Federal furniture

FEDERAL

FURNITURE

Michael Dunbar

ITI

The Taunton Press

Cover and text photos by Andrcw Edgar. except wh crc noted . Photos. pp, 8 and 10. by John Co rco ra n .

" 1986 by The Ta u nton Press. In c , All righ ts rese rved

First printing: ~I a y 198 6 Int ern a tio nal Sta nda rd Boo k Number: 0 ·918804·48·5 Library of Co ngress Catalog Ca rd Nu mbe r: 85 ·52239 Printed in Denmark

A FIl>E WOODWORKI NG Book FIl>E WOODWORKIl>G"' is a tra dem ark o f Thc Ta unto n Press, Inc .• regist er ed in th e U.S . Pat e nt and Trade ma rk Office , The Ta u nto n Press. Inc . 63 South Ma in St ree t Box 355 Newtown. Co nnec tic ut 06 4 70

Acknowledgments

~I y

wife , Carol. and I dedicate thi s bo ok to o u r good friend Dr. Doro thy Va ug ha n, During World War I, wh en s he was a tee nager, Dorothy began her lifelon g lov e affair with Po rtsmou th, New Hampshire , Th rough out mo st o f this cent ury, wh en few o the rs ca red o r were able to understand wh y, she struggle d to prot ect thi s old c ity b y th e se a from the wrecke r's ba ll. The spec ial cha rac te r a nd a rc hi tec tu ra l heri tage tha t Portsm outh ha s o nly latel y learned to c he rish we re in la rge pa rt sa ve d for us all by Do rothy. She sta nds as a b ridge betwe en Portsmouth 's pa st a nd its future. She has read a nd co mm itted to memory th e c ity's written h istory. And bef ore each re cent generation o f olde r ci tize ns slip pe d a way, s he befri ended them , keeping a live in the process two c enturi es o f o ra l hi st ory for this ge ne ra tio n. Doro thy sha res her kn owledge lib erally. She ha s alw ay s willin gly helped me with my research, and in so doing sh e has also sha re d her uniqu e gift with you, the readers o f thi s book . I would also lik e to acknowl ed ge th e c o ntrib u tio n to this book o f And y Edg a r, wh ose pati en ce a nd good hum or hel ped us bo th s u rv ive many hours o f ph o to graph y. J ack an d Dia ne ~l c G e e ' s ge ne rosity b rought th e Lord bo x hom e . Fe llo w c ra ftsme n a nd woodworkers Pat Edwa rds. Al Breed a nd To m Hin ckl e y co ntrib u te d th eir s pe c ia l knowl ed ge and inf o rmati on . ~I uch o f th e wo od used in th e p rojec ts fell to Ed dy Tr embla y's c ha insa w. Th rough Cha rlie LeBlanc at th e Portsm outh Public Library, resourc es were o nly a ph on e call away . And since this book co nta ins no index , Ed Hyder ha s y ie lded hi s plac e .

Contents

AN INTROHUCTIO N TO FEHERAL nJRNITlJRE THE PARLOR 1 c a,« T a ble

S

10

Project : String in lay 2 Xl irror Project : Ro pe turning

20

.l Sofa

.10

Project: Reeding by hand

4 C a n illes ta n d

.1S

Project : Sliding dovetails

5 Lord Bo .'-Proj e c t: .Jo in te d lid and "matched " veneers

6 Tip -T op Tal)le

50

Proj ect: IIinge block

7 Sec re ta ry Pro j e c t:

58

~ Iunti ns

THE IHNI N(; ROOM 8 Tncy

,-

-'}

74

Project: Edge band ing

9 l lep ple snh ite C lu cir

so

Project : Angled mortise-and-tenons

10 Gcctcleg T a b le

90

Project : Wooden h inge

11 Fa ncy C h a i r

100

Project: Reeding with a pla ne

12 Bello w s

lOS

Project : Front-hoard decorat io n

TilE KITCHE N l.l Willds o r C Ila i r

1 l(, 1 IS

Project: S hap ing the sea t

14 Display 8 1,e U' Project: Stop dadoes

15 Ca n d le Bo s:

l.12

Project: Sliding lid

16 Desk

O il

F ru llI e

l.1 8

Project : Simulated four- way m it e r joi n ts

THE HEIH{OOM 17 l l igh -Po«: Bcd

14() 14 8

Project: Roping the fra me

18 Pembroke Table

15h

Project : Rul e jo ints

19 Brueket-Bas e Blanket C hes t Project: Ra bbeted lid mol d in gs

20 C hes t of Dru seers

170

Project: Si mu lated coc k bead ing

AI»I»ENHICES SOI/n.' es of S l/ p p ly G loss a ry HibliogmpllY

179 180

I S .l

AN INTRODUCTION TO FEDERAL FURNITURE

T,

waning yea" of the 18th century marked a n exhilarating period in Arne ricar history. With the end of the Revolu-

tionary War in 1781 and the ratification of the U.S. Constitution in 1788 , Americans embarked on one of the most radical political experiments in history. The produet of their struggle was the Federal Republie-an achievement of which they were acutely proud. At the same time they were also unknowingly laying the groundwork in America for what would begin in England and spread elsewhere as another of history's greatest changes: the Industrial Revolution . The arts of America bear the influence of this exciting era , and many innovations in style heralded the new republic 's birth . In furniture the emerging style in America was known as Federaland was produced roughly from around 1790 to 1820. A large, well-established middle class dominated the populace of Federal -period America. This population was well e d ucated, and politically, technologically and artistically sophisticated . While Hollywood has thoroughly familiarized us with the pioneers who settled the American frontier, we remain largely unaware that our Colonial and Federal forebears also created wealthy, cosmopolitan centers like Philadelphia, Boston and New York. The social conditions of these Federal-period cities and the new republic 's established commercial network made possible a high level of accomplishment in the arts and in manufacturing, arenas that converged in the woodworking trades of architecture and furniturernakin g. During the 17th and early 18th centuries, England had provided the major influence on American architecture, furniture and decorative arts . In the mid-18th century, England, like the rest of Europe , became fascinated with the archaeological discoveries at classical Greek and Roman sites. The decorative objects and the paintings of daily life yielded by sites like Pompeii gave rise to an enthusiastic revival of interest in the classical world . In reaction to the excess of the Gothic and rococo styles from the Chippendale period in the mid-18th century, the neoclassical movement produced a reinterpretation of Greco-Roman antiquity that emphasized simplicity , geometric forms and classical ornament. With the end of the Revolu tionary War and the normalization of relations and commerce between England and America, neoclassicism spread to the new republic . For Federal -period Americans, the similarities of their own political experiment and the democratic experiences of the classical world added significance to their embrace of the neoclassical movement that went far beyond the desire to copy the most up-to-date European fashion . -1-

The new Fed eral furniture was light and delicate in appe arance . Fav oring simpl e . geom etric lines, it observed rigid sy nunc t rv in it s o ve ra ll design and borrowed e n th usi as tic a lly from classical decorative motifs. Among th ese m otifs were vases . urns, plum e s. swag s. b ow s and re eding: patriotic cl em ents lik e the e ag le found th eir way in to many Fed eral pi e c e s a s well . In a dd itio n to classical o rn a me nt. Federa l furnitur e also made frequent use o f s t ring and pictorial inlay and ven e ering. Th e c ha rac te ris tic delicacy o f Federal furniture is also th e feature th at m o st o b vio us ly di stingui sh es it from th e larger. more robu st Ch ip p e nd a le furniture that immedi ately preceded it and th e heavier Em p ire styl e th at foll owed . Federal furniture 's apparent daintin ess. however. wa s largely an illu si on. created by removing from the indi vidual c le m e n ts o f a piece all wood unnecessary to th e s t ruc tu ra l integrity of the whole . Som etim es thi s delicacy was achi eved b y sc ali ng down th e pi ece . so that whil e ad equ at ely s ize d for its function . it wa s ge ne ra lly smaller th an a co m pa ra b le Ch ip pe nd a le o r Empire e xa m ple . Yet d espit e it s a ppea ra nc e . Federal furniture wa s by no mean s fragile . O n th e co n t ra ry. th e pi e c e s pres ented in thi s b ook - all o f whi ch are from th e collec tio n of Fed eral fu rn itu re m y wif e . Ca ro l. and I own-arc an av erage o f 17S yea rs o ld , and all s till remain s ta b le a nd in daily use. Th e int rodu cti on o f ne o cla ssi ci sm in Am erica wa s ha st en ed b y th e importation from England o f pattern . or drawing. b ook s publi shed in th e late 18th c entury b y indi vid ua l c a b ine t m a ke rs or o t he rs in th e furniture trade . Co m pa ra ble to what today would b e a cross b etwe en a mod ern furnitur e c a ta log a nd a hom e -and-garden IlJ aga zin e . th e se d rawing books illustrated th e lat est fashion in furniture and interior d ec orating and provided pattern s for cabinetmakers working o u ts ide London wh o

needed to accomm odate th eir custom ers' requ es ts for th e mo st up-to -date designs . The engra vings in th e drawing books frequently presented both what th e lates t fu rn itu re was to look like and how it wa s to b e accesso rized . arranged and us ed in the hom e . Alth ou gh numerou s pattern b o ok s were published . th e best kn own are Til e Ca bine t-Ma ke r and Unlio lstere r 's G u ide ( 1788) by Geo rge Heppl ewhite and Tile Ca binetMak er's and Un hols te re r 's Dra soing-Book ( 1791 -93) by Thomas Sh eraton . Th e e ngra ving s in these bo o ks , two o f whi ch are found o n th e facing pa ge , co nt ras t ma rke dly with the plans we us e today in building furnitu re. The y include very few measurements and u sually p resent o nly front vi ew s o f pieces. For th e u ser of o ne o f th e se b ook s. additi onal inf ormati on wa s unnecessary : a train ed cabinetmaker needed only a picture o f th e d es ired piece to proportion and construct it. l lc pple wh ite and Sh eraton u sually illu strate d fu rn itu re that wa s far more e la b o ra te than the actual pi ec es ins p ired by th eir bo oks . It is unlikely th at the y intended th e furniture to be so intensely d evel oped . but pro ba bly o vc rado rne d their e ng ra vings to give ca b ine tma kers a nd their cu s tomers a wid e se lec t io n o f o rna me nt from wh ich to ch oo se . It is o fte n thought that Hcpplcwhitc a nd She rato n designed th e furniture th at b e ars th eir name s. b u t ins tea d o f prom oting their o wn d esign s. b oth men merel y illu strated th e s ty le th en current in En gland . Ironic all y . neith er Hepplewhite nor Sh era ton left an y furn iture t hat can be attribut ed to th eir hands . Actually . th e traditi onal distinction b etween ll c pp le wh irc a nd Sh eraton furniture is m isleadi ng. s ince th e pi ece s illustrated in th eir patt ern b ook s were quite s im ilar. Thi s sys te m of classificati on arose in t he lat e 19th

~Iade aruuud 1770, the robu ..t Chippendale ..ide ehllir ..hown at left above feature ....quare Marlborou~h le~.. and a shaped and pierced "ribbon bacl•." The more deticarc, Federal-period Sherllton ..ide chair, center, ha.. a ..erpentfnc-sbaped ..cat, turned and tluted front leg", and II .. quure bucl. thut the milker undoubtudly copied from Sherlltoll'" ..eeond de .. i~1I ill the lower en~rll"in~ 011 the flleill~ page, The Empire ..ide ehuir, riAht, made around 1820, i" ha ..ed 011 the KIi ..mo" chair illu ..truted 011 ancient Gree lc ' ·II"e".

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From Geor~e Hepplewhitc's pattern book, this sofa dcsi~n feutuees thc turned legs that arc usuallv associatcd with Sheraton furniture. (80th cngra,'ings courte!i~' of

Dover Puhtiearlnns.)

C \l A I R H .\ C K S .

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l'ttl/r..rltrll y Z'.JIJt'rfl !.'" A,~'1

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. 'rom Thomas Shcraton·s pattern bool" this cngra,'ing displa~'s a ,'arict~, of chair-back dcsigns lind thc minimal dimcnsions nccdcd for their rcproduction.

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J -

a nd early 20th centuries when antique collectors and the museum world tried to organize and codify, somewhat arbitrarily, the various styles of furniture being collected. A Sheraton chair, for example , is generally perceived as having a square back. turned legs and feet. and often reedcd decoration on both turned and flat surfaces: yet it is possible to find examples of Hepplewhite chairs with one or severa l of these characteristics. By contrast. the traditio na l Hc p plcwh itc -style chair is characterized as having a curvilinear back (often in the shape of a shield). tapered legs and spade feet-all features that are occasionally fou nd on Sheraton furniture as well. And someti mes a feature designated as Sheraton or Ilepplewhite is actua lly an amalgam of designs from both pattern books.

