(detail of sampler by Elizabeth Ham, 1802, page 3)
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Welcome to our Samplings catalogue, Volume XXXIX ... We hope that you enjoy this catalogue, our 39th issue, and we thank all of you 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. If any of these books prove difficult to procure, let us know and perhaps we can assist in locating them. 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 64th 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 are avaialable 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 better 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 but 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, VISA, Mastercard, or American Express. 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 Federal Express air, insured. We look forward to your phone calls and your interest. Amy Finkel Morris 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. Call us for more information.
ALPHABETICAL LISTING OF CONTENTS Mary Banks, Bishop Stortford, Hertfordshire, England, 1763. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 Anna Burge, Hollis, New Hampshire, 1810 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 “Specimens of Darning,” E. Craven, Christ Church School, Leeds, England, 1850. . . . . . . . . 30 Rebecca Davis, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 1807 & circa 1812. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 Rachel Electa Foster, Brooklyn, New York, 1827. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Susan Garfield, Apple Tree Family Record Sampler, Waltham, Mass., circa 1825 . . . . . . . . . . . 1 Terressa Grow, Henderson, New York, “July 4 50th year of our Independence 1826. . . . . . . . . 8 Elizabeth Ham, Newbury Port, Massachusetts, 1802. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 Mary M. Hartman, Adams County, Pennsylvania, 1844. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 Sally Paine Hemenway, Shrewsbury, Massachusetts, 1814 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 Elizabeth Coffin Heussler, Salem, Massachusetts, circa 1802. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22 Ann S. Lewis, New York Bethel School No 2, 1824 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 Mary Ann Livensetter, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 1821. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29 Ruthey Lock, Lexington, Massachusetts, 1802. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 Sarah Long, Mary Walker’s School, Lancaster, Pennsylvania, 1803 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Phebe Lukens, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 1806. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 M. Marsden, Duxbury Hall, England, 1827. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 Miniature Sampler, England, 1800. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 Needlework on Paper, Young Girl with Yo-yo, France, circa 1792 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 Mary Nutter, New Hampshire, 1824 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Pair of Miniature Silk Embroideries, American, circa 1830 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 Huldah Perley, Boxford, Massachusetts, circa 1755. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 Pin Cushion, Cheltenham Female Orphan Asylum School of Industry, England . . . . . . . . . . 27 Sampler Pocket, England, circa 1800. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 Elizabeth Selby, West Liberty, Butler County, Ohio, 1835. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 Hannah G. Sevey, Machias, Maine, 1818. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 Margret Shultz, Lampeter, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, 1825. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 Sarahmartha South, England, 1839. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28 Nancy Stearns, American, 1812. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30 Harriett Stott, Lancashire, England, 1837. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 Harriet Talcott, Coventry, Connecticut, 1844. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 Matilda Taylor, Vassalboro, Maine, 1832. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 Patience Taylor, Loudon County, Virginia, 1836. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 Susan Tilton, Danville, Vermont, 1827. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 Maria Van Langevelt, Holland, 1754. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 Mary Weld, Massachusetts, circa 1810 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Mary N. Whittier, Methuen, Massachusetts, 1810 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 Ann Elizabeth Worth, Kent County, Maryland, 1796. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
(detail of sampler by Rebecca Davis, page 21)
Susan Garfield, Apple Tree Family Record Sampler, Waltham, Massachusetts, c. 1825
This is one of the finest known samplers from the splendid group of needleworks known as the “Apple Tree Family Records,” worked between 1800 and about 1825 in towns outside of Boston. These samplers, and related watercolor family records, which also make use of the classic tree of life prototype, have been the subject of much scholarly study over the years. The maker of this fully worked sampler, Susan Garfield, placed the information regarding her parents, Joseph and Susanna Garfield, in linked hearts at the base of the tree, with the date of their marriage in 1787 beneath this. Their twelve children are recorded on the apples, with Susan, their youngest, appearing as the uppermost; these apples are fully worked in very tight stitches. Quite beautifully, the entire background of the sampler is also solidly stitched in lustrous ivory surface satin stitches. The overall effect is very impressive. Betty Ring writes about these samplers in vol. I and illustrates our Susan Garfield sampler as figure 79. Of course, this is an important provenance for any sampler. The Garfield family in Massachusetts began with Edward Garfield (1575-1672), who arrived in America in 1630 and settled in Watertown, one of the earliest proprietors of the town. He was granted 8 lots there and served as town Selectman for three terms. Six generations later Susan was born in Waltham, west of Watertown, to Joseph Garfield (1761-1824) and Susanna (Hagar) Garfield, who married there in 1787. President James Garfield (1831-1881) was also a descendant of this family. The sampler was worked in silk on linen and is in excellent condition. It has been conservation mounted and is in an early 19th century gold leaf frame. Sampler size: 20½” x 16¼”
Frame size: 23½” x 19¼”
Price: $28,000.
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Sarah Long, Mary Walker’s School, Lancaster, Pennsylvania, 1803 The samplers worked in Lancaster, Pennsylvania at the school of Mary Walker are highly regarded and well-represent the outstanding samplers made in the Susquehanna Valley. They depict a detailed house scene along the bottom with compartmentalized borders surrounding lengthy inscriptions. Betty Ring illustrates Catherine Shindle’s sampler, worked in 1803, as figure 461 in vol. II, and lists our Sarah Long sampler in the description. The Philadelphia Museum of Art owns another sampler made at Mary Walker’s school, also worked in 1803, made by Elizabeth Sansinich and published as figure 32 in . Students at Mary Walker’s school learned a varied vocabulary of stitches; all of the samplers exhibit the queen’s-stitch (notable are the large hearts in various formations) amongst other. We offer this excellent, newly discovered sampler, which is signed “Sarah Long a Daughter of Jacob and Mary Long was born June 9 and made this sampler in the 11 year of her age in Mary Walker’s School in the year of our Lord 1803.”
The Long family in Pennsylvania began with Nicholas Long, who emigrated from Bavaria, arriving in 1754; he was Sarah’s grandfather. Sarah’s father, Jacob Long (1759-1842) served in the Revolutionary War and on May 22, 1785 he married Maria Grimler (1764-1856). Sarah, born circa 1793, was one of their seven children who were born between 1785 and 1804. Much is known about Sarah’s youngest sibling, Henry G. Long, who became a prominent judge and legislator in Lancaster, attending the Constitution Convention of 1837-8. His philanthropic efforts resulted in the establishment of the Henry G. Long Asylum for Widows and Single Women (also known as the Long Home for Needy Women) established in 1906 by his daughter. Worked in silk on linen, the sampler is in excellent condition. It has been conservation mounted and is in its original frame. Sampler size: 12½” square
Frame size: 15¼” square
Price: $14,500.
