical Watercolors and Needlework.

Washington, DC: DAR Museum, 1989.

A Maryland Sampling: Girlhood Embroidery, 1738-1860. Maryland Historical Society, 2007.

Columbia’s Daughters: Girlhood Embroidery from the District of Columbia. Chesapeake Book Company, Baltimore, Maryland, 2012.

Anderson, Lynne and Gloria Seaman Allen. Wrought with Careful Hand: Ties of Kinship on Delaware Samplers.

Biggs Museum of American Art with the Sampler Consortium, Dover, Delaware, 2014.

Arnolli, Gieneke and Rosalie Sloof. Letter voor Letter: Merklappen in de opvoeding van Friese meisjes.

Waanders Uitgevers, Zwolle and Fries Museum, Leeuwarden.

Bolton, Ethel Stanwood and Coe, Eve Johnston. American Samplers. Boston: The Massachusetts Society of the

Colonial Dames of America, 1921.

Browne, Clare and Jennifer Wearden. Samplers from the Victoria and Albert Museum. London: V&A Publications, 1999.

Campanelli, Dan & Marty. A Sampling of Hunterdon County Needlework: The Motifs, The Makers & Their Stories. Flemington, NJ: Hunterdon County Historical Society, 2013.

Edmonds, Mary Jaene. Samplers and Samplermakers, An American Schoolgirl Art 1700-1850.

New York: Rizzoli, 1991.

Hersh, Tandy and Charles. Samplers of the Pennsylvania Germans. Birdsboro, PA: Pennsylvania German Society, 1991.

Humphrey, Carol. Quaker School Girl Samplers from Ackworth. Needleprint & Ackworth School Estates Limited, 2006.

Ivey, Kimberly Smith. In the Neatest Manner: The Making of the Virginia Sampler Tradition.

Colonial Williamsburg and Curious Works Press, 1997.

Krueger, Glee F. A Gallery of American Samplers: The Theodore H. Kapnek Collection. New York: E.P. Dutton, 1978.

New England Samplers to 1840. Sturbridge, Massachusetts: Old Sturbridge Village, 1978.

Lukacher, Joanne Martin. Imitation and Improvement: The Norfolk Sampler Tradition. Redmond, WA: In the

Company of Friends, LLC, 2013.

Parmal, Pamela A. Samplers from A to Z. Boston, Massachusetts: MFA Publications, 2000.

Ring, Betty. American Needlework Treasures. New York: E.P. Dutton, 1987.

Girlhood Embroidery: American Samplers & Pictorial Needlework, 1650-1850. Knopf, 1993.

Let Virtue be a Guide to Thee: Needlework in the Education of Rhode Island Women, 1730-1820.

Providence: The Rhode Island Historical Society, 1983.

Schiffer, Margaret B. Historical Needlework of Pennsylvania. New York. Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1968.

Schipper-van Lottum, M.G.A. Over merklappen geproken… Amsterdam: Uitgeverij Wereldbibliotheek bv, 1996.

Studebaker, Sue. Ohio Samplers, School Girl Embroideries 1803-1850. Warren County Historical Society, 1988.

Ohio is My Dwelling Place. Ohio: Ohio University Press, 2002.

Swan, Susan B. Plain and Fancy: American Women and Their Needlework, 1700-1850,

New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 1977.

Tarrant, Naomi E A. ‘Remember Now Thy Creator’ Scottish Girls’ Samplers, 1700-1872. Society of

Antiquaries of Scotland, Great Britain, 2014.

(detail of Friesian sampler, page 20)

Conservation Mounting of Antique Samplers and Needlework Because of the important role that condition plays in the field of antique samplers and needlework, we strive to insure that these pieces undergo proper preservation while in our care. Below is a step-by-step description of the “conservation mounting� process. Our techniques are simple and straightforward; we remove the dust and dirt particles mechanically, never wet-cleaning the textiles. We use only acid-free materials and museum-approved techniques throughout the process. Please call us if you have any questions in this regard. q

Carefully clean the piece using our special vacuum process.

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Mount it by means of hand-sewing onto acid-free museum board that has been slip-cased with fabric appropriate to the piece itself, and at the same time stabilize any holes or weak areas.

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Re-fit the item back into its original frame, or custom-make a reproduction of an 18th or early 19th century frame using one of our exclusive patterns.

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Supply a reverse painted black glass mat, if appropriate, done in correct antique manner.

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Install TruVue Conservation Clear glass which blocks 97% of the harmful ultraviolet light.

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In the framing process, the needlework is properly spaced away from the glass, the wooden frame is sealed, and the dust cover is attached with special archival tape.

(detail of sampler by Beulah Allen, page 3)

(detail of sampler by Sarah H. James, page 13)