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Furnitu in Harbor & Home:

e Furnitu of Southeastern Maachusetts1710–1850

By Ben SimonsRobyn & John Davis Chief Curatorfor Nantucket Historical Association

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This summer, the Nantucket Historical Associationproudly hosts the traveling Winterthur Museum and CountryEstate exhibition Harbor & Home: The Furniture of SoutheasternMassachusetts, 1710–1850 in the Peter Foulger Gallery of theWhaling Museum. The exhibition includes 13 items from theNHA collection that represent highlights of work by Nantucket cabinetmakers and craftsmen. The scope of theWinterthur exhibition, covering the period 1710–1850, dovetails with the growth and development of Nantucket as amajor New England seaport and the flourishing of the island’s“peculiar” industry of whaling.

The first generation of European settlers on the island importedrepresentative examples of period furniture from Boston andother settlements on the mainland. Early records in island account books indicate that the first furniture made on Nantucket could best be described as local and utilitarian.From the early days, as J. Hector St. John de Crèvecoeur observed, Nantucketers evinced remarkable ingenuity in allhandiwork, especially in crafting the island’s scarce supply ofwood: “I must confess, that I have never seen more ingenuityin the use of a knife. You will be pleased to remember they areall brought up to the trade of coopers.”

In those times, ingenious Nantucket craftsmen fashioned everything from barrels to coffins to tables to whaleboats. Oneearly artisan, Nathaniel Starbuck Jr., who also made iron harpoons and lances for the whaling trade, created a greatvariety of furniture: “1707–a cubberd for Nashama;” “6 mo1708–a chest for Mary Starbuck;” “3 mo 1731–a pine deskfor brother.” Most of those creations would have been extremely rustic and functional, with designs that, if they alluded to mainland styles, would have been deeply restrained, in line with the aesthetic of the increasingly dominant Quaker majority on the island.

Quakerism took root on Nantucket in the first decades of theeighteenth century, mainly as a result of itinerant Quakerpreachers from Philadelphia and Rhode Island. The first largepublic Quaker meetings were held at the house of NathanielStarbuck Jr.’s mother Mary, know as “Great Mary,” in her

Opener photo: Federal cylinder-fall desk made for Nantucketer Sylvanus Ewer in 1808 by Nantucket furniture-maker Heman Ellis(1770–1816). NHA collection, gift of Mr. and Mrs. Amos Hostetter Jr.,1987. Photo by Jeffrey Allen..Left photo: Detail of the face of the 1790 tall-case astronomical clockmade by Nantucket genius Walter Folger Jr. (1765–1849). NHA collection,gift of Annie Alden Folger, 1943. Photo by Jeffrey Allen.

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Brace-back Windsor arm chair madein 1799 by Nantucketer FrederickSlade (1777–1800). NHA collection,gift of the Friends of the NantucketHistorical Association, 1999. Photoby Jeffrey Allen.

This important Nantucket Windsor chair made by island chairmakerFrederick Slade reveals stylistic details, including spooled, cylindricalposts and large scrolled crests that have been linked to a few specificfurniture makers on Nantucket in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. Remarkably, it still includes traces of its original paint.Frederick Slade, born on the island in 1777, was approximately 22when he made this chair. He was the son of Benjamin Slade, anotherisland chairmaker.

The Peddler, 1873, oil on board, Eastman Johnson (1824-1906). Private collection. Photo by Tony Dumitru.

Widely considered one of America’s foremost genre and portrait paintersof the nineteenth century, Eastman Johnson took up seasonal residenceon Nantucket in 1872 and painted a number of his most important

and enduring paintings here. In his 1873 canvas, The Peddler, Johnsondepicts a traveling peddler (a likeness of one of his frequent sitters, theretired Captain Nathan Manter) selling his wares to a young woman

in a Nantucket interior complete with a pot-bellied stove and a Nantucket Windsor chair.

large dwelling in Sherburne (Nantucket’s early settlement)called Parliament House. An eyewitness recalls some of thefurnishings in the meeting space: “The large and bright rubbedRoom was set with suitable Seats or Chairs, the Glass Windows taken out of the Frames, and many Chairs placedwithout very conveniently, so that I did not see anything awanting . . . but something to stand on, for I was not free to setmy Feet upon the fine Cane Chair, lest I should break it.” Thetypical cane-seated “ladder-back” chair in its Nantucket version was often called a “four-back chair,” with four slats asopposed to the more common three-slat version. These elegantchairs have clean vertical lines with a delicate flair toward thetop, finely turned legs, stretchers with raised “sausage” sections, and crisply turned finials with flattened balls toppedwith knobs. The chair in the exhibition is a “four-slat” chairstamped “Mo Meeting,” indicating its use as a business chairfor the Quaker Meeting.