Elizabeth Ham, Newbury Port, Massachusetts, 1802 A group of outstanding pictorial samplers was made in Newbury and Newburyport, thriving seaport towns at the northeastern end of Massachusetts, spanning the late 18th and early 19th centuries. Worked by daughters of some of the most prominent citizens residing in this area, the samplers share the same subject matter, format, design and motifs; they feature rich lawns populated by sheep, handsome blue vases of flowers and fruit and nut trees with birds and butterflies, and are often referred to as “Vertical Shady Bower” samplers. Many alphabets and the same verse, extolling the value of the book, the needle and the pen, appear on these samplers. Borders on three sides frame the compositions, some are of these borders are narrow and stylized and some are wide with sinuous flowering vines. This newly discovered sampler, a splendid and fully developed example, was worked by Elizabeth Ham in 1802 and we are delighted to offer it, as these rarely come onto the market. The inscription on the sampler (worked in beige silk floss beneath the verse) reads, “Elizabeth Ham born Sept 21, 1790 wrought this Sampler in the 13th year of her age Dec 1802.” Elizabeth was the daughter of Thomas and Elizabeth (Titcomb) Ham, who were married in Newburyport in 1789. She did not marry and died at age 34 in 1824. Elizabeth’s sampler most closely resembles one made by Anne Kimball in 1803, in the collection of the Peabody Essex Museum, and published on page 52 of by Paula Bradstreet Richter (Salem, Massachusetts, 2000). Recent research by Dr. Tricia Wilson Nguyen has uncovered evidence of a master designer of these outstanding samplers. During the period of this style and its closely related horizontal format samplers, Miss Betty Bradstreet was known for delightful embroidery designs. Miss Bradstreet, in her 60's by the time Elizabeth Ham made her sampler, was the only surviving spinster child of a well-off family in Newburyport. She was known to design cushions, pictures, and fire-screens for the local women to embroider and other "devices to amuse a child." Dr. Wilson Nguyen has made a survey of the design vernacular of over 30 examples from this group, showing that the same hand prepared the pictorial design, as well as matching them to several non-sampler embroidered pieces. A recent discovery of an embroidered pocket ascribed in the 19th century to Miss Bradstreet's design hand, gives further evidence of this master designer's influence on these outstanding samplers. The sampler was worked in silk on linen and is in excellent condition. It has been conservation mounted and is in a fine reproduction carved, painted and gold-leafed frame. Sampler size: 23¼” x 15¾”
Frame size: 26” x 18½”
Price: $28,000.
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Ann Elizabeth Worth, Kent County, Maryland, 1796 A rare and handsome 18th century sampler, this was made by Ann Elizabeth Worth, a young lady from a wealthy family of Kent County, on Maryland’s Eastern Shore. Worked in the classic late 18th century format, the alphabets and inscription are separated by narrow decorative bands and it is all surrounded by a border, which, in this case, excels in both design and execution, embellished with a fine assortment of stylized flowers. Ann’s verse, which documents her sampler wonderfully, is well-known in this field and variations of it were employed by many other samplermakers. The ongoing, in-depth study of Maryland samplers, conducted by Dr. Gloria S. Allen and her colleagues, resulted in the outstanding book, (Maryland Historical Society, 2007) and its accompanying website, www.marylandneedlework.com. This is an invaluable resource and documents samplermakers and teachers from Kent County, raising the question as to whether Ann Elizabeth Worth may have studied under Sarah Mansell, who taught from at least 1786 until her death in 1802. Dr. Allen notes that late in her career, Mrs. Mansell altered her curriculum to reflect “the growing recognition of the need for young women to be exposed to a broader range of useful and academic subjects.” She continued’ however, to teach needlework in various forms. Miss Worth was the daughter of an esteemed and wealthy gentleman, Jonathan Worth, and his wife, Alethea Comegys. Alethea was born in 1737 and her birth was recorded by Shrewsbury Parish in Kent County; the Comegys family is often mentioned in , vol. 1 by Robert W. Barnes and F. Edward Wright. Shortly after the death of her first husband, Joseph Ireland, in 1776, Alethea married Jonathan Worth and the family resided on a plantation on the west side of the county, north of Chestertown. Mr. Worth served as a major in the 27th Battalion of Kent County during the Revolutionary War. He functioned as a Justice of Peace, according to county archives. Ann Elizabeth was born circa 1784, their only daughter and the youngest of their four children. (continued on the next page)
Ann Elizabeth Worth, Kent County, Maryland, 1796 (cont'd) Her father’s death occurred in 1788, and the informs us that he had been a merchant. He left land to his wife, his plantation in Kent County to his son James, his plantation in Delaware to another son, Jonathan, and a sum of money to his daughter, Ann Elizabeth. The sampler was worked in silk on linen and is in very good condition with some minor loss to the linen. It has been conservation mounted and stabilized, and is in a fine mahogany frame. Sampler size: 16” x 13¼”
Frame size: 19¾” x 17”
Price: $14,000.
Rachel Electa Foster, Brooklyn, New York, 1827 We rarely see samplers that were made by schoolgirls from Brooklyn, New York, and are pleased to offer this handsome example worked in 1827, by twelve-year-old Rachel Electa Foster. An outstanding queen’sstitched border surrounds the alphabets, inscription, verse and well-composed potted flowers and other motifs. Interesting to note is the first alphabet, formed of upper case block-letters; this was widely taught by the many Quaker teachers from New England to Virginia. The verse used by Rachel is one which is rarely found on samplers; it was published as early as 1808 in New York by Lindley Murray, a renowned Quaker grammarian who edited many collections of prose and poetry. This was included, as well, in an 1838 publication, (Mahlon Day, New York). The origins of the Foster family of Long island are chronicled in the by Frederick Clifton Pierce, published in 1899. Christopher Foster, born in England in 1603, arrived in America in 1635, sailing on the ship “Abigail,” and settled on Long Island by 1670. Specific information about our samplermaker has remained elusive at this point but her sampler clearly indicates that she resided in “Brooklyn Long Isl[and]. The sampler was worked in silk on linen and is in excellent condition. Conservation mounted, it is now in a beveled cherry frame with a figured maple bead. Sampler size: 17” x 16”
Frame size: 20¾” x 19¾”
Price: $7400.
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Anna Burge, Hollis, New Hampshire, 1810
Samplermakers from Hollis, New Hampshire, a small town near the southern border, produced a known body of samplers with strong regional characteristics and Anna Burge’s work is a fine example. Alphabets, verse and inscription are framed within a narrow sawtooth border surrounded by a graceful vine with large blossom flowers.
Anna was born on July 13, 1796, the daughter of Ephraim, Jr. and Patty (Baldwin) Burge who married in Hollis in 1793. , by Samuel T. Worcester (Boston, 1879), indicates that Anna’s grandfather, Ephraim Burge removed from Chelmsford, Massachusetts in 1760 and settled in Hollis. He served in the Revolutionary War in Capt. Emerson’s company in 1777, answering the Ticonderoga Alarm. Another publication that also focuses on families from Hollis indicates that the Burge family was one of the more distinguished in Hollis, and Ephraim, Sr. was very highly regarded throughout his adult life. Anna’s father was deacon of the Hollis church for many years and the family lived in a house on the historic Old Depot Road. The sampler was worked in silk on linen and is in excellent condition. It has been conservation mounted and it is in excellent condition, now in a beveled cherry frame with a black painted outer bead. Sampler size: 17½” x 16¾”
Frame size: 21” x 20¼”
Price: $5400.
Pair of Miniature Silk Embroideries, American, circa 1830 Pairs of American miniature silk embroidered pictures are difficult to find and this pair has a particularly desirable provenance: they were in the personal collection of the late Susan Burrows Swan, the renowned, long-term curator of textiles and needlework at Winterthur Museum and author of . One depicts the allegorical figure of “Hope” as she leans on an anchor and focuses her gaze on a sailing ship receding on the choppy seas. The other is likely that of “Plenty” with a long wheat stalk, a little bird on her finger and a sheep in the foreground. Notable details include the fine seed-stitched blue gown, the tiny classical temple, pointed slippers peaking out and a sash rippling in the breeze. The papercovered backboard of each of these includes ink inscriptions indicating that they were made by Rebecca Cutler, age 16 in 1831. Mrs. Swan’s notes include that they were thought to be from Portland, Maine. Worked in silk and watercolor on silk, each is in excellent condition, with replaced églomisé glass mats and period frames. Oval size: 5” x 3½”
Frame size: 7½” x 6”
Price for the pair: $3800.