.Just as Federa l-period cab ine tmakers found motifs and features intermingled in pattern books . they too borrowed free ly from various sources for their own designs. They occasionally incorporated an element th a t remained popular from an earlier period or style . Such an clement. called a surv ival feature . is more common on informal and country furniture than on formal. One of several examples of survival features found in this book is the thumbnail molding on the desk on frame on p . 138. a feature carried over from the Chippendale period. Late in the Federal period, cab inetmakers also borrowed from the newly emerging Empire style, ca lled Grecian by the men who made it. This style of furniture was heavily intluenced both by Greek class ica l forms and by arc haeologica l discoveries th e n be ing made in Egypt.

Thi" Hepplewhite engraving advised that furniture, when not in use, was to he symrneteiently di"tributed around the perimeter of the room. (Engraving eourtesy of Dover Publfearlons.}

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Cabinetmakers and their clients In the Federal period , almost every large city had numerous cabinetmaking shops where one could purchase rcady-made furniture or place a special order. Most major cities, among them Philadelphia. New York and Boston, also shipped Federal furniture as cargo to ports all along the East Coast, where it was usually purchased by furniture dealers , who were often cabinetmakers themselves. Any good-size town and many rural villages also had at least one cabinetmaker creating furniture for local use . The great variety of cabinetmakers and the differing needs of their customers produced several categories of Federal furniturc: formal. or high-style, furniture: informal furniture: and country furniture. Formal furniture was usually made in cities with an established cabinetmaking industry by craftsmen who had trained in traditional apprenticeships. Their work was fashioned after that in the pattern books and ornamented in varying degrees. Whatever the extent of its decoration. formal furniture was usually made of mahogany, though occasionally cabinetmakers worked with native woods like cherry or used a highly figured variety , like crotch-grain birch , for veneer. Informal furniture was made both by urban cabinetmakers-sometimes in the same shops that produced more expensive. formal pieces-and by rural artisans. This utilitarian furniture generally carried less ornament than did formal work and it was frequently painted. The wood used for informal furniture was usually a native species like cherry. birch. maple . pine , tulipwood . poplar or walnut. Country furniture was made by rural craftsmen. This furniture is often similar in appearance to informal furniture . and frequently it's impossible to distinguish between the two. While generally simple. country furniture could be ambitious in design . Yet even th e best country furniture usually indicates the maker's inexperience with high -style interpretations of Federal furniture. perhaps the result of a more informal apprenticeship. Country furniturernakers occasionally used mahogany in their work but more often employed locally available . native woods. These craftsmen seem to have frequently copied designs from memory and clearly felt free to express their individuality in interpreting a design, Their work varied widely in quality ; yet a piece like the candlestand on p. 38 displays how successful country furniture could be . Whether making formal. informal or country furniture. a Federal-period cabinetmaker knew how his work would be used by the client. As advocnrcd in the pattern books , most furniture, when not in usc, would be placed against a wall. essentially ringing the room (see the engraving on the facing page) . When needed, it would be moved to the center of the room. Most pieces therefore had to be portable. a requircmcnt made possible by the furniture 's delicate design and light weight. The custom of moving furniture about offered cabinetmakers an opportunity to enhance their designs, and they frequently fashioned pieces like the tip-top table on p. 50 that altered position-and thus character-for storage and use .

Often Federal furnituremakers designed pieces that also changed character in the varying light of day and evening. They knew that a piece would be seen in its entirety in the even, natural light of day ; and that, by contrast , in the oblique candlelight of evening, the piece would lose detail. and its proportions might become distorted amidst the shadows. To use these lighting conditions to advantage , these craftsmen created such intriguing designs as those for the card table on p. 10 and the bellows on p . 108. The cleverness and subtlety of Federal cabinetmakers ' designs displays considerable sophistication . Our Federal ancestors certainly developed and nurtured a keen visual sense, which we, I suspect, have lost from exposure to such passive forms of entertainment as television. Unlike the diversion we electronically pipe into our houses , visual entertainment was built into the Federal-period home itself. A Federal interior was a complex and well-planned composition. meant to be studied over time and enjoyed . Architecture and furniture together contributed to a harmonious whole that engaged and entertained the eye. Perhaps because Federal Americans created their own diversion, they lauded cleverness in conversation and in decor. For this reason , cabinetmakers incorporated delightful surprises and subtleties in their work . Such visual cleverness. for example, can be seen in the choice of veneers on the Lord box on p. 44 and the unusual design with which the maker of the secretary on p . 58 circumvented the rigid symmetry of Federal furniture . Because almost all Federal furniture , formal or informal, was made of wood, Federal cabinetmakers and their customers regarded wood differently than we do today. Though their formal furniture displays an appreciation for bold figure . they understood that furniture 's success did not always depend on seeing the wood itself. An opaque , painted finish was seen , on occasion , as a means of enhancing the success of a piece. Certainly the painted finish on a piece like the Windsor chair on p. 118 serves to unify it and elevate it from a study in grain to a sophisticated composition in line. From my study of Federal furniture , I found that even the most ordinary, functional furniture of this period was better designed and better constructed than modern massproduced furniture . (Only time will tell whether the work of contemporary custom furnituremakers is as enduring as Federal furniture.) Yet despite excellent workmanship , this furniture has inevitably suffered various degrees of damage during nearly two centuries of use, most of it due to wear and abuse . The cracking, warping and shrinking found in many pieccs , however, is the product of wood movement. In the environment for which it was createdhomes heated by fireplaces-this furniture remained relatively stable. Yet in the much drier environment produced by modern central heating, the wood has unavoidedly undergone change.

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Liv ing with Fede r a l furniturc

Using thi s book

Th e indi vidual pi e c e s o f furniture presented in this b ook have a gre a t dc al in co m mo n with one a no the r. Not o nly were th e y all mad e at a bo u t th e same tim e , th ey were a lso fas h ioned as middl e -cla ss furniture , that is , ne ither ove rly e la bo ra te nor e xceed ing ly simple . Yet th e se pieces ha ve so me th ing e lse in co m mon , too . Carol a nd I hav e asse m b le d th em al ong wi th o the r Fede ra l pi e ce s to furni sh o u r Fe de ra l-pe rio d h ouse , whi ch wa s built a ro u nd 18 0 0. Wh en we bought o u r home in 197 6 , it had changed so little o ve r it s lifetim e th at we decided to re st ore it e xac tly to it s o rigina l appearanc e , including duplicating th e o rigina l colo rs a nd wallpapers . As th e wall s, woodwork a nd tloo rs were re s tored , we ad ded to o ur growing collec tio n o f Federal -period furniture. A d ocum ent we have found vita l in furni shing o u r h om e is th e in ventory of th c c ontents o f thc hou se taken in 18 05 . Since co ns u me r goo ds we re very ex pe ns ive bef ore th e Ind us tria l Re volution and hou seh old furni sh in gs ge ne rally mad e up a s u bs ta n t ia l part of a personal estate , the judge of probate usu all y o rde re d a househ old inv ento ry taken upon so meo ne 's d eath. Th e 1805 inv ento ry to whi ch I refer is that o f th e es ta te o f master marin er .J ohn Seaward , .lr. . wh o built thi s h ou se so me time between 17 94 (wh e n h e b ought th e lo t) and 180.1 (whe n h e wr ot e a will leaving th e house to hi s wife , Hannah ) . In March 18 05 , Se award sa ile d o u t o f Boston as captain of th e sh ip Pet er and died while in Sava nna h, Geo rg ia . This in ventory . wh o se te xt is p rovided o n th e facing pa ge , gives a fas ci na ting lo oli at th e co nte n ts o f a typica l m iddl e -cl a ss. Fe de ra l-per io d h ou seh old . Am on g o the r things. th e modern reader will doubtl es s be impressed by th e number o f c h a irs listed-five d iffe rent se ts , to ta ling a s u rp ris ing 4 0 chairs in th e h ou se 's six com ple te d roo ms . (T ho ug h the inv entory lists four se ts in the kitch en, it 's unlikel y to ha ve h eld .10 c ha irs . Pr obably c ha irs from vari ous sets were in th e kitch en a nd th e inventory takers ask ed Mrs . Seaward h ow many of e ac h sh e had .) We haven 't adh ered slavish ly to th is in ventory in furn ishing thi s hou se , th ough we have bought some piec es becau se sim ila r item s were o nce part o f th e house 's furnish ing s. We have a r ra nged this furniture as it would have be en in a typical Federal house , o fte n placing piece s in locations s ugges te d by th e inv entory and , in sofar as possible , using th e se pi e c e s as o rigina lly intended . As a woodworker and Wind sor chairrnakcr since 1971 , as well as a n inv eterate s tu de nt o f Federal-period life , I wanted to address the s u bjec t o f Federal furniture both from the point o f view o f th e pe opl e wh o lived with this furniture a nd from the perspective o f th e c ra fts me n who mad e it. Unfo rt u n ate ly. schola rs s tu dy ing historical furniture a rc se ldo m concern ed with th e craftsman 's point o f view . and fe w a re them selv e s woodworkers. Fo r th ese rea sons, mu ch va lua b le inf ormati on ha s go ne und etect ed . and o u r und erst anding o f th e subjec t is incompl et e . I a m th erefore pleased in thi s b oo k to invite you into my hom e a nd to share with yo u m y findin gs abo u t Fe de ral fu rn itu re and Fede ra l-period life.

This book consis ts of 20 chapt ers, ea c h d ev o ted to o ne piece of furnit ure and all arranged in four se cti on s by room . Every chapter contains a ge ne ra l di scussi on o f th e de sign and co ns tru c tio n of the piece , as well as a proj ect se c tio n o n a particular a spect of constru cti o n o r o rna me nt that is e ithe r typ ic ally Federal o r unusu al to mod ern woodworkers-for e xa m ple , h ow to produ c e the sim u lated cock beading o n a drawer front . Th e p roj e ct sec tio n contains s te p -by-ste p in struction s, d e tailed d rawings a nd process ph otographs ; and e a c h chapter concludes with a compl ete se t of mea sured drawings fo r th e full piece. Th e 20 pi eces included in thi s b ook were ca refu lly sel ect ed from the larger c o lle c t io n of Fed e ral fu rn itu re with which we liv e. Firs t and foremost. I c h ose th e se pieces because th ey are good exa m p les o f Fede ra l-pe rio d d esi gn and workmanship. The y a re not ne cc ssaril y what th e antiqu e market would d eem the most " importa nt" piec es in th e coll ection. but th ey represent th e broad s pe c tru m o f Fe de ra l st yle . I hope th ey will ap pea l to differing taste s and add to th e furni shings o f man y different ho mes . If you , to o , are a wo odworker, you will b e inte res te d in what can b e learned from Fed eral -p eriod ca b ine tmake rs . Th ey used som e woodworking techniqu e s th a t a re no lon ger wid el y known . They also used hand tools, so me of which , though s till ava ilable , are not well kn own ei ther. Since l a wn few machine s and usuall y work with h and to ols , I have chosen to s ho w in this bo ok how to do the proj ects with th ese traditional to ol s. O fte n, h ow e ver, I su ggest alternative e lec trica l tool s that can b e used fo r a particular job , and wh en using an unu sual anti qu e to ol. I have o ffe red advice o n how to adapt a no the r com monly available to ol. Som e o f the pi ece s presented in thi s b ook co uld be interpreted differently from th e o rig ina l o r co uld b e sc a le d up o r d own in size . In b oth c ases. I ha ve men t ion ed th e po ssibl e changes, but I urge you to think th rough each change th oroughly b efore b e ginning work on a p roj e ct , since limited s pace obv iously prevented in cluding all th e inf ormation needed for s u c h changes . Also I o fte n mention th e fini sh used o n th e o rigina l pi ece. In so me very humid o r ve ry dry clima tes , th e original fini sh mi ght not work we ll. For thi s re ason , ke ep loca l conditions in mind wh en ch oo sing a fini sh . I h ope yo u find the furniture in this b ook as interes tin g as I do and that you will decide to make so me o f th e p ieces , e ithe r for yo u rse lf or for your custom e rs. II' yo u do , please send me a slide o f your work .

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To Capt. Edw ard Sargent, M. Daniel Smith and M. Samuel Drowne, all of Portsmouth in said County

By the Hon, Nat hl Rogers, Rocklngham-s-s«, Judge of the Probate of Will s &e. for said County.