Another classic form, the Windsor chair, would come to beidentified with the heart of island character, almost as much as

it was seen to represent the character of the young republic.Praised by many as a perfect chair form — elegant, cheap,strong, and comfortable — the Windsor was favored by thecommon man and by our first presidents. On Nantucket, theearliest examples were based on the Philadelphia-style Windsors,two of which are in the NHA collection, and are notable forstrong splay in the legs and cylinder-and-ball feet; dramatically back-curving arms; arched crest rails with projecting, carved ears; a deep oval seat; brace-back for extrasupport; and a combination of cylindrical and baluster turnings.

One Nantucket Windsor chair in the NHA collection, madeand signed by island chairmaker Frederick Slade (1777–1800), son of another cabinetmaker, Benjamin Slade (1755–1834), is a fine specimen of the Nantucket style, which washeavily influenced by the Philadelphia tradition. Slade, whowas twenty-two when he made the chair, died unmarried ona sea voyage, according to the record, “coming from Havana.” Notable features of the Slade Windsor chair includeits arched crest rail ending in boldly projecting carved ears, its

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scrolled arms terminating in dramatically stylized knuckles, thesculpted seat with an extension to support the brace, the statelyposture of its elegantly raked fan-back, and significantamounts of the original paint.

Windsor chairs were common features in the typical Nantuckethome, whether modest or elaborate. Among the rare paintings ofold Nantucket interiors is a tell-tale work that presents theWindsor chair in its workaday setting. Prominent Americangenre painter Eastman Johnson (1824–1906), who took upseasonal residence on the cliff in 1872, created a classic Nantucket scene in his painting The Peddler, which shows arustic interior complete with pot-bellied stove and an old gentleman, the traveling peddler, seated on a Windsor chairin all appearances very much like the Slade chair. A youngwoman stands next to him and removes a hairpin from apacket he has brought, while other saleable wares rest on asmaller chair nearby. The humble peddler, with a dog and a

covered Nantucket basket at his feet, and set off only by hisstately silk top hat, is perfectly at ease in the comfortable chair,positioned so naturally between the blazing stove and thelovely light-green door with its well-worn latch and lock. Johnsonhas imagined a vintage Nantucket scene in which the Windsorchair is nearly as much a character as the human shape it supports so effortlessly.

Most Windsor chairs, while they were the complex creations ofhighly skilled island craftsmen, remained purely functionalhousehold items. Another iconic Nantucket creation in the exhibition falls into a category all its own: the “astronomical”tall-case clock made by island genius Walter Folger Jr. (1765–1849). Daniel Webster described this peculiar individual during a visit to Nantucket with Ralph Waldo Emerson: “Onthe Island of Nantucket met with a philosopher, mathematician, and astronomer in Walter Folger, worthy tobe ranked among the great discoverers in science. He preferred to live quietly in his home town among his oldfriends.” Folger was one of Nantucket’s most gifted scholarsand inventors—a true Renaissance man. Self-taught in the disciplines of navigation, mathematics, astronomy, surveying,

This lovely tilt-top candlestand, attributed to Nantucket cabinetmaker Heman Ellis (1770-1816), features elegantly shaped legs, a fine articulated urn-and-column standard, a square top with serpentine sides and blocked corners, and central inlay in the top portraying a

carnation-like flower, with an S-shaped, leafy vine resting on a herringbone base, capped with a triple-lobed flower. The candlestand is anoutstanding illustration of the “Nantucket-style” stand as exemplified by one of the finest known cabinetmakers working on Nantucket.

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Tilt-top candlestand, ca. 1790-1810, attributed to Heman Ellis (1770-1816). NHA collection, gift of the Max and Heidi Berry Acquistion Fund,2006. Photo by Jeffrey Allen.