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Susan Tilton, Danville, Vermont, 1827 Samplers made in Vermont exist in far fewer numbers than those from New Hampshire, Maine or Massachusetts and we are pleased to have acquired this highly developed and impeccably documented example. The inscription reads, “Susan Tilton born Nov 20th 1813 Her sampler wrought at Danville July AD 1827,”and is balanced above a fine Federal house set on a lawn with flowers, trees and a small dependency structure. A splendid border with an unusual assortment of stylized flowers and with a
central basket frames much of it. It achieves additional graphic success from a lustrous sawtooth inner border and a longer, narrow undulating one. Nicely accomplished drawn-work finishes it well on four sides. The needlework is well executed and adds to the overall appeal of this praiseworthy sampler. Danville is a small town located west of St. Johnsbury in northern Vermont. Susan’s parents were Joseph and Sally Tilton who were married there on December 3, 1812. Her grandfather, Joseph Tilton, Sr., resided in Danville and served on the Governor’s staff. Their six children were born there between 1813 and 1828 and the family “then lived upon one of the finest and most fertile farms in Vermont,” as described in (1905). Joseph Tilton was involved in many land transactions in Danville, as well. The family later removed to the nearby town of Littleton, New Hampshire and seems to have retained ties to their hometown as Susan married a man who was also born and raised in Danville, Cyrus Eastman (1814-1896). His father, Jonathan Eastman, was a carpenter in Danville after having lived at the Shaker community of Enfield, New Hampshire for much (continued on the next page)
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Susan Tilton, Danville, Vermont, 1827 (continued) of his childhood. Cyrus was a prominent and highly successful merchant and financier. Along with two of Susan’s brothers, he was involved in many enterprising wholesale and retail businesses, well documented in published histories. Susan and Cyrus had three daughters and one son and Susan died in 1866. The sampler was worked in silk on linen and is in excellent condition. It has been conservation mounted and is in a beveled cherry frame with a figured maple outer bead. Sampler size: 13” x 16¾”
Frame size: 16¾” x 20½”
Price: $16,000.
Terressa Grow, Henderson, New York, “July 4 50th year of our Independence 1826” The new Republic recognized the Fourth of July as a holiday beginning in 1777, the first anniversary of the reading of the Declaration of Independence. Celebrations continued yearly with official observances that were long on military processions, orations and popular reenactments. The country’s 50th anniversary in 1826 was cause for particular celebration, and specific mention on this sampler; this, in fact, renders this piece a very rare and desirable example. Terressa Grow was born in 1815, the oldest of the three children of Alva and Polly (Boyden) Grow. Alva Grow was born in Connecticut and his ancestors extended back to the 17th century in Ipswich, Massachusetts. By 1806 Alva Grow had purchased 200 acres of land in Jefferson County, located in northern New York State, a fact that was documented in the 1905 publication, . Terressa worked her sampler in 1826 when she was eleven years old. She died soon after that, in 1831 at age 16, and is buried at the Old Burying Yard near Smithville, a town nearby Henderson. Her sampler exhibits a charming naiveté with its tree-lined fence, little black dog and gate leading to the main house, and two outbuildings flanking a basket of fruit. The two-line verse above the inscription is a well-known sampler quotation from Alexander Pope’s “Moral Essays” published in the early 18th century. Worked in silk on linen, the sampler is in excellent condition and has been conservation mounted into a maple frame with a black bead. Sampler size: 17¾” x 11¼”
Frame size: 21” x 14½”
Price: $9200.
Mary Nutter, New Hampshire, 1824 by Stearns, Whitcher and Parker (1908) states that, “The Nutters were among the earliest settlers of New Hampshire and have spread from its southeastern borders over the state and through the United States … Contended in their abundance, unpretentious for affluence or station, they have constituted a numerous class of the sturdy citizens whose firmness, constancy and reliability have given character to New Hampshire…” Mary Nutter’s sampler “wrought in the 12th year of her age July 5th 1824,”is a pleasing one with three alphabets, a nicely worked six-line verse and a very good border of flowers and leaves on vine. Her verse was documented in by Bolton and Coe (1921); it implores wisdom to guide her “o’er the slippery path of youth,” towards honor and truth. A delicate drawn-work edging finishes the sampler well. This family began with Hatevil Nutter (1603-1674) and his wife Annie, who came to New Hampshire in 1633 as part of the Great Migration, occurring between 1620 and 1640 during which over 20,000 people sailed from England to New England. The Nutters settled in Dover where Hatevil became a substantial landowner, church elder and occasional preacher. Worked in silk on linen, the sampler is in excellent condition and has been conservation mounted into a mahogany frame. Sampler size: 16¼” x 16¾” Frame size: 18¼” x 18¾” Price: $2800.
Mary Weld, Massachusetts, circa 1810 Mary Weld’s handsome sampler shares regional characteristics with many Massachusetts samplers made in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, with alphabets and small motifs surrounded by wide strawberry borders and sawtooth edges. A free-form bouquet of flowers springs from a basket with a looped handle. Of note is the horizontal band with little birds nestled in to it above the alphabets, which carries on the tradition of samplers from the mid 18th century. After the ligature “ae” which was in common usage to indicate one’s age, Mary used Roman numerals to denote that she was twelve years old. The Weld family in Massachusetts has a distinguished history, beginning with Captain Joseph Weld who was born in England circa 1600, and who emigrated with his wife Elizabeth and three of their children before 1636. They settled in Roxbury where Joseph became a captain of the militia company. Later generations resided there and in many towns and villages throughout the area. The sampler was worked in silk on linen and is in excellent condition. It has been conservation mounted and is in a beveled black painted frame. Sampler size: 17” x 14¼”
Frame size: 20” x 17¼”
Price: $3200.
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Ann S. Lewis, New York Bethel School No 2, 1824 The origins of the New York Public School system, well documented by two 19th century publications, include the Bethel Schools; they were patterned after the highly regarded Female Association Schools, which were established in 1801. These Association Schools, which owed their support and close supervision to a well organized group of philanthropic Quaker ladies, came to include several which located in Greenwich Village and at least one in Flushing. The Bethel Baptist Church opened a similar school in 1820, on Delancy Street, and by 1824 there were three Bethel Schools in total, patterned after these Quaker schools. They incorporated, as well, their curriculum of samplermaking in the classic and highly identifiable Quaker style. Other institutions that operated schools, which were later likewise incorporated into the Public School Society were the Orphan’s Asylum Society, Society of the Economical School and the African Free Schools. They all received funding from the Common School Fund of the city of New York. There is a well known group of samplers made at the Female Association School and these are widely considered to be highly sought after. Some are very small and tightly rendered, others are larger and closely resemble our Bethel School No 2 sampler, which is the first one made at any of the Bethel Schools to surface. The maker was “Ann S. Lewis aged 11 years,” and her sampler closely follows the Quaker format of the Female Association School samplers, down to the little wreaths enclosing the words, “Love” and “Peace” and the many Quaker motifs and lettering. We found very interesting the account related by Thomas Boese in (1869) regarding the October 1824 visit of Gen. Lafayette to the Bethel Schools. The narrative relates that Lafayette was entertained by all of the Bethel School students at School No 3 where, “besides being presented with a certificate of membership in the Society, he was addressed by one of the pupils in behalf of the five hundred boys and two hundred girls there assembled, and listened to a poetic address by a class of girls in concert, the illustrious visitor at 2 PM and in the presence of an immense and delighted multitude, reviewed the children of all the schools of the Society, assembled to the number of three thousand or more, in the City Hall Park, officered by their teachers and monitors, and bearing banners with appropriate inscriptions, conspicuous among which was one proclaiming “Education the Basis of Free Government.” One can be certain that this was a day long remembered by all of the students. The sampler was worked in silk on linen and is in very good condition with one are of loss to the linen at the upper right corner. It has been conservation mounted and is in a black painted frame. Sampler size: 17” square
Frame size: 19¼” square
Price: $4250.