Gre eti ng. You are her eby a u t horit<ed to ta ke at. Invento ry of th e Es ta te of John. Seaward, la te of said Po rtsmou th, mariner deceased w ho lately d ied testate to be s hewn un to yo u by Han nah Sea ward Execu trix of h is last Will & Te sta me n t a nd to make a just a nd im partial A p p ra issment th er eof accord ing to the best of yo ur Judgment, a nd to re tu m th e sa me under yo ur. o r a ny tw o of y o u r Hands . into t he Registr;}' of th e Co u rt of Probate fo r sa id Co u n ty , upon Oa t h, to y o ur Fide li ty, herein . a t or bef ore t he T h ir d Wed nes day of September next, togeth e r w it h this Wa rrent. Dat ed at Po rtsmou th th c 19th day of J u ne, Anno Do mini 1805 By O rde r of th e J udge W. Pa rke r Rc!\

1 la rge J apan 'd Tea Tra y $4 . Ca nd le Stand SO cts 1 small Gilt framed looking Glass 1 Viole n 1 map le 4 feet table with lea ves 23 Framed pi c ture s different sizes 1 .la pa ned Tea Tray 2 Small Tru nks 13 Volumes , Boo ks 1 Small Shavi ng Glass 2 large , Floo r ca rpe ts Bed Furniture 1 Birch h igh po st Bedstea d, Bed , an d Furnitu re an d wind ow Cu rtains 1 Fea the r bed, Bols te r and pillo ws

In vento ry o f the Estate of John Seaward, late of Portsmouth, Marincr deceased, taken by us the undersigned, and app raiscdPursuant to the anne xed Warrent-

Viz. 1 Mahogany Bureau 2-di cto-Ca rd Tables 2 Oval Gilt Framed Looking Glasses 1 large easy Cha ir & Covering 8 mah ogany moha ir bottom 'd chai rs and two a rmed-ditto1 high post birch Bedstead, wi th Bed and furniture 1 pair brass Front Andirons , Shovel, Tongs & ho ok s, & 1 pair Bellows 2 pictures 2 small pieces wax work, Glass & Framed 1 pa ir brass Candlesticks, Tray & Snuffers a Quantity of China, glass, & Ea rthern wa re in a closet 1 hearth brush , Carpe nters Hammer, & glass Lan tern 1 large Bib le 1 pair Iron dogs , 2 Iron po ts, Shovel To ngs & Sad Iro ns 1 Tub , 1 pail, 1 bi rc h Square Ta ble , with leaves 2 Sm all pieces, Home mad e Ca rpeti ng 3 Japa ned waite rs , 1 Toile t Table 1 Co rded Bedstead 1 Dozn green, & 6 ye llow Windsor Cha irs 6 Ma pl e c arved , back Flag Botto me d Chairs 6 Common Chairs Amount Inventory, Sum brot forwd, Dollars 1 Large Spinning Wheel, 1 Foot-di tto1 Bread Trough, Bowle , Tray, & 2 measures '1 Tin Roasting Kitchen & Sp it a Quantity o ld Ti n ware Iro n ware 1 Case 15 Two Q ua rt Empty bo ttles a Q uanti ty , Old ea rt hern wa re 1 Brass warming pan Salt mo rtar, & Sieve 1 ma hogany 4 fee t, (old), Table so me old Empty Casks 2 la rge Gilt Framed looking Glasses 1 Mahogany Desk 1 Birch 4 Feet Table & cove ri ng 1-ditto-3 feet tab le , with leaves 1 Cloa thes Ho rse 1 brass fire set sma ll size 1 Pembroke, Mah ogan y ta bl e

1118. 24. 12. 16 . 40. 90 . 15 .

4.50 5 .50 2. 3. 15 . 2. 2. 10 . .30 SO. 46 . 90. 30.

1.

.50

amount earricd forward -Dollars

8697.30

1.

70 . 2. 4.50 2 .50 4. 2. 2. 1.50 12. 4. 2.

5 Ta ble Clo thes , sundry To wels . na pkins & p illow ca ses 2 Chests & 3 Tru nks 1 lookin g Glass & small Ova l ta ble Co p pe r ladl e & Skimme r some Kitc he n Ute ns ils & sundry p ieces. old carpets 1 Po rtmantea u 1 sma ll pla ted Tea Pot, Six large S ilve r spoo ns, 12-ditto- Tea spoo ns, & a pai r of Sugar To ngs Sund rie Eart hern pick le pots 2 Fire Buc kets 1 Ha dle ys Qua dran t, & Spy Glass 1 Cha ise & Harn ess co mplete 1 Gol d Watch 1145 , 1 Sil ve r Wat ch 11 15 1 Du tc h, Liqu or Case, & Bottles Brass, Top Sho ve l & To ngs Wea ring Ap pa re l of sai d dec e ased

8324. 112 . 2. 2. 50 1.

wholc amount Personal Estate

5 .50 2.50

2. 6. 10 . 150. 60. 5. 1. 30.

Dollars SI061.30

Real Esta te a Lot of land in Po rts mou th , situa te by th e no rt h war dly, side of Maud lin Lane with th e dw elling Ho use , out ho us es & and all bu ildings th ereon , and all a ppu rte nances , th ereto , be lo nging 82800.

1.

2.5 0 .50 4. 2. 40. 18 . 8. 2.50

whole Amount of Inventory dollars Portsmouth July 2, 1805

1.

10 . 8.

83861.30

Edwa rd Sa rge nt Danl Sm it h Sa m l Oro wne

Ro ckingham ss, G re en la nd, A ug us t 3 1st 1805. T hen Mr s . Hannah S caw a rd . Executrix of th e la st Will of th e w ithin named J ohn Se aw a rd d eceased, made solemn Oath that sh e had s he w n a ll th e Es ta te of he r late husband, the sa id John Seaw a rd, that has come to her hands agreeable to th e foregoing Inventory, & that if any oth er Es ta te of sa id d eceased s ho u ld hereafter come to her hands sh e would exh ibit th e same to the Judge of Probate for said Co u n ty of Ro ckingham in the A dd ition a l Inventory. sworn to before Enoch Cla rk, Ju st : Pe ac e

State of New Hampshire Rockingham ss Po rts m outh A ugus t 6 t h, 1805 , th en Messrs . Edw a rd Sargent. Daniel S m it h & Sa m u el Drowne abov e named per sonally appeared and mad e So le m Oa th that they ha v e faithfully and impartially appraised a ll the Es ta te of th e said John Seaw a rd de eeas'd that was s hewn them by th e Execu trix of his la st Will agreeable to t he foregoing Inventory, by th em severa lly s igne d according to th eir best sk ills and Judgment. swo rn before Issac Rindge, Just: Peace

-

$25 . 15 . 2. 1.50 8. 3 .50 45.

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THE PARLOR

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Fe de ra l-pe rio d home . th e parl or was usually th e be " and m ost formal mom, b ut it wa s

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of the mos t

co mfortable roo ms in th e h ou se. It wa s t he he art o f so c ia l and famil y life . a nd m ost e nte rtai ni ng was done here . This was an inviting place to ta ke tea . or to dine al on e or in g ro u ps to o sm a ll to wa rr ant se tt ing u p th e d ining roo m . It was a lso t h e us u al s po t to re c eive guests . as th e man y ca lling ca rds found b ehind o u r parlor m antl e ind ica te . The ea rly 19th- century p lay ing ca rds a lso fo u nd the re sugges t that in o u r parlor th e previ ou s o wne rs o f th e house a nd th eir gues ts pa rtook of this m ost popul ar of pa s tim es . probably o n th e pair o f mahogany ca rd table s list ed in th e 18 0 5 inve ntory of th e h o u se . Ou r parl or re flec ts its formal purpose . Th e woodwork is both m ore abundant a nd m ore co m ple te ly d e vel o p ed th an that in a ny oth er room in th e hou se . The mantl e and th e a b u tting c h ina -close t d oor make th e fireplace wall th e focus of th e roo m. Th e mantl e. which is 5 ft. 7 in . hi gh and has a shelf 6 ft. 4 in . long, contains a n ela bo rate cornic e m ad e up of a c ro wn m olding a nd a denti culated b ed m o lding. The mantle 's fri eze is 13 1;2 in. hi gh a nd e nds o n e ithe r s ide with a pron ounc ed S -sh a ped cyr n a curve . Ca lle d a lyre- sh aped fri ez e . this wa s a comm on d e tail o n mantl es in th e Po rt sm ou th a rea during t he e a rly Fed eral peri od. The fir eplace jambs arc surrounded by a tw o-step architra ve , id enti cal to th ose fo und aro u nd th e doorways . The 18 05 inve nto ry sho ws that wh en Ca p t. and Mrs, Seaward . th e builders o f th e house . fu rn ished it. th ey pl a c e d mos t of th e formal a nd e xpe nsi ve objec ts in th eir parl o r. Co nti nu ing th e t radi tion , we also ke ep our fines t fu rn it u re in this roo m . S ince mo st formal Fed eral furn iture wa s ma de of mah ogany , many of th e mah ogan y pi ec es included in this book will a p pea r in thi s sec tio n . Th e expe nse in th e Fe de ra l period of the mahogany furni shings an d th e fabrics in the parl o r res ulted in anoth e r cu sto m o f the d a y th a t. to us. see ms unu su al. Si nce th e ultravi ol et ra ys in direct s u nlig h t ca n b leach da rk wo ods. d am age shellac fin ish e s a nd de te rio ra te fabr ic s. famili es se q ues te re d th emsel ves du rin g th e da y beh ind d rawn sh u tters o r ve ne tia n blinds in th e dimly lit parlor. At ni ght th e s h u tte rs aff orded privac y . In th e su m me r e lim ina t ing dire ct s u nlig h t from th e roo m a lso helped keep it cool. and in th e winter th e drawn shu tt e rs reduced drafts. Eac h of o ur parl o r wind ow s th erefore has a n interior sh u tte r. whi ch s lides into a sp e cial ca sing built into the wall. Like th e h ou se 's previ ous o wne rs, we too ke ep th e se sh u tte rs drawn during th e da y. If we want to usc the ro om . we open th e sh u tt e rs partwa y, a nd c lose th em aga in wh en we lea ve . - - ') -

-

A card ruble was a standard fixture in the Federal-period household and WIIS often the most elaborate piece of furniture a fllmil}' owned. (I·ro.jeet: Strin~ inilly, p, 14.)

- - lO--

Card Table Chapter 1

t no o t h e r t im e in o u r h is tory were America n s m ore fasc ina te d with c a rd p la ying than durin g th e Fe de ra l period . With out televi si on o r m o v ie s. p e ople amused th emselve s b y soc ia lizing with fri ends. Ca rd playing was an id e al p a stim e in th at it gave the participants a reason to gat her a n d e ng age in co n ve rsat io n whil e al so o ffe r ing th em a m use me n t a nd divers io n. So much tim e was d e vote d to c a rd pl a y in g th at a s pec ia l pi e c e o f furn itu re wa s c rea te d for just thi s purpo se . Th e woode n ca rd tabl e . with o ne hinged leaf th at c lose d b ookfa shi on . wa s d e vel oped in th e ea rly 18th ce nt u ry . Altho ugh th e se tabl e s were m a d e until th e mid -1 9th ce nt u ry . th e fo r m was ne ver b ef ore o r after as p opular as it wa s d u ri ng t he Federa l p eri od . A h o u sehold th at did not o w n a t le a st one ca rd ta bl e wa s as unu su al as a m odern h ou seh old w it ho ut a tel e vi si on . O f all th e furnitur e th at h a s su rv ived fro m th e Fe de ra l peri od , o n ly c ha irs arc m ore a b u nda n t t ha n ca rd ta b les . O u r tec h no logy a n d n e w m ateri al s have gi ven us a h om el y ca rd ta b le w it h a ca rd boa rd to p a nd folding le gs . whic h we sto re in a c lose t wh en we ' re not us in g it. During th e Fe de ra l p eriod . ca rd ta b les were not h idden b ecau se t hey w e r e n ot u g ly . Cab ine t ma ke rs la vi sh ed th eir skill s o n c a rd ta bl e s. p roducing wh at we re o fte n the m o s t e la b o ra te pi e c e s of furnitu re a famil y o wned . Wh en no t in use. th e se ta bl c s w ere prom inc n tly d ispl ay cd in thc front hall wa y o r th e form al parl or. ofte n aga ins t a pi er (the wall are a b etwe en tw o windows or d o orways ). T he cl osed table mad e a goo d su rfacc o n whi ch t o d ispl a y a flow er a r ra nge me n t o r a t reas u re d o bjec t. The ca re a n d e ffort required to m ake thi s tabl e is evi de nce o f th e s tat us g iv e n c ard tabl e s b y Fe de ra l-pe ri o d c ab ine tma ke rs a n d th eir c us to me rs . T he table h a s a vi sual int en s it y unu sual fo r s uc h a c ompac t pi e c e of furnitur e , whi ch is cre a ted by th e s t r in g inl a y o n e ve ry visibl e s u rface exce pt th e to p a nd th e in s id e s of th c lcgs.