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and French, Folger pursued his studies while working as amaker and repairer of clocks and watches. His island acquaintances were less polite, describing him as being “asodd as huckleberry chowder.”

The extremely precocious Folger started work on his astronomicalclock in 1788, using a standard Boston-style brass movement.He worked two years on the clock, setting it in operation onJuly 4, 1790. The eight-day, weight-powered, brass-movementclock not only tells the time but also indicates the year, month,and day; tracks the motion of the sun and its “house,” or Zodiac, and the motion and phases of the moon; and gives aregular reading of the high tide at ’Sconset. Folger may haveengraved the dial or had it engraved by local silversmith Benjamin Bunker. A document in the NHA collection giveslikely testimony that the mahogany case was made by cabinetmaker Cornelius Allen (1767–1835), who was workingon Nantucket at the time. This remarkable invention, more ofan intellectual puzzle than a functional household item, hasfrequently been cited as one of the most important Americanclocks to have been made during the days of the early republic.

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Fan-back Windsor side chair made ca. 1790s by NantucketerCharles Chase (1731–1815). NHA collection, gift of Grace

Brown Gardner, 1973. Photo by Jeffrey Allen.

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Island-made furniture constructed at the highest levels ofartistry and craftsmanship is extremely rare and collectible.The Nantucket Historical Association collection is blessed toinclude the select pieces that appear in Harbor & Home—thanks largely to the generosity of many generations of donors.Classic Nantucket furniture can attain the polish and finesseof its mainland cousins, but often retains an air of the charmand quirkiness that are essential island characteristics. In 1911, the great island photographer and lore-collectorHenry S. Wyer wrote a charming poem, “The Relict Auction,”about an imagined island sale where many such pieces appear. He captures much of the flavor of Nantucket collecting:

Four-slat ladderback chair (ca. 1750) used in the NantucketQuaker Meeting. NHA collection, 1990. Detail of inscription “Mo. Meeting” (“Monthly Meeting”)Photos by Jeffrey Allen.

Behold, along the curbstone there,The whole collection, quaint and rare,Of household goods, all handed downBy ancient worthies of the townFor generations, till the lastLone relict of the line has passed,Beyond the portal. NevermoreIs the old homestead as of yore—A truce to dreams. What’s that he’s selling?A queer old rocker—age no telling—(Is that a phantom in it sitting,—A Quaker matron calmly knitting?)Methinks this old mahogany tableStrange tales might tell; would it were able!

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Two pieces fashioned by the hand of cabinetmaker Heman Ellis(1770–1816) deserve special mention. Ellis himself is an interesting but elusive figure. There are many traces of his presence on island, especially with his marriage to Sally in1811, and mention of him as the head of a household that included his younger brother Moses, also a “Cabanet Makr.”According to the1810 census, Heman “removed to Providence1814” and died of “fever” in 1816. A Nantucket court documentdated July 7, 1811, mentions Heman Ellis as the occupant ofa house in which Newport, Rhode Island house carpenter JohnWetherell harbored goods stolen from a Nantucket resident. The items included a carpenter’s rule and Asher Benjamin’s Country Builders Assistant. These brief accountshelp fill in a picture of Heman Ellis as a Nantucket- and Providence-based carpenter and cabinetmaker who likely traveled to and from the island to visit clients and assist his fellow craftsmen with individual projects.

The stunning tilt-top candlestand attributed to Heman Ellisbears remarkably strong stylistic similarities to the 1808 cylinder-fall desk made and signed by him, also included inthe exhibition. This elegant desk was made for Sylvanus Ewer,a wealthy Nantucket shipowner who lived at 19 Union Street.Stylistic clues to Ellis’s handiwork in the candlestand includethe quality and design of the vine and floral inlays, which areextremely rare among Massachusetts candlestands. The standfeatures elegantly curved legs, a fine articulated urn and column standard, and a square top with serpentine sides andblocked corners. The central inlay in the top portrays a carnation-like flower, with an S-shaped, leafy vine resting ona herringbone base, capped with a triple-lobed flower. Thestand is an elegant illustration of the “Nantucket-style” candlestand, with the characteristic top, legs, and a shaft thatincludes the thick ring at the base. It does not have the gougecarving on the top of the knees that is often seen on other Nantucket stands, but nevertheless ranks as one of the finestspecimens of the Nantucket form.