Huldah Perley, Boxford, Massachusetts, circa 1755 Documented America samplers from the mid 18th century are considered rarities and we are pleased to offer this fine example. The samplermaker, Huldah Perley, was born March 21, 1742, to a prominent family in Boxford, located north of Boston and west of Andover. We can estimate that she was approximately 13 years old when she stitched this fine sampler with its very delicate needlework. Similar to other mid 18th century Massachusetts samplers, it is a band sampler in format, with no borders, again consistent with its date. The inscription on the sampler reads: “Huldah Perley born March 21 1742 / Huldah Perley is my name / English is my nation / Boxford is my dwelling place / Christ is my salvation.” Huldah was the third of six children born to Francis Perley (1705/61765) and Huldah (Putnam) Perley (b. 1716), who were married in Boxford in 1734. Francis was a highly regarded citizen of Boxford, a large landowner who also operator a tannery and held many civic offices, “a man of ability, integrity and judgment who was held in good esteem,” according to , by M. V. B. Perley, 1906. From 1738 until 1764 he served as hog reeve (an animal control officer tasked with preventing potential damage that stray swine might cause, or appraising damage if it occurred - not a minor concern), fence viewer (an official who would determine responsibility for the building and upkeep of fences, which needed to be “hog tight and horse high”), selectman (chief administrator of a town) and town treasurer. The Perley genealogy book publishes the inventory of Mr. Perley that was taken upon his death. In 1764 Huldah married Lt. Col. John Robinson (born 1735 in Topsfield) and they settled in Westford, Massachusetts, further west in Middlesex County. He served in the Battle of Concord, 1775, and according to family legend, was the officer responsible for taking command against the British in this historic battle. Huldah and John became the parents of eight children. They resided on a farm and he served as town selectmen. John died in 1805, Huldah died in 1812. The sampler was worked in silk onto tan linen. It is in very good condition with slight loss and has been conservation mounted into a black carved and painted frame. Sampler size: 16¾” x 14¼”
Frame size: 19½” x 17½”
Price: $8800.
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M. Marsden, Duxbury Hall, England, 1827 The enormous visual appeal of this sampler clearly stems from the outstanding depiction of Duxbury Hall, which dominates the composition; however, the samplermaker added a charming and folky personality to it by including depictions of birds, a gentleman on horseback, a large black dog and a peacock. Duxbury Hall stood on the 12th century estate of the Standish family near the town of Chorley in Lancashire. Although branches of this family remained there for centuries, Miles Standish, who was born in Duxbury Hall in 1584, left his native country in 1620 to sail on the Mayflower. In 1632 he founded the town of Duxbury, just north of Plymouth in the colony of Massachusetts, naming it for his ancestral home. This view of Duxbury Hall reflects the exterior as it appeared in 1827 shortly before a renovation, which faced the brick façade with ashlar, a thin veneer of square-cut granite. It is likely that local schoolgirls were assigned the project of working samplers that featured Duxbury Hall in its original glory just prior to this renovation. This sampler was worked in silk on linen and remained unframed for many years; it has been conservation mounted and is in a mahogany frame with line inlay. Sampler size: 11¼” x 12¼”
Frame size: 14¾” x 15¾”
Price: $6800.
Patience Taylor, Loudon County, Virginia, 1836 This praiseworthy sampler was made by Patience Taylor who was born on July 30, 1822 in Loudon County, Virginia, the second of ten children of Timothy Taylor (1794-1869) and Harriet (Osburn) Taylor. She was named for her maternal grandmother, Patience Sinclair Osburn. Patience dated her sampler August 6, 1836 and included the names of her parents in the lower corners. Patience’s mother, Harriet Osburn, was born in 1802, the daughter of Abner and Patience (Sinclair) Osburn. Abner (1756-1802) and his family resided at Woodgrove, in Loudon County (now on the National Register of Historic Places) where he was a physician and captain in the Virginia militia. He was highly regarded in the community, where he founded a circulating library and contributed land for the building of a church. Harriet married Timothy Taylor, a wealthy farmer, and they remained in the area. Patience made this sampler when she was fourteen years old. In 1845, she married Armistead Mason Van Devanter (1818-1869); they remained in Loudon County as well, where Armistead was the sheriff in 1850. They had six children: Decatur, Henry, Annie, Addison, James and Robert E. Lee, who were born between 1847 and 1861. After the death of her husband, Patience lived as a widow with her sons until her death in 1896, in Loudon County. (continued on the next page)
Patience Taylor, Loudon County, Virginia, 1836 (continued) The influence of Quaker sampler design is apparent in the motifs on this sampler and Patience may have attended a Quaker school. Overall it is an outstanding sampler, with fine composition and needlework. Worked in silk and wool on linen, it is in excellent condition with some very minor loss to the stitching of Harriet B. Taylor’s surname. It has been conservation mounted and is in a cherry and maple cornerblock frame. Sampler size: 16½” x 18” Frame size: 20½” x 22” Price: $14,000.
Needlework on Paper, Young Girl with Yo-yo, France, circa 1792 Occasionally needleworkers in the late 18th and very early 19th centuries stitched pictures onto paper, and we are pleased to offer this excellent example. Paper is an unforgiving ground, as it allows for no missteps; a hole made by a needle must be incorporated into the work. The subject of this piece, quite charmingly, is a young girl playing with a yo-yo. The word yo-yo originated in the Philippines and means “come back.” In the 18th and 19th centuries the yo-yo became popular in Europe, specifically with France’s upper class, after the child prince Louis XVII (1785-1795) was known to have played with one. Written on the back of the paper in pencil is the date 1792, and this is consistent with the subject and style of this piece. The young girl’s forthright face, hair and body are drawn in ink with great delicacy. Her dress was worked in long satin stitches enhancing the pink and white stripes and sash belted across her waist. She stands on a fully worked lawn and under a trellis of two delicate leafy trees. The yo-yo itself is worked in pink silk, and originally a white silk line followed the penned line of the string, which has been revealed. Worked in silk and pen and ink on paper, the piece is in very good condition with very minor loss to the silk and slight browning to the paper. A tiny inscription, although illegible, is below the lawn, and the picture remains in its original black painted frame. Sight size: 6¼” x 4¼” Price: $2800.
Frame size: 7½” x 5½”
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Elizabeth Selby, West Liberty, Butler County, Ohio, 1835 Ohio samplers are far more rare than those from eastern states and the work of Elizabeth Selby is particularly welldocumented. It was, for many years, in the personal collection of Ohio needlework scholar and author, Sue Studebaker and is mentioned in her highly regarded book, , (Ohio University Press, 2002). Born on January 3, 1819, Elizabeth Selby was the second of thirteen children born to Middleton and Rachel Selby who lived on a farm in Butler County, located in western Ohio, between Cincinnati and Dayton. Middleton Selby was born in 1793 in Maryland and the family removed to Ohio in 1802. He married Rachel Coons Temple in 1816 and became known as a highly regarded teacher who wrote his own textbooks. He was a justice of the peace and township trustee for many years. The following was written about him in the 1882 book, (Western Biographical Press, 1882), “He was a very marked man, of excellent habits, and always a great advocate for the education of the rising generation. His word was as good as his bond. By his industry, energy and high character he acquired considerable property.” Elizabeth’s sampler was made when she was 16 years old in 1835 and credits her teacher, “Inst’ss Gratia Webber,” within her inscription. The initials “W.L.B.C.” stand for West Liberty, Butler County. In 1838 Elizabeth married a farmer, Hendrick Barkalow, who was also from a prominent Butler County family. By 1850 they removed to Darke County where they raised at least eight children. Elizabeth died at age 89. Worked in silk on very fine linen, the sampler is in excellent condition and has been conservation mounted into a period cherry frame. Sampler size: 15¼” x 11”
Frame size: 20¾” x 16½”
Price: $5800.