A

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String inl ay . a lso ca lle d st r ingi ng. is a very th in stri p of wood. u su all y o f a co ntras ti ng colo r to t he s u rroun d ing wo od , th at is se t into a na r row groove, or in let. St r ing ing wa s com mo n ly use d in form al Federa l fu rn it u re. pc rha ps b ecause ca bi ne tma ke rs ap p reciate d its a bi lity to d raw t he viewer's e ye . O n thi s tab le. whi ch is p ri ma rily m ah o gan y , th e light-c ol ored inlay acts as a vis ua l fe nce . bou ndi ng each a rea and prev ent in g th e eye from m o ving eas ily fr o m o n e to the othe r. Fo r a brief m om e nt , t he v ie we r 's att enti on is trap p ed ins ide e ac h area . but it is n o t h el d immobile. T he eye sca ns th e perimeter seve ra l ti mes. then m o ve s o n to th e ne xt s u rface a nd is agai n h ric fly seized a nd s p u n a ro u n d th e o u tline of t he stri ng ing . Ea c h t ime I vie w th is tab le . my eye is draw n first to t hc sk irt . The re it m o ve s qu ickl y a rou nd t he long re c tan gl e , lik e a marbl e s pi n ni ng ins ide a tin ca n . The co ncave c orners e na b le m y eye to j u mp fro m a h o r izontal lin e to a verti c al to the othe r h ori zonta l. (O n le ss well-t houg ht-o u t tables , wh e re th e co rners of the st ri ng ing are squa re, t he eye will foll ow the h orizontal lin e s in to the corne rs . a nd the quick sca n ni ng m o ti o n is subve rted . T he effec t is like tryin g to s p in a m a rbl e in a box instead of a c a n .) Fro m th e s k irt. m y e ye us ua lly fa lls to a le g . wh ere t he s t r ing ing pulls it q uickl y do wn t he long taper to t he a n kle . a c ross th e ankl e b an d in g a nd b a ck up t he ot her s ide . After sca n n ing the le g se ve ra l ti mes, I a m al w a y s d rawn back to th e fo ur pa rall cl lin e s a roun d the edge 01 the folded top . It is a s if each pa ir o f lines ru ns in th e o p pos ite dire c ti o n from th e o the r pair: whi ch e ver way th e eye begins to travel, th e o the r pa ir o f lin e s a uto m a tica lly pull s it bac k the o t he r wa y. I h a ven 't yet fig u re d o ut wh y th is happ en s . and . as a result. I s pe nd m ore tim e lo oking a t the e dges of th e lea ve s tha n at t he skirt or le gs . I e njoy t h is m ystery a n d h ope th a t wh en I do fin all y und erst an d it. t he card tabl e will n ot lo se any of its interest. Th e family that orig ina lly owned this tab le wo u ld h a ve work ed a ll d a y. so m o st of the ti me spe nt wi t h t h is p ie c e -

would h ave bee n in th e eve nings, whe n th e room was illuminat ed b y ca nd le lig h t. Under th e so ft, dim light of ca nd les, the ta ble 's mah ogany loses mo st o f th e s u b tle shading that ma ke s up it s figu re , a nd th e wo od b ecomes a u n ifo rm re d-bro wn. This fa ct o bv io us ly affected th e maker's d eci si on to use s tr ing inlay to o ut line each of th e table's pa rts . With out th e s t ringi ng , th e table would read as a mildl y inte re sting geome tric form lurkin g in th e sha do ws o f th e roo m . Nea r th e botto m o f th e tape red legs. two ho ri zontal lines of light s tring ing flank a d ark , thicke r co re of ebo ny veneer to de fine th e an kles . If the stri ng ing si m ply ran ve rti c ally to the foo t, th e eye would travel do wn to th e tlo o r a nd not easi ly j um p fro m o ne e dge o f th e leg to th e o ther. Th e sa me triple b anding is used as a borde r to deline ate th e lowe r edge o f th e sk irt. Th e e ffect is s tro nges t und er ca nd le lig h t. Th e b andi ng c rea tes a sh a rply d efin ed lin e tha t prev ents th e e dge o f th e mah ogan y skirt from fadi ng in to th e s ha do ws under th e table. Th e skirt b anding se rves a fun ctio nal purpose as well. Its low er. light-col ored e dge h as b e en we ll worn by th e co u n tless le gs that h av e ru bbed aga ins t it ove r th e yea rs . If the mah ogany ve nee r had be en run o u t to th e edge o f th e sk irt, it would h av e b e en s ubjecte d to thi s we ar a nd wo uld certai nly ha ve c hi p pe d. pulled lo ose o r worn aw ay to ex pose th e pine seco ndary wood underne ath . From wh ate ver direction yo u view th e fold ed table , yo u see exac tly the sa me thing. Looking a t it he ad -on o r from ei the r side . yo u see an a rc of sk irt fra med by tw o legs. The venee r used o n th e sk irt is m ad e from thre e adjacen t, o r sis te r, c u ts tak en from the sa me flit ch , so th at each s u rface is as ne arl y identi c al to th e o the r tw o as wood ca n be. Fro m a fro nt vie w o f th e ta b le , yo u glim pse tw o blank s urfaces o n th e rear legs . It ma y seem odd th a t th e y ha ve no s tringi ng , but thi s would h a ve sc uttle d th e mak e r 's not ew orthy d esign. With inlay on ly o n the ex tre me left face o f th e left leg a nd rig h t face of the right leg. th e tabl e b rea ks int o a sy m me tr ical trip tyc h- th ree identical sectio ns made up o f two legs a nd a pan el . e ac h on e sha ri ng a leg with it s nei gh b or. Whe n the ta bl e is o pe n, th is ca reful arra nge me nt no lon ger ex is ts . The maker kn ew that partic ipants in a ca rd ga me co m mo nly d raped a gree n. flo or-len gth wo ol cl oth o ve r the table. almo s t co m p le te ly h iding it from vie w. Eve n if this were not th e c usto m . o ne is more lik el y to interac t vis u ally with th e p iece wh en it is folded and agai ns t th e wall th a n while playing ca rds o n it.

This c a rd tabl e is a well -concei ved d e si gn . but it is no t a particularly co m ple x wo odworking project. Ben eath its mahogany vene er, th e curved sk irt is tw o la yers de ep a nd is brickla id a s a sing le long curve rath er th an as thre e di stinct sec tio ns . The mak er laid o u t th re e c u rved segme nts o f pin e as th e to p la yer of th e s kirt and glued o nto th ese a no the r la ye r co ns is ting o f tw o lo nger cu rved segme nts. probabl y ro ug h -c u t to sh a pe. O nce th e glue hard en ed, th e inner a nd o u te r s u rfaces of the segme nted sk irt were plan ed smoo th . Th e re are a bou t a d ozen nail h ol es in th e low er edge o f th e se pine se c tio ns . indi c ating that th e mating s u rfaces were glue d a nd th e pi e c e s nailed togeth er. Th e nails may hav e p revented th e sec tio ns from slip p ing when bei ng cl amped . or elim ina te d th e ne ed for cl am ps altoget he r. Eith er wa y, th e nail h e ad s were ne ver se t, a nd the na ils were ex trac te d a fter th e y h ad se rved th eir p u rpose . Bricklaid co ns truc tio n mak e s a s tro nge r sk irt tha n wo u ld thre e sing le pi ec es c ut from a plank. Th e sho rt length s of edge gra in that occ u r in a c u rve a re s tre ng then ed by th e o the r layer. A skirt com prised o f o ne lo ng, c urved . b ricklaid pi e ce a llo ws fo r so me j oine ry tec hniques that differ from th e s ta ndard mortise -and -tenon normall y use d to jo in a ta bl e 's legs to the ski r t. Th e two ce nter legs are joine d to th e ski rt with a m od ifie d bridl e j o int. The rear tenon of th e bridle is short a nd is h ou sed e nt irely withi n th e skir t. Whil e the morti se s are c ut in to th e ski rt. it re mai ns a sing le , co n tin uous p art. Si nce th e struc tu ra l integrity o f th c b ricklai d sk irt is re ta ined . th is aga in makes fo r a stro nge r co ns tructio n tha n wo ul d th ree se pa ra te , c u rved sec tio ns of ski rt. with a tenon o n each end. in serted in to mo rti se s cu t into th e legs. The rear legs a re trea te d d ifferentl y. T he righ t rear le g (as vie wed from th e table's front) is fixed a nd is joined to th e co rne r fo rm ed b y the end o f the c urved skirt and th e ba ck ra il. Sta nda rd mo rt ise -a nd -t enon co nstruc tio n is us ed . th e te nons bei ng cut o nto th e e nd of the sk irt a nd th c e nd o f th e rai l. Th e card table ope ns and c loses di ffe re n tly than do most o the r ta b les. It s mo vement require s tw o le aves hi nged toge the r a nd a swingi ng leg. c all ed a ga te leg, that is hinged to th e middle o f th e b a ck ra il. The b ottom lea f is fixed to th e sk irt , with th e movable to p le a f h in ged to it. Whc n th e table is cl o sed . th e tw o half-round lea ves lay toge th e r like a closed b ook . Wh en th e tabl e is used, th e hinged top le af is o pe ne d to form a ro u nd pl aying s u rfa ce a nd the ga te leg is swu ng o n it s h in ge to s u p po rt th e le af. Th e gareleg swi ng s o n a mo va bl e sec tio n o f th e ba ck rail a nd is a ttac he d to it with a mo rti se -and -tenon . So me marc int e res ting jo ine ry is requi red to e nab le th is leg to swi ng . The back ra il it self is two la yers th ick. The ou ter la yer is ma d e of tw o separate pieces, th e movable ra il a nd the fixe d rail , and these are conn ec te d in th e mi dd le by a series o f in te rloc k ing k nuckles that fo rm a woode n hinge . The me th od of making th is h in ge is ex plai ne d in th e p roj ec t sec tio n of th e ga te leg-table cha p te r o n p p . 9 4 -96. The two rea r legs . one fix ed a nd one mova ble , arc joine d to th e e nds of this o u ter laye r . The inner layer o f the back rail is j oi ne d to the r igh t-h and e nd

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of th e curved s kirt with a se ries of half-blind d ovetails . The le ft e nd o f t he back rail is lam in ated to the fix ed secti on of the o u te r la yer wi th glue and sc re ws , a nd is cut o ff tlush with th e in side o f th c sk irt. Som e tables, like th e ga te leg tabl e on p. 90 and th e Pembroke table o n p . 156, have rule joints, where the inside e dges of th e m ovabl e lea ves m eet the fixed top . One function of thi s rul e joint is to prevent th e e dges of the leaves from s hi ft ing ve rt ica lly. O n th is card table, h ow ev er. th e t wo e dges o f the top lea ve s m erel y butt to geth e r wh en th e table is open . A sho rt tongu e is se t into th e c enter o f th e rcar edge o f the fix ed leaf. a nd a mortise is made in the rear e dge o f the hinged leaf. When the top is o pe n , th e lo c a tor to ng ue fits into thi s mortise and keeps t he m ovabl e le af from sh ifting . Otherwise, all that s t re ng t h e ns thi s butt join t b etween th e leaves when th e to p is o pe n a re th e two card-tabl e hinge s . Ca rd-table hinge s are unique to card ta b les . A c ard -table hinge h as tw o long legs that o pe n lik e a pair of sc iss o rs rather than opening and c los ing in book-fa shion lik e table le af and butt hinge s d o . Both th e table -leaf and butt hinge s would have to b c se t into th e playing s u rfaces o f th e lea ves. which Fe de ra l-pe rio d cabin etmakers se emed relu c tant to do . In st ead , c a rd- ta b le hinges are set into th e o u ts ide edge s o f the leaves . Mad e o f b rass, and therefore d ec orati ve. th e se hinge s are a vail abl e from th e

reproduction -hardware su pplie rs listed in t he appendice s at the back of this b ook . During th e Federal p eri od , hinged , round ca rd tabl e s, often call ed derni-Iunes, were mad e in e ve ry cabinetmaking center in America . The interpretati ons that exist are nearly limitless , a nd yo u can find e xa m p les in the books listed in th e bibli ography . The us e o f s tring ing o n thi s table is masterful , but you c ould s u bst it u te pictorial inla y, which was also commonly us ed during the peri od . There are Federal-period card tables made e ntirely o f maple or birch , with the skirt cov ered with e it he r a curl y or flame -figure veneer, so yo u c a n reproduce th e tabl e in native woods, too. Use the dim ensi on s a nd co ns t r uc tio n details from this tabl e to make any oth er interpretation o f thi s sh ape that you lik e . When a card table is not in use , th e m o vabl e top le a f is usually cl osed. but it can be open ed halfwa y a nd re sted vertically aga ins t the wall. The se m ic irc u la r sh a pe make s the table look larger. and if yo u ha ve a light-c ol ored objec t (such as a pi ece o f porcelain) that yo u want to di splay , the leaf creates a good background . O f co u rse, the table do es not have to be merel y a surface used to s ho w o ff o t he r obj ects. It is s till well s u ite d to it s o rig ina l purpo se . O fte n on cold winter e venings my wif e and I ha ve fri ends o ve r , set up the card table near the fir eplace and e njoy a leisurely ga m e of Scrabbl e. \Vhen the card table i!i not in use, the movable top leaf can be either folded shut bookfa!ihion, or opened h a lfw ay lind r e s t e d verf ieulty 1I~lIin!it the Willi.

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Adjust nhle fence

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A JIlarldn A A,wAe can be ada pted for euttinA i n let» fo r st ri nA in l a ~·. "'i le or Arind 1111 old h un d su w blade to t he t b ie lmess of t he stringing til u sc us a c utter. S lide two YH- in . bolts t h rouAh h ol e s in t he shufr to seenre the cutter.