Sally Paine Hemenway, Shrewsbury, Massachusetts, 1814 Occasionally a sampler offers a truly winning combination: a highly appealing pictorial scene along with a fascinating family history, and Sally Paine Hemenway’s sampler falls into this category. Its house and lawn scene is greatly detailed, with attention lavished on the architecture, fence, leafy trees and many birds. The doorway is surrounded by many small panes of lights and the windows, some of them shuttered, have their mullions, as does the little window in the eaves. Of note is the brick path at the base of the steps. The verse that young Sally stitched captures our attention as well, as it expresses a competition between needle, pen and pencil in her hope that she will gain her parents love. Unusually, the letter “v” seems to have been used instead of “w” in each case. (continued on the next page)
Sally Paine Hemenway, Shrewsbury, MA, 1814 (continued) Sally Paine Hemenway was in her ninth year of age in 1814 when she worked this; she was the daughter of Vashni Hemenway and his wife Sarah (Heard) Hemenway who were married in 1792. Sally was born on October 14, 1805, the third and youngest of the Hemenway children. Vashni was active in town affairs and served as town clerk for 22 years, additionally as a selectman and assessor, as described in 1717-1829, by Andrew H. Ward (1847).
In 1828, at age 23, Sally married Dr. William Workman (1798-1885) who became a prominent physician in Worcester. The Workmans had ten children between 1829 and 1848. by Thelma C. Anderson (1962) provides excellent information, which was supplemented by many other sources. One of their sons, William Hunter Workman (1847-1925) also became a physician, having studied at Yale and Harvard, as well as abroad in Vienna, Heidelberg and Munich. He married Fanny Bullock, daughter of Alexander H. Bullock, who served as governor of Massachusetts from 1866 to 1869. William and Fanny resided in Worcester for 13 years and then William retired from his medical practice; beginning in 1897 he and Fanny spent many adventurous years exploring exotic places, climbing mountains and glaciers, and writing a great many books and articles that were published in scientific journals. Their expeditions included trips to Ceylon, Java, India, Pakistan, Kashmir and Nepal. Fanny’s ascent of Pinnacle Peak in the Himalayas earned her the right to claim the women’s high altitude record for the first decade of the 1900s. In 1906 Dr. Workman was awarded the grand medal of the Societe de Topigraphique de France. Sally and her husband traveled as well, when in 1870, they spent six months abroad. A copy of their passport application along with an extensive file documenting this unusual and fascinating family accompanies the sampler. Sally died in 1882 in Worcester. The sampler was worked in silk on linen and is in excellent condition. It has been conservation mounted into a beveled cherry frame with a black outer bead. Sampler size: 16¼” x 21”
Frame size: 20” x 24¾”
Price: $11,500.
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Matilda Taylor, Vassalboro, Maine, 1832 Worked in a palette of blue, deep green, off-white and peach, this sampler is entitled “ ” and features a large Federal house with a dependency building. The maker was eleven-year-old Matilda Taylor, the third of four children of Asa and Matilda (Abbott) Taylor. The family lived in Vassalboro, a thriving town located twelve miles northeast of Augusta. Asa Taylor (1785-1865) descended from William Taylor who was born in England in 1618 and died in Concord, Massachusetts in 1699. Asa married Matilda Abbott in 1812 and the family remained in the Kennebec County area, where the samplermaker was born on September 21, 1821. Matilda Taylor did not marry and later in her life lived with her sister, Sally Maria (Taylor) Barton and her brother-in-law, Sumner Barton, in Augusta until her death in 1907. Matilda’s sampler, as described, begins with the unusual title at the top and proceeds with large uppercase alphabets. The inscription was worked in a beautiful bright blue silk and the handsome houses appear below. A fine border with unusual corners surrounds it on four sides. Worked in silk on linen, the sampler is in excellent condition. It has been conservation mounted and is in an ochre molded and painted frame. Sampler size: 16¾” x 11¾” Frame size: 18¾” x 13¾” Price: $3650.
Mary N. Whittier, Methuen, Massachusetts, 1810 Metheun is located in northern Massachusetts, south of Haverhill. The Whittier family, consisting of William and Mehitable (Jewett) Whittier and their seven children, lived there in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. Mary Noyes Whittier was born, as she states on her sampler, on October 3, 1800 and was named for her maternal grandmother, Mary Noyes (1748-1784). She worked this at age ten and it exhibits a simple and appealing refinement, most evident in the finely worked horizontal bands. , compiled by Charles Collyer Whittier (1937) documents the family well, and indicates that Mary married Aaron Clark in 1825. They removed to Rowley, Massachusetts where Aaron was a farmer. Mary died in 1836 and is buried at Rowley Burial Ground where her grave stone was carved with a poignant willow and urn. This sampler is accompanied by a small marking sampler also made by Mary and initialed, “MNW.” This was likely made before the example shown. Worked in silk on linen, it is in excellent condition and has been conservation mounted into a late 19th century frame. Sampler size: 12½” x 8”
Frame size: 14½” x 10”
Price: $2600.
Ruthey Lock, Lexington, Massachusetts, 1802
This outstanding and highly appealing sampler, worked in an unusually large format, was for many years in one of the finest collections of American samplers: the Theodore H. Kapnek Collection. The sampler was worked in 1802 by Ruthey Lock, and it is part of an important group worked in and around Lexington, Massachusetts in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. These samplers include depictions of brick houses, scenes of people, trees and birds, pots of flowers and are surrounded on three sides by wide arcaded borders. Ruthey Lock was born 1790 to Benjamin Lock (1756-1842) and Betsey (Wyman) Lock (1761-1831). Benjamin was a farmer who served in the historic Revolutionary War battle on Lexington Common, April 19, 1775. This battle along with the one fought the same day in Concord, was the first military engagement of the war. The roots of the Lock and Wyman families extend deeply into Massachusetts, the Lock family originating with Deacon William Lock (1628-1720). Ruthey was the third of the eight children in this family. In 1811 she married Harvey Tileston (1787-1832) and they became the parents of one child, Harvey, born in 1812. Ruthey died in 1847. The sampler has been published in by Glee Krueger, and in an article in The Magazine Antiques, Sept 1978 by Elisabeth Garrett. It was exhibited at The Museum of American Folk Art in 1978. Worked in silk on linen, the sampler is in excellent condition. It has been conservation mounted and is in a maple frame. Sampler size: 21½” x 21"
Frame size: 26" x 25½”
Price upon request.
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Harriett Stott, Lancashire, England, 1837 This delightful sampler depicts a nicely detailed double-chimney red brick house and several fascinating birds and animals: Malabar Shrike, Manakin, King of Paradise, and Camel Leopard. The source for these images would have been books such as by Oliver Goldsmith, published in London in 1822. There was enormous interest in the many exotic animals that were being discovered and analyzed by explorers and naturalists in this period; however, these subjects rarely appear on schoolgirl samplers. Harriet’s sampler descended within the family and is accompanied by information that specified its line of descent. Born circa 1823 in Oldham, Lancashire, England, Harriet married James Leach, horse keeper, and they remained in the area. In 1916 subsequent generations of the family emigrated to the United States where they lived in New Bedford, Massachusetts. The sampler was worked in silk on linen and is in excellent condition. It has been conservation mounted and is in its original frame. Sampler size: 9¾” x 14¾” Frame size: 13½” x 18” Price: $8200.