-

String inla y To make th e inlets for string inlay. th ere is an ad justa bl e to ol called an in lay c u tte r, available through s pec ialty tool ca ta log s. that will c u t straight lin e s. circles a nd ov als . Th is to ol is more complex than nece ssary to do th e str ing in!:ly o n thi s card table . th ough . I prefer to u se a couple o f to ol s that I c a n quickly make myself. I adapted an old m arking ga ug e to use as a scra tc h tool for making straight inl ets . Th e fence o n th e marking ga uge allow s m e to c u t a n inl et parallel to an edg e at a ny di stance up to 5 in . from that edge . It is intend ed for making s t ra igh t lin c s but will also work on a long rad iu s . su c h a s th e edg es o f th e leave s . I make the c u tte rs fo r thi s to ol from o ld handsaw blad es b y filin g awa y th e te eth and any additi onal m etal until I have a tooth Yio in. wide . Th is cutter will just sc ra tc h . rath er than cut. a flat -b o tt omed inl et with sq ua re s ides th e sa m e width as th e st ri ng ing (Yio in .). Th e marking-gauge s h a ft ha s a scrib e in o ne e nd and th e too t h m ounted in th e o p pos ite e nd . Use a do ve tail sa w to cut th e thin s lo t for th e to oth . Drill tw o \la -in . hol es across the sa wke rf, a b o u t -Y4 in . apart so that th e too th will fit b etwe en th em. Slid e tw o \Ia · in. b olts through th e h ol es. and place wa sh ers under th e h e ads to protect th e wo od . Insert th e c u tt e r into th e sawke rf and adjust th e se tting- t he c u tte r s ho u ld protrude ab out Yi o in . from th e b ottom o f th e mark in g-gauge sh a ft. Ti ghten th e bolts to prevent th e cutter from moving and se t th e fenc e to th e d esired distance . In di scu ssing th e proc edure for inl aying th e legs , I'll limit m y e xp la na t io n to how to do th e s tring ing o n th e low er leg. Th e proce ss is s im ila r for th e o the r s tring ing . Whil e th e leg s toc k is s till s q u a re, cut th e inlet for th e ankl e banding only o n th e front of th e le g. ( If you p ro c eed to c u t inlets for the ankle banding on the s ides and back of the untapered le g, th ey will o nly b e lost during th e tapering proces s .) With a mat knife scrib e tw o lin es for a Y.I -in .-wide inl et, using th e techniqu e for c u tt ing sto p dadoes sh o wn in the sh elf proj e ct on p. 12 8, and rem ov e the wood with a Y.I -in . chi sel. Aft er tapering th e s id es and back o f th e le g with a hand plane to th e dimensi ons give n o n p . 18, yo u can c ontinue the front ankle inl et a ro u nd to th e s ides , and from the sides a round to th e ba c k Next m easure 4 -Y4 in . from the top o f th e leg and draw a light pencil lin e across th e front s u rface o f th e leg . Th is is th e point wh ere th e tw o vertical lengths of stringing s to p and turn inward . Wh en you cut the ve rt ica l inlets, this lin e will tell yo u where to s to p . Hold the leg between benchdogs on th e workb ench a nd se t th e fence of the marking gauge against th e edge . Start the cutter in th e ankle inlet and draw th e marking ga uge up o ne e dge of th e leg. Th e to oth sh o uld sc ra tc h a cl e an , sq ua re- bo tto m ed groov e (it IWI )' be ne c essary to make m ore than o ne pass) . After scratching every 6 in . to 8 in .. lift th e to ol a nd remo ve th e chip that will have c logged th e to o th . You can make a cl ean s to p cut at th e upper e nd o f th e inl et by pushing th e cutter down o n th e p encil line that marks th e top of th e inl et and pulling th e to ol b a ck toward th e a nkle . Repeat this process to cut th e inl et o n th e o the r edge o f the le g. 14 -

Triple-layer inlay

St";lIgillg is eutfroin 11J r,-ill ,·tllick 'VC IlCC I·. w ll icll is g11l C11 ill inlets and tll cll plan ed .17 l1s11 seith sll,:f;ICC of leg. A J.4-i ll. -w itlc. triple-luyer sandsoicl: of fi gllt and tll;rk st";lIgillg rims ((mlilltl unkle and base of skirr.

I-cg is attached to sk i r t usith a b ridle joint, sohos « 'h ,i ll .-t ll ick fro n t tCIlOII protrudes ill , from face of sk i r t . lnternul tCIIOIl is '!'fI ill. thiel« will about 2 ill . IOllg .

')I/O

String Inlay, II common ornament on Federal furniture, hoth guidcd the viewer's eye about the piece and, in the evening h)' eandletight, kept the tublc's lines from heing lost in the shadows,

Tripl c-Ia ycr ----.in lay

4=J -:

~

Draw the marking glluge from the ankle i nlet to the top of the leg to make II clean, square-bottomed groove [above), After s co r ing ever)' 6 in. to 8 in., clean IIWll)' the chip that gllthers around the tool' s tooth (left).

" 'ith a square, IllY o u t the inlet for th e an Ide hllnding on the le g' s front (top). Score the edges with II m ilt I
- - 15 - -

To la~' out curved Iltringing, U IiC divider» with a pair of Ilc r ib cll, Yt6 in. upurt, filcd into the end of one Icg. n~· trial and crror, set the dividerll to thc corrcct radin ll a n d find the location for the pointed leg in the top of the vert icul inlet. Scribe the radiu» for one Ili d e, which will produce II pair of parallcl lines, Repeat thi ll on th c other Ili d e to form the V in the middl e of the le g.

A fte r u liinA thc d iv ide r ll t o Ilcr ibe t he parallel Iin c ll for the curved i n le t, sc o re along those Iines w it h II m at k n ife. Uft ou t th e chip with a ehjsel (th ill one wall g r o u n d t o Yt6 in.), Us e th e chisel to cle an up the intersecrlon o f th e two c urved i n letll a n d the point ll lit which the~' meet the ve r t ieal inl e t ll.

Now c ut th e two ra di i th a t tu rn inward at the top o f the le g. I use a pai r of m odi fied di viders to la y ou t a nd cut thi s c u rved groove for th e s t r ing ing. O ne le g o f the dividers is po inte d , a nd th e o t he r le g h as a notch file d into it s e nd tha t fo rm s sc ribes, Yl6 in . a part-t he sa me di stance as th e width o f th e too th in t he m arking ga uge. Place the pointed le g near th e to p of one of th e vertical inlets and se t th e div iders to o ne- ha lf t he d istanc e be tween t he inlets . You will ha ve to play wi th th e o pe ni ng of t he dividers to find th e e xac t rad iu s- it should b e som ewhere near % in. You will a lso ha ve to find by t ria l and erro r wh e re to place th e po inted d ivid er le g in th e s traight inl e t. Wh en you h av e fou nd t he co r rec t se t ting , swing th e notch e d end o f th e di vide rs so t hat it sc ribes tw o para llel c urve d lines , or co nce ntric a rcs . Do th e sa me with th e po in te d le g of the d ivi d e rs positio ned in th e other s tra ig h t inlet so th a t th e two pairs o f c u rved li ne s in te rse c t in the middl e . This met hod o nly scribes th e e d ge s of th e curved in le ts. Now de e pcn th e sco re d si des of th e se inle ts with a mat k n ife , a nd lift t he c hip o ut with a Yl6- in. chis el , Th e c h ise l will a lso c lean u p th e inte rse c t ion of the c u rve d inl e ts wit h th e stra ight vertica l inle ts. Beca use I th in k whi te birc h was u sed fo r th e stringing o n t he o rigina l ta bl e (it would be imposs ibl e to p o sitivelv ide ntify th e wo od with out ex trac ti ng it for testing). I c hose t his wo od for my stringi ng to o . Any ligh t-c o lo re d hard wo od will d o . h ow e ver. Esse ntia lly I m a ke a she e t of whi te -birch ve neer b y rcsawing thin slabs from a bo ard o n the h a ndsa w . I th en thi c kn e ss-pl a ne th e m as thin as possible a nd finish thcm do wn to Yl6 in . wit h a sm o o th ing pl an e . I c ut th e stri ngi ng fro m t his birch veneer with a mat kni fe and s t raigh tedge . As long as th e ve neer is Yl6 in. t h ic k, it does not m a t te r if yo u cut the s t ring ing sli ghtly wi d er tha n Yl6 in . If ne e d b e , th e Yl6- in.- th ic k st ringing c a n be tu rned o n it s si de to fit into th e inl e t, and any e x t ra d epth t hat p roje cts above t he le g's surface can b e planed flush wit h a smoothing p la ne . After te st -fitt ing th e stri ng ing in th e in let, run a b e ad of glue in o ne vertica l in let w it h a glue syringe . Usc a chisel to slice a square e nd on th e stringing. a nd butt the squ are e nd tigh tly aga in s t the top e nd of th e s t ra igh t inl et . Pu sh th e first inch or so in to th e inl e t : yo u should have no t rou bl e m aking th e res t of t he s tringi ng fit once th is e nd is in pl a c e. It a lmost sea ts itself if yo u press it in with th e face of a ham m e r. Do n't wo r ry about le ng th : any exce ss ca n be s lic e d o ff fl ush in t he a nk le inlet with e ith er a c hisel o r a m at k ni fe . Fitti ng th e curved pieces is m arc d ifficu lt. Roll o ne e nd of th e stringing aro und a cyli nd cr of about th e same radiu s as th e inl e t. A c hisel h a ndl e will work just fin e here . Do not try to cut the stri ngi ng to leng th right now . This can b e donc more cas ily a nd m orc accurately after m ost o f th e stringing is in th e curved in let. Aga in. tes t-fit th e s tringing. the n run a bead of gluc in t he c urved in let. Butt th e e nd of the curved stringi ng ti ghtly agai nst t h e stri ngin g in th e stra ight in let. and wo rk the c u rv e d pi e c e in to th e g roo vc. using th e hammer if necessary. As yo u near th e bottom o f th e \I , you will be ab le to see exac tly where to t rim o ff th e excess s tring ing. Do th e sa me fo r t h e o t h e r curved s ide .

- - 16 -

-

Th e a nkle s tring ing is a Y.!· in .·wid e sa nd wic h o f th e sa me Iigh t·c ol o red wo od used for t he o the r inla y, with a thicker, da rk e bo ny co re. The o rigi na l. three -t iered ve nee r wa s undoub tedly c u t in a s ingle s lice from thre e sla bs o f wo od planed to th e d esired th ickn ess and glue d to gether. Mak e a s im ilar sa nd w ic h o f ve nee r for yo ur ankl e banding and fit it int o the in le t as yo u di d for th e verti cal inlay . Plane a ll th e s t ri ng ing flu sh with th e face of th e le g. Now sa nd with 220-grit paper-th e fin e sa wd us t will mix with th e glue a nd fill in an y s ligh t ga ps. S tring inlay is m eant to be e njoye d from a di stance , and sma ll imperfecti on s arc not notic e abl e . Th e fini sh will usually fill an y ga ps left a fte r sa nd ing.

After la)'ing a bead of glue into the straight inlet, cut a square end on the stringing and push it into thc top e n d of t h e grolH'e (above}, Usc the face of II hammcr to seat the rest of the stringing (left}, You eun trim off an)' excess stringing in the ankle inlet with a chisel or a milt Imifc. Ilefore filling in the curved stringing, "prebend" onc end h)' rolling thc stringing around II cylindcr of about the same radiu» as the inlet.

Once the stringing is in place, plane it tlush witb the face of the Icg. Sllnding with 220-grit pupcr will fill ill 1111)' slight gllps in the groovcs, hut slight lmperfeertons will not he noriceuhle,

- - 17 -

-

CA R n T ABLE Scale:

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in. = 1 in .

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l'ATTE IlN H)1l t' IH)NT U :
II'lIlgel top.

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Front View (top closed)

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tuperiut;

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Skirt

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_r-- Hrickluid pine s k irt ,

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Veneer. v,,, x 4 \4

Fixed mil

Movable mil . I Y!" x 4 \4

Co rne r bloc k

Fi xe d inn er rail. "% x 4 \4. dovetui lcd to s kirt o n ga t deg e nd. a nd gln e d and screwed to fix ed ra il

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Gat e lc g and leaf (o pe n pos ition)

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/

(iat e leg

Ho ttom View

T op

- - 18 -

-

/

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- - - - - - -

17 14 - - - -- - - -

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B ET AI!. A Scale. % in . = l in.

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ill. thick

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joi nt. equally divided into six knuck les

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Vicw

-

Bricklaid pinc skirt , dovetai led to inncr ra il Ve neer

nllcl. Vicw (with A'ltelcA removed)

- 19 -

-

Lcl! Sidc Vicw

An expensive and prized possession in the Federal period, a large mirror was valued because it could make a room appear bigger and, at uight, increase light in the room by retleeting candlelight. Since large mirrors were costl,·, their frames were often eluborarely workcd. (Project» Rope turning, p, 23.)