Mary Banks, Bishop Stortford, Hertfordshire, England, 1763 The polychrome palette on this early sampler is quite remarkable; it was likely tucked away for many years to have retained such color. Mary Banks worked this fine sampler and indicated in her stitched inscription that she was in Bishop Stortford, England. Bishop Stortford is a small village about thirty miles northeast of London. It is a market town on the River Stort, which, interesting to note, was named after the town, and not the other way around. Following the lines of tightly worked text is an undulating band of carnations, as well as two compartmentalized buds, which are traditional decoration found on mid-18th century samplers. Also noteworthy, the back of this sampler is just as neatly worked as the front, and a photo of this accompanies the piece. Worked in silk on linen, Mary’s sampler remains in excellent condition; and it has been conservation mounted into a fine reproduction of a period black frame with gold sanded liner. Sampler size: 10¾” x 8”
Frame size: 14¾” x 12”
Price: $4800.
Maria Van Langevelt, Holland, 1754
The field of needlework includes many excellent Dutch samplers: darning samplers, medallion and motif samplers, Amsterdam house samplers, band samplers and samplers with specific regional characteristics, such as those from Friesland. We are very pleased to have come across this highly unusual and praiseworthy sampler, which owes enormous aesthetic appeal to its strong influence from the Orient. The Dutch East India Company, established in 1602, was the first international corporation, with the colonial network reaching all continents. The influence of this trading was great and Orientalism can be seen in many forms of Dutch decorative arts. The 18th century saw a general flowering of the desire to incorporate the exoticism of Chinese design and architecture; however, we have never seen a sampler that is so greatly influenced by eastern culture. Maria Van Langevelt worked her sampler in 1754. The composition holds strong appeal; it is symmetrical, yet the organic quality of the motifs creates a wonderful flow throughout. A splendid gazebo scene is the central focus of the work. Depth is created by the trees that sway toward and away from, as well as in front of and behind, this structure. Solidly stitched blossoms and leaves stretch in all directions around the gazebo, with butterflies and many exotic wildly-colored perched birds, as well. Also deserving of attention are the unusual baskets, each with a fat tulip surmounting the arrangement, sitting on raised, decorative plinths and arched over with scrolling vines. A bold palette of blues and greens offset by magenta and fuchsia and some details in black complete Maria’s sampler. Worked in silk on linen, it is in excellent condition with slight darkening to the linen at the outer edges. It has been conservation mounted into its fine original burl wood frame. Sampler size: 16¼” x 14¾”
Frame size: 19” x 17½”
Price: $12,000.
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Hannah G. Sevey, Machias, Maine, 1818 A highly appealing sampler, this was made by Hannah Gooch Sevey, age 13, in 1818. She lived in Machias, Maine, a small but prosperous town located north along the coast of Maine, east of Bangor. Hannah was from a prominent family and may have been sent elsewhere for her schooling; as her sampler is highly developed, exhibiting strong skills in the needle arts. Long, lustrous silk stitches form the hillocks and the pair of large flower pots at the bottom of the sampler; this technique was taught to girls in the Boston area from the mid 18th century on and later employed throughout New England. The graceful vine with flowers and leaves, which forms the border, was popular with samplermakers throughout coastal New England for many decades; Hannah’s flowering vines are particularly beautiful. The verse is carefully worked and speaks to frailty of life. The Sevey family’s history in Machias, Maine extends back to Joseph Henry Sevey (1715-1782) who was living there in the mid 18th century. Hannah G. Sevey was born in Machias on March 16, 1805, the granddaughter of Joseph Henry Sevey. She was the second of nine children of John and Esther (Chase) Sevey, and was named for her paternal grandmother, Hannah Gooch Sevey (the Gooch family also had deep roots in Machias and East Machias). Hannah’s mother, Esther Chase was the daughter of Ephraim Chase, whom the by George W. Drisko (1904), states was one of the first settlers of the town. Hannah did not marry and remained in Machias, living with family members as recorded in the 1870 census; she died in 1876. The sampler was worked in silk on linen; it is in excellent condition and has been conservation mounted, in a black painted frame. Sampler size: 20” x 17½”
Frame size: 22¼” x 19¾”
Price: $8400.
Rebecca Davis, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 1807 and circa 1812 It is always of particular interest when we find two samplers worked by the same maker, as the progression of her skill can be notable. These samplers were worked by Rebecca Davis, who was born in 1800 in Philadelphia, and they descended together along with specific information about her parents. Her early effort, a marking sampler made when she was seven years old (“in the 8th Year of her age”), features alphabets worked in varying stitches and a few simple bands. Accompanying that is a much more advanced work a very charming portrayal of potted flowers flanked by Rebecca’s initials, with top and bottom borders worked in a classic Philadelphiastyle band design. The original blue silk gathered ribbon edges the sampler beautifully. It’s likely that Rebecca attended two different schools, a common occurrence in the period. Rebecca’s parents, William Davis and Martha Leacock, were married at Swede’s Church in Philadelphia on January 30, 1794. Martha was the daughter of a highly esteemed Philadelphian, a goldsmith and silversmith (important examples of his work are in the collection of the Philadelphia Museum of Art) turned playwright and viticulturist, John Leacock (1729-1802). He was a renowned patriot of the revolutionary cause, whose writings, frequently in the form of patriotic dramas and parodies, were considered highly influential. Additionally, Leacock developed a vineyard just west of the Philadelphia where, as early as 1768, he studied and published in the field of viticulture. In 1772, he initiated a public vineyard “for the good of all the Provinces, from which might be drawn such vines or cuttings free of all expense, as might best suit each province,” according to an article by F. J. Dallett, Pennsylvania Magazine of History and Biography (1954). The lives of William and Martha and their children, including our samplermaker, Rebecca, surely must have been greatly influenced by John Leacock. (continued on the next page)
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Rebecca Davis, Philadelphia, PA, 1807 and circa 1812 (cont'd) Rebecca did not marry and lived with her mother and a sister for many years. She died in 1883, again according to accompanying family information. Her samplers remained within the family for generations. The samplers were both worked in silk on linen and are in very good condition with minor weakness to the linen. They have been conservation mounted and are in molded maple frames. Size marking sampler: 12¼” x 8¼ Size pictorial sampler: 9” x 9½”
Framed size: 15” x 11” Framed size: 11¾” x 12¼”
Price for the two: $6800.
Elizabeth Coffin Heussler, Salem, Massachusetts, circa 1802 This is an interesting little sampler made by a girl from a fascinating family of Salem, Massachusetts. Many fine samplers from Salem feature plants and animals in pictorial registers that are executed in long, crinkled silk stitches, a style that was taught by renowned 18th century schoolmistress Sarah Stivours and others; Elizabeth Coffin Heussler would certainly have attended one of these schools in Salem. Elizabeth was born in 1790, the daughter of a renowned gentleman of Salem, George Heussler and his first wife, Abigail Young, who married in 1784. Mr. Heussler (17511817) was a native of Alsace and emigrated to the United States in 1780. A lengthy article in , vol. 124, no. 2, “The Laudable Art of Gardening”: The Contribution of Salem’s George Heussler, by Margaret B. Moore, documents his life and his work. He became known as a one of the first American professional landscape designers, “combining scientific expertise with an instinct for beauty.” Mr. Heussler apprenticed and trained in Europe, working on court gardens, pleasure gardens and orangery gardens. He secured a position with a wealthy merchant of Newburyport, John Tracy, and began a career as a highly esteemed gardener and horticulturalist who also imported, raised and sold trees, seeds, roots and bulbs. Ms. Moore states that in 1790 the family removed to Salem, residing on Federal Street near the Assembly House. Trees, seeds and plants were imported from and exported to the West Indies and he advertised as such in the of December 2, 1796. A great deal of further information about the family and career of George Heussler is provided in Ms. Moore’s article, which accompanies the sampler. The sampler is not dated, but we can assume that Elizabeth would have been between ten and twelve years old when she worked this sampler. She died in 1823 at age 33 and is buried alongside her parents at the Charter Street Cemetery in Salem. Worked in silk on linen, the sampler is in very good condition with very slight weakness. It has been conservation mounted into a black painted frame. Sampler size: 11½” x 10”
Frame size: 13¾” x 12½”
Price: $4400.