- - 20 - -

Mirror Chapter 2

ve r s inc e it wa s di sc ov ered that a pi ece oi poli sh e d m etal reflec ts a vie we r's im a ge . mirro rs h a ve bee n integra l to gr o oming. In us c si nce a nc ie nt ti mes, poli sh ed me tal mi r rors un d e rwe n t great improve me nt in t he ea rly Re na issa nc e wh e n it was fo und tha t glass wit h a s ilvered bad, re flected a much c learer, less d is tort e d image . Fo r centuries, h o w e v e r , sh ee t glass with ou t imperfectio n pro ved di ffic ul t to m a ke . a nd mirrors re mai ne d sm a ll. Du ring th e la te 17th ce n tury the tec h no log y wa s develo ped ior m ak in g large . unblemi sh ed shee ts o f glass. an d mirrors inc reased in s ize. Th ese larger mirrors were hi ghl y re gard ed ior th cir a b ility to increase illumination in a room by re fl e cting ca nd le lig h t. T he y were al so va lued be cau se rhcy c ould make a ro om appear bi gger than it re ally wa s. Th e se fea t ures made mirrors ve ry popular. eve n th ou gh th e y re mai ned qu it e e x pe ns ive . (Ac co rdi ng to t hc 180;:; in vent ory o f o u r hou se . th c seco nd h a nd va lue o f th e tw o " la rge o va l gi lt lo ok in g glasses" t ha t th e n hung in o u r bed roo m wa s S4 ;:; . abo u t o ne-seve n th th e a n n ua l in c om e o f a s ki lle d Fe de ra l-pe rio d c ra fts ma n.) Beca use large m irrors we re so va lua ble . it is not surpris ing that tr em endo u s ca re a nd e ffor t went into m nk ln g th e ir frames . Du ri ng the Federa l p eri od . m os t fra mes were gi lded . T he fo u nda tio n of th e fra me wa s a softwood th at co u ld be casi lv mol ded a nd ca rve d. b u t most o f th c o rna me nt wa s east com positio n. a mixture o f plas te r and gluc . The wood was covered with a th in sk in of gesso to gh'e it the snrne smoot h su rface as the compos itio n. a nd then g ildi ng was a p plied to the e ntire surface of th e fram e . As a resul t. a wood worker m ade o nly pa rt of t he fram e , a nd ot he r a rtisa ns com ple te d the res t. I c hose to in cl u d e th e p ie c e sho wn here rath er th an o nc o f o u r g ilded mirrors beca use th c fra me is mad e m ostly o f wo od a nd it is t he m o st s uccessfu l e xa m ple o f it s type I h av e sce n . T hc mirror h as a n hon o red pla c e in o u r hou se . hanging in th e pi e r b etween th e front-parl or window s.

E

Th is mirror was m a de late in th e Fe de ra l peri od a ro u nd 18 20 a nd d ispla ys the influ e nc e of th e e me rg ing Em pire style . Th is typ e o f mi rror. wit h tw o ve r tical co lu m ns a nd two sec tio ns of glass d ivi ded by a h o ri zontal m untin . h a d bee n popu la r fo r as long as 20 years befo re this example was m ad e . The two split colu mns a re it s m ost up-to -d ate feat u re . They a re h e a vie r in appea ra nce th an th o s e o n ea rlie r mi rrors and ha ve ro pe turni ngs, a lso k nown as s p ira l or twi st turnings . whi ch we re a popular Em p irepe riod m ot if of te n used on t he legs of table s . th e c res t rails o f c ha irs, a nd th e engaged columns of b u rea us a nd si deboa rds . ( Had th e m ir ro r bee n made a few yea rs ea rlie r in th e hei ght of th e Fe dera l perio d, th e se colu m ns would probabl y ha ve bee n a ca rved c luste r o f re eds. ) T he d e c orati ve ca rv ing on th e to p a nd bo tto m thirds o f th e c olumns is typical of th e late Federa l peri od and pre sents a s ty lized ve rsion o f th e c lass ic a l acanthu s leaf. Thi s t yp e of mirror is kn o wn as a n a rc h itec tu ra l m irror beca use th e fram e is mad e up o f e leme nts fo u nd in c lass ical G reek a rc h ttec t u rc . It has . fo r in stanc e . a n e nta b la ture . whic h is th e co mbi na tio n o f e le me n ts o n a Greek temple above th e co lu m ns a nd b el ow th e triangular pediment th a t s ha pes t he slope o f th e roo f. Th e co rn ice, o r uppermost m ol d in g of t he e ntablatu re , is s te p ped, o r broken forward . Und e r the cornice is a ve nee re d fr ie ze panel . whic h in cl u d es stepped areas o n ei ther s ide a nd s its a to p tw o ra iscd and rc cdcd arc hit raves, t he lowe s t e le me n t of the e ntablature . The two split colu m ns with rope tu rn ings are mo u nted on pli nth s. the squa re b locks th at serve as th e bases of the colum ns. Th e fram e . how e ve r . is no t m erel y miniaturized arc h itec ture . It is a we ll-t ho ug h t-o u t pi e c e o f furn iture th at reli ed on th e Fe deral-period furniture idi om in it s u sc , for e xa m p le , of ve neer a nd mold ings. Yet th e introdu ction o f architc ctu ral c le men ts into th e pi e c e all owed the mirror to rel ate to th e roo m in which it hung, as well a s to th e o the r fur n itu re aro u nd it.

- - 21 - -

The wide fri eze panel b elow th e cornice is co ve red with bo okmatched, crotch -grain, San Domingo mahogany veneers. Bookmatchcd veneers were commonly used by Fede ral-pe riod cabinetmakers, and th e maker o f thi s fram e co u ld have expected th em to appear o n other surfaces in th e ro om . Th e frame's horizontal bottom rail and the two vertical s tiles are covered with veneer of the sam e colo r. They al so share the sa m e plane , a fact that the veneer reinforces. The sa m e dark , h eavily figured veneer is also found on the tw o plinths and on the tw o stepped areas of th e frieze . Th e se are the only other flat surfaces on th e mirror, and the e ye is informed o f this b y the recurrence of the veneer. Th e brass m edallion s m ounted o n th e plinths and s te p pe d area s of th e frieze empha size the fact that , alth ough related to th e rail , stiles and fri ez e , these a re as a re set in another plane. All the other elem ents of th e mirror are made of Honduras mahogany , whi ch is light go ld in color and c ontrasts nicely with th e rich red -brown of the San Domingo mahogany veneer. Th e use o f two tones o f mahogany is a sophisticated desi gn e le m e nt and is also found on th e sec re ta ry ( p. 58) , which is located across th e ro om . In th e same way that color defin es the flat s u rfa c es on thi s piece , it also unite s the fram e 's threedim ensional elements. The various effects created by th e se turned, carved or mold ed e le me n ts c ombine to produce the mirror' s ove ra ll s ta te me nt . The deep, projecting co rn ice makes the piece top-heavy so that it looms o ver th e viewer and seems larger than it is. Its dominant pre sence is magnified by the fact that it s te ps o u t above th e fri eze and architraves. making th e entire cornice appear to proj ect e ve n farther into the room. The s a m e stepped d esign wa s commonly used o n Fed eral-period mantel cornices. The s ma lle r moldings around th e inside and outside of th e fram e draw pronounced lin es a ro u nd th e frame' s inner a nd outer ed ges . and create a boundary for th e darker, flat, ve nee re d s u rfa ces. The m oldings are raised slightly abov e th e vene er so that they also b order the fram e in three dimensions . The outerm ost m olding s trip ha s a rounded upper e dge, which relates it to the re eding on th e architraves by turning it into a s ingle reed . Th e molding on th e in side of th e fram e is typi cal o f Fed eral -period m oldings used as backhand s on d oor and window architraves in that it steps very qui ckly downward and leads th e ey e in to the "o t he r ro om " o f the reflection in th e sa me way that stepped bu ckbands and architraves lead th e eye through doorwa ys . Since the thickness of this m olding is les s than half that o f th e veneered frame, its re ar surface c re a tes th e b ottom o f th e rabbet into which th e mirror glass is set. The sa m e m olding, with an ex tra step added to it , is set o n th e b ottom e dge o f the bottom rail and se pa ra tes th e tw o plinths. Th e e xtra s te p mak es th e m olding larger than th at around the glass a nd al so p roj ects toward the view er, c re a ting a raised lip . This m olding prevents th e ey e from falling away from the mirror, whil e maintaining a c onsistent molding s ha pe throu gh out th e pi e ce .

On each of the frame 's two split column s, th e ro pe twist leads the viewer's eye outward. Its purpose is to s ugges t that the mirror is wider than it reall y is. Th is complements the projecting cornice b y ke eping its grandeur in proporti on . Th e re eding o n th e architraves and muntin is a detail closel y as sociated with the Sheraton furniture s ty le from which thi s mirror evolved . Its us e here not on ly rel ate s th e mirror to the room and to oth er furniture ne arb y, but a lso expands th e textural s m o rg as b o rd created b y th e carving. molding and turning. Although th e architectural elem ents o f th e m ir ror appear complicated , th ey are not. Nor doc s t he ir use in the piece require any c omplicated joinery . Th e mirror is little more than a flat frame mortise-and -tenon ed toge the r. with the various clements applied to it. Th e s te p pe d e ffec t of the entablature is produced b y th e tw o mah ogany blocks, each ven e ered with crotch-gr ain o n th e face, which extend up b eneath the cornice . The cornice is in turn s te pp ed out above them . The various sect ions o f th e cornice are cut from a s ing le length o f m olding, a nd eac h of th e j oints is a s im ple miter. Th e plinth s arc also mah ogany blocks with crotch -grain vene er o n th e fa c e . They arc capped top and bottom , as arc th e reeded architraves, with 14-in .-thicl, slices o f mah ogan y. The split columns are each half of a turning and are glu ed and nailed to th e vene ered frame . Th e directi on of the s p ira l tw ist s pos es a potential co ns truc tio n pro bl em . The maker obviously intend ed th e twi sts to s pi ra l up a nd diverge outward . To d o this h e c ould not use two h alv e s o f the same turning-th e s p ira ls would both slo pe in th e sa me direction and would pull the viewer's e ye to o ne s ide o r the other. Inverting th e c olumn would not c ha nge th e direction o f th e s p irals, a nd , a s well. the turnings have a di stinct top a nd bottom . Th e mak er of thi s mi rr or th erefore produced tw o turnings with o p pos it e twists. o ne left-hand ed , th e o t he r rt ght -hand ed . After having s pe nt so much tim e producing these turnings, th e mak er c ertainly would not have di sc arded th e unu sed halves. It is th erefore likely that he m ad e a t lea st a pair of these mirrors . Th e pi ece e xh ib its e nough virt uos ity to make me su sp ect that fram e s were hi s spec ia lty and that this was a producti on it em . If you ch oose to m ak e this mirror, yo u mi ght a s well make a pair, too . Since it is no longer possibl e to o b ta in San Do m ingo mahogany, the col or of th e wood you use for th e turned , molded and carved parts mi ght not differ not ic eabl y from the ven e er. This po se s a probl em becau se . a lt ho ug h th e effect of the two-t on ed mahogani e s is ve ry s ub tle , th e ir use is essential to th e mirror's d esi gn. I would th eref o re suggest that you vene er th e pin e frame a nd th en wipe th c vene er with a dark st a in o r
- - 22 - -

Finding th e origina l glass in a mirror t his o ld is rare . With time. a mirror' s silvered surface would have los t it s refl ec tive a b ility , and was usually replaced by those not c ontent to c onsid er themselve s in a glass darkly . This is prob abl y what happen ed with this mirror. The upper se c tio n o f the mirror was probably re versepainted since it wa s c ommon in the period to c ombine a painted sec tio n a nd mi rror glass . but this pa inting has also been lo st with tim e . In reverse painti ng . the painter works o n th e ba ck o f a glass panel. and under cand le light the resulting portrait o r sce ne tak es on a very lifelike depth and co lo r. For t hose who want to include a reverse painting o n th eir mirror. I ha ve included a supplier who docs c usto m work in th e list a t the back of the book . My wife. Ca ro l. ha s o fte n s ug geste d that a view of our house would lo ok ni c e in the upper panel of o u r mir ror. When in stalling mirror glas s or a re verse painting. avoid using e it he r nails o r gla zi ng points. which can scratch the s ilve ring o r painting . In Fe de ra l-pe riod mirrors , glass was in st e ad h eld in pl ac e with glu e blocks that were usually a right tr ian gle in c ro ss sec tio n. as sho wn in the plan on p. 29. A Yl -in. -t h ie k backb oard sho uld be tacked to th e rear o f th e fram e to ke e p o u t dust. Th e o rig ina l mirror we igh s just over 20 lb . and must th erefore be hung in a foolproof manner. I suspended o urs with picture -frame wire . s t ru ng between two cyeh ooks sc re we d into the fra me . It is hung from a n 8d fin ish na il d ri ve n in to th e fr ieze under th e parl or cornice at about a 45 ° a ng le . I slip ped a holl ow c opper rivet over the end of th e nail b e cau s e th e flan ge looks like th e mushroom knobs co m mo nly us ed as hangers in th e Federa l period .

The rope turnings on the mirror's lip lit columns were actually carved rather than turned. To get a pair of rope twists that spiraled in oppos it e direction s, the maker carved two turnings with opposite twi sts and then sawed them in half.