Margret Shultz, Lampeter, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, 1825 Lancaster County samplers can exhibit strong regional characteristics and this one, stitched in 1825 in Lampeter by Margret Shultz, is an excellent example of this group. The inscription, beginning with, “margret shultz is my name lampeter is my station…”, is worked into a poem-format and is one that we know well from mainstream American and English samplers (see the sampler by Mary Banks on page 18), however this verse rarely appears on work made by girls of German descent.
Wonderful motifs mirror each other around Miss Shultz’s text, including overstuffed baskets and many potted flowers and trees, significantly the large upright trees flanking her inscription with upright and pendulous tulips. Margret was likely the daughter of John Shultz who appears in census records of 1790, 1810, 1830 and 1840 in Lampeter, which is near Strasburg, southeast of the city of Lancaster. Accompanying the date of the sampler, within the octagonal surround with sprouting buds, are the initials P.S.; these would belong to a family member, or possibly her teacher. Also of note is the row of stars, flowers and a basket of fruit along the top of the sampler. Worked in silk on linen this sampler remains in excellent condition. It has been conservation mounted into a molded and painted black frame. Sampler size: 17¼” x 13”
Frame size: 19¼” x 15”
Price: $2700.
Miniature Sampler, England, 1800 This is a very delicate and appealing miniature sampler that was worked in 1800 by an anonymous needleworker. Miniature samplers were often made as personal mementos or gifts of friendship, and this likely falls into that category. The stitching itself is very fine and was accomplished onto a tightly woven linen ground. A classic English composition, this displays symmetrical motifs including hearts, crosses, birds perched on potted plants and a central flowering tree. The large heart was filled in with long satin stitches in green, yellow and pink. A decorative, undulating border finishes the piece nicely. Worked in silk on linen, it remains in excellent condition, and has been conservation mounted into an ochre-painted, molded frame. Sampler size: 3½” x 4½” Frame size: 5” x 6”
Price: $1850.
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Phebe Lukens, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 1806 Throughout the 18th and early 19th centuries, Philadelphia schoolgirls made carefully worked samplers that evidence balanced composition and refined pictorial motifs. Signed, “Phebe Lukens nedle work 1806,” and including two sets of initials, RL and SL, this is a praiseworthy little Philadelphia sampler. It features flowering plants in pots and baskets and two pairs of birds, surrounded by a sawtooth border. Robert Lukens (1762-1842) married Sarah Barnes (1762-1837) circa 1784 and Phebe was the third of their eight children, born on July 5, 1789. The history of the Lukens family began with Jan Lukens, who was born in Crefeld, Germany, circa 1655. Arriving on the ship “Concord” in 1683, Lukens was a weaver who settled in Germantown along with the many other German Mennonites who sought freedom to worship and found it in Pennsylvania. Jan was active in the affairs of government, serving as constable, bailiff and sheriff and burgess. Phebe was his great-greatgranddaughter. She married Joseph Marple (1786-1856) and they became the parents of at least four children, residing in the Dock Ward of Philadelphia. Phebe survived her husband and was living with her younger sister, Sarah, and one of her sons, in 1860, still in the same neighborhood. Worked in silk on linen, the sampler is in excellent condition and it has been conservation mounted into an early 19th century frame. Sampler size: 12¾” x 8”
Frame size: 17” x 12¼”
Price: $4600.
Harriet Talcott, Coventry, Connecticut, 1844
Made by Harriet Talcott who lived in Coventry, Tolland County, Connecticut, this small, endearing sampler features a very good scene of a large three-quarter house with a smaller house and baskets of fruit. An outstanding new book, which we highly recommend, , by Susan P. Schoelwer (The Connecticut Historical Society, 2010) sheds strong light on the excellent samplers and needlework from this state. Harriet was twelve years old in 1844 when she worked this, crediting her instructress, E. A. Jones. Born on April 10, 1832, Harriet was the daughter of Ezekiel and Aurelia (Brewster) Talcott. Her maternal ancestors descended from Deacon John Loomis (1622-1688), one the early settlers of central Connecticut. by S. V. Talcott (Albany 1876) indicates that Harriet died at age nineteen in 1851. Her sampler descended along with a fine little water color on paper entitled “Approbation Merits Reward,” which must have been presented to her by Miss Jones, and it remains with the sampler. Worked in silk on linen, the sampler is in excellent condition and has been conservation mounted into a 19th century gold leaf frame. Sampler size: 8¼” x 12¼”
Frame size: 10½” x 14½”
Price: $4200.
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Sampler Pocket, England, circa 1800 An outstanding example, this is one of a known group of wonderfully delicate pockets made in England at the very end of the 18th century and for a few years into the early 19th century. These were made as small gifts or presentation pieces; it is also thought that they were made within orphanages or asylums to be sold to raise funds for these institutions. They were rarely framed, and if tucked away out of light and rarely used, can remain in fine condition. The pocket we offer is comprised of three panels with two openings. Classic English motifs are worked throughout, with each panel a separate composition centering on a tree or basket of flowers. Strikingly similar pockets can be found on pages 106-109 of , by Anne Wanner-JeanRichard (1996). As is the case with all of them, a verse is worked into the pocket, as well; revealing the needleworker’s skill of lettering in a more attractive format than mere alphabets. The verse reads: “Where shall the Child of sorrow find a place of calmn repose. thou father of the fatherless. Pity the orphans woes;” this is the first stanza of "The Orphan’s Hymn.” Complimenting the ivory, green, russet red and deep blue silk thread is a binding of yellow silk ribbon ending in a long tie, which would have secured the pocket when neatly folded. Worked onto gauze linen over a cotton base, the pocket remains in very good condition with slightly loss to thread at the folds and some weakness to the ribbon. Size of the pocket: 8¾” x 3”
Price: $4800.
Pin Cushion Commemorating the Institution of the Cheltenham Female Orphan Asylum School of Industry, England, circa 1820 Very tight and fine needlework was created by young girls in orphanages, as the results were considered an indication of their ability in their quest for employment. Many orphanages were erected during the late 18th and 19th centuries and flourished in the Victorian Era when child abandonment was unfortunately common. The Cheltenham Female Orphan Asylum School of Industry was established in 1806 by Queen Charlotte, wife of George III, as a charitable institution, a school of industry for poor girls; it was later carried on by Queen Victoria and Queen Alexandra. This outstanding specimen of needlework, a miniature pin cushion, is the finest of its kind. A very few similar examples are known; these were made to commemorate the opening of the orphanage in 1806, noted in minute cross stitch on one side of the pin cushion, along with the motto: “Religion is our guide and Industry our Support.” On the other side, again in extremely fine cross stitches are lines of alphabets, a numerical progression, crown, and the gesture “A present From Cheltenham.” The two sides are bound by a needlework-embellished band that wraps around all four sides, along with a total of eight lively little pale pink tassels, paired at each corner. The extreme delicacy of the needlework contrasts nicely with firm stuffing of the pin cushion itself. Worked in silk on openweave linen with a dark blue glazed fabric visible underneath, the token is in excellent condition. Dimensions: 2¾” x 2½” x 1½” Price: $5400.
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Sarahmartha South, England, 1839 Sarahmartha South stitched this sampler in 1839, full of strong motifs in a golden and green palette and in a classic, symmetrical English composition. A large, very structured overstuffed basket is the focal point for Sarahmartha’s work. A uniform stack of fruit peaks between two angels in boots; and the basket itself is comprised of many triangles, exaggerating the overall shape. A handle curls off each end, encircling the only empty space on the gauze-like linen ground.
Presented by the angels in boots is a most flattering dedication to Miss South’s parents: “Remember dear Parents That I bear in mind That A friend like you Is hard to find.” Leafy sprigs in striped urns flank the sentiment, and are squared off by the pair of Adam & Eve imagery in the bottom corners. Windmills, crowns, deer, and other small classic motifs mirror each other in the composition, as well, and a strong border of stylized feathers contain the work on all four sides. Worked in silk on fine linen, the sampler remains in excellent condition. It has been conservation mounted into its original beveled maple frame with gold liner. Sampler size: 9” square
Frame size: 12¼” square
Price: $3250.
Mary Ann Livensetter, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 1821 Mary Ann Livensetter, born circa 1810, was the daughter of John and Elizabeth Livensetter of Philadelphia. Her sampler, which was made in 1821, includes several tightly worked small sets of family initials at the end of her rows of alphabets, allowing for specific identification of the family. Those initials include her parents, her sister Phebe D. Livensetter and her brother, Mahlon D. Livensetter. Their father kept a school for boys in Philadelphia, which is included in various Philadelphia directories, including (1825), with addresses on New Market, Brewer’s Alley and N. Second Streets. Mary’s carefully worked sampler reflects her own education; the “Extract” verse is from John Milton’s masterpiece, , published in 1667. Beneath that is the inscription, “Mary Ann Livensetter’s work April 19th 1821.” Alphabets were accomplished in cross-stitch, eyelet-stitch and queen’s-stitch. Interestingly, the sampler is accompanied by an extraordinary journal that also belonged to Mary Ann Livensetter. Dated 1831 with later additions, this was purchased as a blank album published by C. Wells of New York, with some engravings. Many pages have poems or inscriptions in fine calligraphy done by Mary Ann, friends and family. Mary Ann married William Rorer, a maker of surgical instruments, and they became the parents of four daughters and a son, remaining in Philadelphia. She and her husband are included in her father’s will of 1852. Worked in silk on tan linen, the sampler is in excellent condition and it has been conservation mounted into a molded mahogany frame. Sampler size: 12½” x 12¼” Frame size: 14¾” x14½” Price: $2400.
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“Specimens of Darning,” E. Craven, Christ Church School, Leeds, England, 1850 An interesting little darning sampler, this example presents much information within the inscription; the maker, E. Craven created it as a “specimen,” at the Christ Church School, Leeds, England in October 1850. The darned squares are nicely composed and integrated into each other by their warps and wefts, although the pattern of each square is different. The edges are also finished in fine drawn-work on all four sides. This sampler was likely one of Miss Craven’s needlework projects intended to help her obtain employment in service after her schooling was complete. Christ Church School may have been an orphanage school or other institution, certainly one that educated children of the laboring class. Worked in silk on linen it remains in excellent condition. It has been conservation mounted into a rosewood veneered frame. Sampler size: 7¾” x 9¼”
Frame size: 9¼” x 10¾”
Price: $1800.
Nancy Stearns, American, 1812 Nancy Stearns stitched her sampler in 1812, probably in Pennsylvania. We find it to hold strong appeal: both its verticality and the spot motif-like arrangement are reminiscent of 18th century samplers, yet Nancy’s imagery and organic compositions reflect its origins. The upper register features alphabets and a short numerical progression. Many well-executed queen’s-stitched motifs surround the maker’s name, which resides above a large stylized bird perched on a round flower blossom. To the left, a small animal fills space. Nancy stitched the date, March 17, 1812 inside a tall trellis, next to an equally tall potted flower. Worked in silk on linen this sampler remains in excellent condition. It has been conservation mounted into an ochre painted, molded frame. Sampler size: 17½” x 6¾” Price: $2400.
Frame size: 19½” x 8¾”
Mary M. Hartman, Adams County, Pennsylvania, 1844
Young girls from Pennsylvania German families created a well-regarded body of samplers, integrating a penchant for craftsmanship and a proclivity for decoration onto their samplers. Mary Margaret Hartman, only eight years of age, worked this handsome sampler that features a fine house flanked by a pair of tall trees formed of diamond shapes. The house is shown in three-quarter view, set on a deep green lawn. The daughter of Henry and Sarah (Raffensperger) Hartman, Mary was born in 1836 and the family lived in Franklin Township, Adams County, in southeastern Pennsylvania. Mary was the second child of thirteen born to Henry, a farmer, and Sarah. They lived in the small town of Arendtsville, north of Gettysburg. In 1858, at her parent’s home, Mary married Peter Yeatts, a farmer who also served as postmaster in their town, Heidlersburg. They became the parents of three children, Lizzie, Elmer and Sadie. Mary died at the age of 92 and her obituary appeared in The sampler was worked in silk and linen on linen and is in excellent condition with very minor wear to the linen ground. It has been conservation mounted and is in a figured maple beveled frame with a black outer bead. Sampler size: 17½” x 10”
Frame size: 20½” x 13”
Price: $3200.
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(detail of sampler by Mary Banks, 1763, page 18)
(detail of sampler by Rachel Electa Foster, 1827, page 5)
(detail of sampler by Maria Van Langevelt, 1754, page 19)
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(detail of sampler by Susan Tilton, 1827, page 7)
(detail of sampler by Terressa Grow, 1826, page 8)
(detail of sampler by Ruthey Lock, 1807, page 17)
SELECTED NEEDLEWORK BIBLIOGRAPHY . Washington, DC: DAR
Allen, Gloria Seaman. Museum, 1989.
, 1738-1860, Maryland Historical Society, 2007.
Bolton, Ethel Stanwood and Coe, Eve Johnston. Boston: The Massachusetts Society of the Colonial Dames of America, 1921. .
Browne, Clare and Jennifer Wearden. London: V&A Publications, 1999.
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Edmonds, Mary Jaene. New York: Rizzoli, 1991. Herr, Patricia T.
. The Heritage Center Museum of Lancaster County, Pa, 1996. .
Hersh, Tandy and Charles. Birdsboro, PA: Pennsylvania German Society, 1991. Humphrey, Carol. . Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press, 1997.
. Needleprint & Ackworth School Estates Limited, 2006.
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Ivey, Kimberly Smith. Colonial Williamsburg and Curious Works Press, 1997. .
Krueger, Glee F. New York: E.P. Dutton, 1978.
. Sturbridge, Massachusetts: Old Sturbridge Village, 1978.
Parmal, Pamela A. Ring, Betty.
. Boston, Massachusetts: MFA Publications, 2000. . New York: E.P. Dutton, 1987. . Knopf, 1993. .
Providence: The Rhode Island Historical Society, 1983. . New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1968.
Schiffer, Margaret B.
. Hartford,
Schoelwer, Susan P. Connecticut: The Connecticut Historical Society, 2010. Schorsch, Anita. Clinton, New Jersey: The Main Street Press, 1976.
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Studebaker, Sue. . Warren County Historical Society, 1988. . Ohio: Ohio University Press, 2002. Swan, Susan B. New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 1977.
(detail of sampler by Elizabeth Ham, 1802, page 3)
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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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When necessary, 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 Susan Garfield, 1825, page 1)
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