2. Divide circ u mfere nce of turning in to s ix eq u a l sectio ns . __- _ .

Rope turning The various name s giv en to th e detail o n th e ce n te r o f th e mirror's split columns-rope , twi st o r s pi ra l turnings- arc misleading in that this detail is carved. not turned . Visua lizing and understanding the makeup o f th e se s pi ra ls is much more difficult than actuall y creating them. To he lp grasp the idea of their design , think a bou t th e thre ads of a screw and, by c ontra st, the st ra nds o f a rope . Screw threads h a ve what is called pitch and lead . Pitch refers to the n um b e r of threads per inch ; in o the r words , a count of the number of times a ridge and adjacent g ro ove occur on a s ingle inch o f the shank . Lead is th e di stanc e the thread travels a long th e shank in a s ing le s p ira l. Th e se terms roughly describe t he relationship o f th e s p ira ls on these rope turnings. But a screw ha s o nly a singl e worm t hat s pira ls up its shank. The turnings o n this mirror are m o re ak in to a rope , in that th ey a re co m posed o f seve ra l strands that spiral perfectly parallel to each oth er. Le ad can be varied to a lter th e visual impact , but what m o st interests the woodworker making rope turnings is pitch, which is determined by th e number o f s t ra nds in th e s p ira l and their individual thickne ss . To begin this proj ect, turn a mahogan y bl ank , o r whatever primary wood you ha ve sele c te d , to th e o u ts ide dimensions of the column shape s ho wn o n p . 2 7. Use a pair of dividers to divid e th e area to b e carved into 11 e q ua l sections along its length. This distanc e is l YI 6 in . Turn t he lathe on and lightly touch a so ft lead pencil to e a c h o f the marks . Th is will re sult in 10 perfect rin gs around the diameter of the turning. Do not sc ribe th ese lines , as the sc ra tc h e s would remain in th e fini sh ed spiral s.

1. Divid e a re a to IJe carved in to 11 eq ual sectio ns a lo ng its length .

~~ .,.

.3. S ke tc h s ix con ti n uo us, parallel lines that diago nally c u t across g rid p roduced by s teps 1 and 2 a n d s pira l u p turn ing.

- - 23 - -

'Vi th the tool re st positioned at c e nter heiAht, draw a uniform Ar id on the turrring, UeAin by placinA t he re st aAainst the w o r k and rotatinA the turninA to on e o f t he se ts o f horizontal m a rki n As ulready made. Then pcncil a linc th r o u Ah the verf icul m arkinAs. Repcut the proccs s for the r em ainfng markinAs.

T o beAin t r a c i n A out the st r a n ds of t he s p i r a l, start at th e lo w cr ri ~ht corner of on c of the end s q uu res a n d draw a d iagon al Iin c t o the upper left eorner o f t he s q ua re, C o nt i n ue the diaAonal line into the ne xt s q uare on th e row a bove a n d proceed in t h is fa shi on unt il yo u have drawn on c co ntin u o us s p ira l li p th e turrring, Rc peut thi s proces s to make s ix l i n e s t hat s p i r a l fr o m o ne e n d o f the tllrllinA to the orher,

The nex t s te p is to d ivide the area length wise aro und th e Cir c umference , b u t before b eg in ning, p ull the pl ug o f th e lathe motor to avoid th e c ha nce of a n accide ntal s ta rtu p. The re are s ix se parate s tra nds th a t mak e up th e de sign, so th e ci rcu mference wi ll ne ed to be di vid ed int o six e q ua l sections. On the turn ing in the ph otographs. th e circumfe rence is 6 in . at its widest part . so th e d ividers a re se t to 1 in . Use a pair o f dividers to walk o ff this di s tanc e on o ne of the two cen termost line s . Remove the turning from the la th e and adju st th e h ei ght of the top edge of the tool rest to a lig n exa ctly with th e drive and ta il ce n ters o f the lath e- yo u 'll have to mov e th e tai lstock in to do this accu rate ly. Then swing th e rest out of th e way, keepi ng it at the sa me h e igh t . and positi on th e ta ilstock to re mo u n t th e turning. Push the adjust ed tool rest aga inst the tu rni ng. and rotate the piece until o ne of the six points comes into line with the top o f th e to ol rest. Wi th a so ft lead penci l. ligh tl y trace a ho rizontal lin e that intersects th e te n vertica l li nes . Ro ta te th e turning to th e nex t penciled point a nd trace the next horizontal lin e . Re p ea t this process for a ll six points. The res ul t sho u ld be a un iform grid . Begin a t o ne o f th e end sq ua res and ske tc h a line from th e b ottom ri ght corn er to upper le ft corn er. Co nt in ue the line from th e adj a cent low er corner o f th e next sq ua re to th e opposite upper corner. Keep repeat in g th is process. slowl y re volving th e turning as you s ke tc h. until you hav e a single s p ira ling lin e up the turning . Wh ile th ere is s t ill o nly one lin e . you ca n b est see the lead o f th e s p iral. In a sing le twi st it travel s just unde r 5 Y4 in. Wh en this line reaches th e o the r e nd. return to the b eginning o f th e grid and s ta rt the s ke tc h ing p roces s a ne w , b eg inning in th e lower corner of the next sq u a re above o r below the o ne where thc previous spira l wa s s ta rted . Repeat th e process until th ere are six lin e s th at s p ira l from o ne e nd of th e t urning to th e o the r. You a re now ready to b e gin th e carving. I find it ea sies t to do thi s wit h th e turning s till mounted on th e lath e . You might want to repos ition th e lath e to give you acce ss to it from both th e front and th e back . If you hav e a lock o n an inde x ing head . you shou ld engage it to ke ep th e turning from rotating while b eing carved . S tart a t the be ginning of o ne o f th e sq u a re s a nd . using a Y4 -in. parti ng too l. cut a Ys -in. -d e c p V-groove a lo ng th e spi ral linc. Fo llow th e spiral from co rne r to c orner o n e ac h o f the square s as far as you can comfortab ly reach around the work without having to rotate the turning. Try to ke ep th e cut at a constan t d epth. Return to the bcginntng and cut th e same F-groove o n th e a djacen t sp iral. Wh cn a ll s ix spira ls have been worked in this mann er. rotate the turning to complete th e F-grooves o n all th e s p ira ls.

Us c a partinA tool to c u t a groo"e alonA the lenAth s of t he s ix s p i r a l i n g lines . Work all s ix Aroovcs as far as yOll eom foetuh ly can, thcn rotate th e turninA to eo mplctc t he m on all the sp irals.

- - 24 --

The ne xt s te p is to round th e individu al strands with a chisel. You will have to c u t in o nly o ne directi on. working with t he ,~ ra i n , You can shap c th e left half o f ea ch s p ira l (as yo u face th e work) b y moving right to left, tuil st ock to head stock, in th e s a me dire cti on as yo u sketched th e lin e a nd cut the V-groove . To round th e o the r half o f th e sp irals. you will ne ed to s ta nd behind th e lath e . o r fl ip th e work a round if yo u cann ot ge t behind th e lath e. You will s till be working right to left . and alwa ys with the gra in to av oid chipping . After round in g the sp ira l with the chi sel. s moo th away th e face te d to ol marks with a half-round file . The rounded a nd flat s u rfaces o f th e file me et at a sha r p e dge. This ed ge is import ant for cl eaning up between adjac ent s p irals and c reat ing a s moo th. flowing lin e . Avoid using a sq ua re e dged file . which would cut into the sides of th e adjacent s p ira l. Aga in. you sho uld work from both sides of th e lathe to ke ep from filin g ag a ins t th e g ra in. The s urfac e left by the file will be uniforml y round but needs to be smooth ed furth er w ith SO-gri t sa nd pa pe r. With the turning s t ill o n th e lathe . carve th e detail s on th e rin gs abov e a nd b el ow th e s p iral. ( I did not do thi s on th e turning I mad e in th e ph otographs .) Thi s s ho u ld b e don e with a parting to ol. Th e re st of th e carving is done aft er the turning is sa we d apart . To h elp e ns u re a c c u rac y when sawing the turning in two. draw a line along o ne axi s. using the to ol rest o r a ya rds t ick a s a g u ide. Make another lin e o n th e o ppos ite s ide o f th e piec e . Th e pattern in the end gra in. madc b y the s p u r drive ce n te r, ca n a lso be used to h clp locat e th ese two lin e s. To saw al on g th e lines. I used a 10 -point rip pan el saw . Th c back e dges o f th e tw o halves can be planed smooth in e it he r o f tw o ways: You can clamp a jointer plane in the front vise o f yo u r workbench a nd run th e back s ide of the sa wn turning o ve r it. O r yo u can clamp th e turning. sa wn su rfa ce upward . b etwe en b enchdogs and plan c it. The turning I mad e in the photographs had a right-hand s p iral. To compl et e th e mirror. yo u ne ed to make a se co nd turning that is identi cal but which ha s a left -hand s p ira l. Do thi s by laying out the g rid with the s a me divi si on s. but in stead o f ske rc h ing a lin e from th e low er right c orn er o f the fir st e nd sq ua re to th e upper left co rne r. ske tc h from th c upper right corn er to thc lower left corner a nd co n tinue th e s p ira l in that directi on. If you wish to us e spiral turnings in other work , you may need to adapt th cm. Lead c a n be in crea sed by placing th e vcrt icul lines farth er apart . or decreased by pla cing them c lose r to gether'. \Vidth of the s p ira ls can be in cre ased by using few er o f th em. You mi ght divid e the turning hortzoutally into quart ers rath er than s ixths . Spiral width c a n be decreased b y adding m ore s p irals. dividing th e turning into e igh ths. for e xa m ple .

Use a chisel to rouud the "trllnd" of the "piral" (top). You eun worl. oue "ide of the "trllnd" from the front of the lathe, hut ~'ou'll have to round the other "ide from the hack of the lathe to keep workin~ with the ~rain (abuve},

Smooth away the tool mark", with the ~rllin.

worldn~

- - 25 - -

u"in~

a half-round file and always

MIRROR

n

Scale:

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in . = I in.

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Frieze

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Side View

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Scale: % in.

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- - 26 -

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SECTION IJ-U Scul e: ~ in. = 1 in.

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- - 28 --

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SECTION H-8

(eontinucd) SECTION D-D

Scale :

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- - 29 - -

Unlikc most pleees of furniturc in this o~c of wood, this formal sofa is ,'isuoll}' dominotcd by on expanse of fabric, not wood. J)urin~ thc Federal pcriod, all fabric was handwoven and thereforc costly, mllkin~ a piccc likc this out of reach for most huusehnlds, (Projcct: Rccding by hand, p, 33.)

- - .10 --

Sofa Chapter J

h is sofa represents a departure fro m the ap proach to d esigning a nd building furniture see n in th e o the r pi ec es in thi s b ook . Those pi ece s use wood no t only fo r th e ir fram es and o the r un se en pa rts b u t also fo r mos t of th eir visible s urfaces . In this sofa, wood se rve s as a fra me for . th e upholstery b ut pl a ys a relatively minor vis ua l ro le . The so fa 's legs , arm po st s an d th e face s b ehind th ese post s arc it s o nly vis ib le woode n ele me nts . Th e p iec e co nfro nts th e viewe r with s uc h a vast ex pa nse of fab ric tha t th ese woode n are a s h elp es ta blis h th e sofa's identity as a pi e c e o f sea ti ng furn itu re, an d th is wood is intensel y worked with o rn a me nt of th e peri od . The reed ed arm posts a nd th e turn ed legs a re c ha rac te ristic of th e S herato n s tyle o f Fede ral fu rn iture , th o ugh it is unu su al to find a sofa wh ere th e arm p os ts a re re eded a nd th e legs are no t. Th is leg is a typical S heraton turn ing , with a maj or vase, rings, a cove and a n urn- sh aped foo t, com pressed into o nly l Oin. The re sult is o ne o f the most appealing turn in gs I have eve r e nco u n te re d, a nd perhap s th e ca b ine tma ke r used thi s de si gn in st e a d o f a rcede d leg be cau se he admired it to o. Since thi s is a n e lega n t pi e ce , d esign ed fo r a parl or o r o the r form al ro om . th e a rms a nd legs are mad e o f mahogany . Th e flat si des a nd fro nts of the sq ua re b lo c ks sc pa ra tmg th e legs a nd the arm post s arc ve nee re d with c ro tc h -gra in b irch pan el s s urro undcd by bi rch a nd e bo ny s tr ing ing and s t rips of mah ogany ve nee r. Th is motif, without th e co ntrasting st ri ng ing, is re pea te d in e lo nga te d form o n th e exposed fac e s behind th e a rm po st s . While th e so fa 's exposed wo od en e le me nts a re visua lly arresting, th e wo odwork th at is un se en is eq ua lly important. Th e birch fram e is th e foundation for the up ho lstery. It se rves th e sa me purpo se as a s ke le to n, s u p po rting and giving definition to a tle sh o f fabri c and s tu ffing . And just as a ske le to n determines th e ge n e ra l dimcnsions o f a b ody, th e fram e cre ate s th e sh a pe of th e

O

so fa . It is re spons ibl e for th e sligh tly a rc hed b ack a nd for th e echoing curve of th e front rail 's long, ge nt le bow. T he co ncave upper edge o f th e arm , slo p ing forward to the ex posed po st s, is al so a fun cti on o f th e fram e . The sh ape of th e so fa assoc ia tes it geogra p h ic a lly with Boston and the North Shore , th e latter a s tr ing o f port c ities and u rb a n cabinetmak ing ce n te rs s tre tc hi ng northward a long th e Ne w Eng la nd coast. Portsm outh , New Hampshire , wh ere we found th is sofa, is inc lu ded in thi s a rea. Alth ough th e frame determin es the so fa's size a nd ge ne ra l s ha pe . the personality o f this pi e c e is largel y a fun ction o f it s visibl e ex te rio r. Th e s kin ove r th e wo oden s ke le to n and padded flesh is th e cloth cover ing, whic h b ecom es th e so fa's mo st pr onoun ced feature . Thi s o u te r fa bric do es not ove rride th e importan c e o f s ize and s ha pe in th e so fa 's ove ra ll lo ok (the p ie ce wo u ld s t ill a p pea r o d d in a sma ll ro om) , but it d ominat es th e p ie c e a nd e na b les it to harmonize with th e room 's o the r fab rics , wallpaper a nd pa int. In thi s re spect , th e so fa is sim ila r to th e a rc h itec tura l piece s sho wn in thi s boo k- the mirror (p . 20) a nd th e secre ta ry (p . 5 8) . Th eir a rc h itec tu ra l e le me nts rel ate th em to th e woodwork o f th e room and to th e s u rro u nd ing furniture . The same is tru e o f th e c ol or a nd pattern o f the fabri c cove ring thi s pi e ce . Th e so fa is not merely in the room , but of the roo m . A so fa is a rath er intlexibl c pi e c e of furnitur e . It s cov ering closely links it to it s s u rro u nd ings and it s great siz e limits its portability. Its plac ement in a room and th e se le c tio n o f its cov ering are not ge ne ra lly isolated deci sions b ut ra th e r part o f a com p le x d e c orating sc h e me . Th e limitations created by th ese factors , howev er, are a lso a so fa 's strength s. More than most o the r pi ece s of furn iture, a sofa h elps create a d eeor.

--31 -

Federal -period Ame rica ns appreciated the complex contribution a sofa made to a room , but they admired this piece of furniture for o th er re a so ns as well. Theirs was an age o f wood , and upholstery wa s weleomed sinc e it produeed sofas and chairs that were both softer and , on a cold winter night, warmer than wooden ones. Bef ore the Industrial Revolution and the d ev el opm ent of textilemaking machinery , however, all c lo th wa s spun and wov en by hand. This made upho lstered furniture very costly , and ownership o f s uc h a pi ece th erefore indicated status. Cu r io usly, th e woodworking on a Federal -period sofa was its least expensive elem ent. But thi s did not mean that th e worksmanship o n th ese pieces was of poor quality. O n th e contrary , it was well conceived and e xe c u te d . Give n the great ex p e nse o f th e fabri c, it would have be en foolish to skim p o n th e fram e o r oth er wo oden parts. Many period cabinetmakers o ffe re d uph olstering as a se rvic e to their custom ers, and independent uph olsterers o fte n set up business near cabinetmaking s ho ps. Wheth er o r not the maker o f a fram e actuall y did th e uph olst ery , th ere wa s a collaboration b etwe en th e two c ra fts . As a re sult , th e uphol st erer understo od furnituremaking and d esi gn , and th e cabinetm ak er kn ew h ow to build a frame that, wh en uphol st ered , would re sult in th e de sired sh a pe . Thi s cl ose assoc ia tio n b etwe en mak er and uph olst erer is uncommon today. Thus a modern upholsterer ma y neith er sh a re nor understand an ea rl ie r c a b tne tma ke r's int ent , and may be unfamiliar with th e techniqu es ne eded to co rre c tly interpret a Fed eral-peri od so fa. When we bought thi s pi e c e , it had bee n fre shl y reupholst ered , but with re sults th at differed greatl y from th e way it look s now. The upholst erer had reli ed o n mod ern material s and te chniqu es . He used c oil ed sp ring s. for exampl e , un aware that th eir patent wa s not gra nt e d until 18 28 , two decad e s after this so fa wa s mad e . As a res ult, hi s reupholstered sea t h ad a d om e to it rath er than th e nice tight. flat surface p roduced b y o ur s u bs eq ue n t reupholstering, which more acc u ra te ly refl ects th e period. He also ove rs tu ffed th e so fa with foam ru bber. so that it look ed bl oated and th e e x posed wood en parts seemed s p indly. O u r reuphol st ering p rodu c ed in stead the lean . trim lin e s th e cahinetrnakcr intended and al so a comfortable firmn e ss . whi ch is ex tre mely different from th e mushine ss o f s p ring s a nd fo am rubb er. Having witnes sed the transformation o f th e so fa wh en correctly uph olst ered , I s ugges t th at, if yo u are unable to do th e uph olst ery yourself, yo u res ol ve to find an uph olsterer wh o ca n acco m plis h th e p roper e ffec t. To h e lp you se le c t a sk ille d upholsterer a nd kn ow ge ne rally what needs to b e don e . I will outline the s te ps in volved in Fede ra l-pe riod uphol st ery . For th ose interested in a more d etail ed description o f these uphol stery meth ods. I have inc lu d ed an 18.34 source in the bibli ography . Our fram e was upholstered b y Pat rick Ed wa rds . o f San Die go , Ca lifo rn ia , a wel l-kn own ex pe rt o n Ame rica n Em p ire furniture wh o al so spec ia lizes in ea rly upholst ery techniqu e s. He prefers to work with tacks and a hamm er. and refuses to use stapl es. He first builds up a la yer o f woven jute webbing a nd pull s it tau t. Thi s c re a tes a firm

foundation for the u ph ol s te ry and strength ens th e wooden frame . Next he s tre tc hes a layer of burlap and th en lay s o n th e stuffing. Instead of foam rubber. h e used s pe c ia lly treated ho rsehair that curls. This make s th e upholste ry spring y, so that it bounces back when sat on. Until World \Va r II. horsehair was a common s tu ffing for mattresses, which is where we found the quantity we necded for the sofa . Nowadays upholstery supply house s sto ck rubberized horsehair, a natural bristle coated with rubb e r. An other lay er of burlap is la id o ve r th e horsehair. and a sha rp. straight line is obtained by stitching th e two lay ers of burlap with a rolled edge . Th en the burlap- andh orsehair sa ndwic h is se w n together with twine to th e webbing, in quilting fashion , to pre vent th e s tuffing from ga the ring a nd th e cl oth from s h ift ing. Edwards the n sp re ads cotton batting ove r th e top lay er o f burlap and covers it with muslin. Th is h elps produce a smoo th. ti ght s u rfa ce and al so prevents th e stiff e nds o f th e h orsehai r from sticking th e sitter. The cove r is put o n last , a nd th e methods us ed for fitting it are sim ila r to modern pr actice s . The final touch in th e uphol stering is th e ad d itio n o f a c lo th tape to fini sh o ff th e work and produc e a smoo th lin e a ro u nd th e visibl e wo od s u rfa ces. On Federal p iec e s. this tape wa s so me t im es se cured with brass tacks . Knowing that th e outer fabri c we ch ose for o u r so fa would rel ate th e pi ece to the ro om and s u rro u ndi ng o bjec ts. we proce eded slo wly with th e se le ction. In fac t . we left th e so fa in it s mu slin c ov ering for a yea r whil e we restored th e parlor and planned our decorating sc he me. In th e e nd. we d ecid ed to return th e wo odwork an d wain scot in th e room to th eir o rig ina l painted colo rs , a light bei ge with a deep brown mopboa rd . We did not kn ow wh at th e o rigina l wallpaper had lo ok ed lik e . but foll ow e d th e exam ple of th e o rig ina l sa m p les in the front hall a nd th e bedchamber. Both o f th e se papers had as a b ack ground c olor a pal er sh ade o f th e co lo r us ed for th e wall s an d woodwork o f th e ro om in which th e y we re hung. Th is pr ecedent helped us fin all y se le c t a rep roductio n of a late l Sth -ce ntu ry French wallpap er. Th e result o f o ur wo rk is a tw o -tone b ei ge roo m with a s tro ng b ro wn lin e a ro u nd th e tlo or a nd. o n th e wall a bove th e wain sc ot. a bl ack . sing lescre en pattern o f tendrils and birds. Thi s is a very c alm e nv iro n me n t, whi ch we felt co u ld carry a large . livel y counterpoint. We therefore chose a cranb erry-red reproduction fabric for th e so fa, whi ch would pi ck up th e red of the pla st ered ch e eks and jamb o f th e fir eplace . as well as that in several o f the watercol or prints o n th e wall s and in the c ocksc omb that Ca ro l uses in dri ed fl ow er arrangements on th e mantel. \V e tried placing th e sofa in o th e r sp ots in th e ro om before concluding th at it works best und er th e two sy m me trica l window s, b etwe en whi ch th e archl tc ctural mirror hangs. Like th e sec re ta ry facing it o n th e o p posite wall. th e sofa is a dom in e ering pi ece . It is long a nd low . and take s up mo st o f its wall. I have alw ay s th ought that it would be nice to plac e th e so fa in th e center o f th e roo m facing th e fir eplace . a practice that became popular du ring the Em p ire p eriod . In o u r parl or. h ow ever, th e fire place is o ffse t and th e tloor s pace in front of it is a traffi c area .

--.32 -

-

Reedin g by hand Among th e ne ocl assi cal o rna ment in spired by Gree k and Ro man a rc h itec t u re wa s flut in g. whi ch mimi ck ed th e m ulti ple. pa rall el co ncave groo ves found o n classi cal co lu m ns . Du ring th c Fe de ra l period , reeding. o r parall el co nve x m oldings. was in cre asingly used ins tea d . Re eding co m mo nly d ec orated She rato n-s tyle turned legs. bed posts. e ngaged colu m ns . a p plie d pateru e (s m all ro u nd o r ova l ca rve d orna me nts) a nd. as o n thi s so fa. ann post s. Peri od ca b ine t ma ke rs working in different regi ons d e vel oped va rio us . id entifiable s tyles o f re eding. The re a re tw o m ethods for makrng re eds o n turnings. The s im p lest. d one with a re eding plane call ed a c e n te r bead plan e . ca n b e worked o nly o n c ylinde rs o r ve ry gra d ua l tapers. Th at techniqu e is c xpla tnc d in th e chapter o n th e Fan c y c h a ir (p . 1(0) . Th e se co nd m ethod is used o n vusc -sh apcd turnings. s uc h as th e arm posts on this so fa . Becau s e the turning profil e c u rves as it changes diam et er. it wou ld b e impo ssible for a plan e to track al on g both th e co nve x a nd c onca ve su rfaces . Also . a plane can c u t o nly a re ed o f uniform width . and on this turning th e re eds narrow af ter th e y pass ove r th e swe lling o f th e vase s ha pe to fit th e d e crea sed di am et er of th e neck . Th eref ore t his typ e o f re eding mu st b e don e b y hand . Be fo re begin n ing th e re eding. turn th e so fa leg and arm po st to th e p rofil e sho wn in th e drawing at right. Th en . wi t h th e work s p inn ing in th e lath e . sc ribe a lin e a ro u nd the full est point o i th e va se o n th e post. This marks th e begi nni ng o i th e reeds. Do nothing more until yo u hav e pull ed the plug o n th e lathe mo tor to elimi na te th e poss ib ility o f an acci de nta l sta rt- u p. The re a rc 14 ind ivid ua l reeds o n thi s arm post. ea c h abo u t -Ys in . wid e a t th eir maximum . Wall, th em o ff o n th e sc ribed lin e with a pair o f dividers. Th e diam eter is small e no ugh that it is unlikely that th e 14 segme nts will b e perfectl y e ve n-s-the last reed will probably be s lig h tly s ma lle r o r la rge r th an th e o the rs, Whe n doing t he carving, yo u wil l b e a b le to s pace o u t thi s discrepancy over severa l reeds so t hat it will not be noticeabl e .

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Since the arm posts on this sofll are vase-shaped turnings, the reeding mu st be carved bJ' h a n d , rather than with a reeding plane, A fte r !'e r i b in~ II l i ne lIround t he w ide!'t pllrt of the va se, w af k off a n d m urh 14 equul !'e~me n t!' fo r t he reedin~ .

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Next re move th e turning from th e lathe and adj us t th e top edge of th e too l re st to th e e xac t c enterline betwe en th e d rive a nd ta il ce nters, as ex pla ine d in th e c ha p te r o n th e a rc hitec tu ra l mirror (p . 20). Remount th e turning and p lac e the re st ro ug hly parall el to it and a bo u t an inch a way. Now sha rpe n a so ft le ad pe ncil a nd set it on th e rest wit h its poin t o n th e sc ri bed lin e . Ro ta te th e turning until o ne of th e 14 m arks comes in to co n tac t with th e pen cil le ad . Holding th e pen cil o n th e rest a nd perfec tly pa rall el to the lath e bed , draw a lin e from th e mark down th e ne ck of the vase to th e ring a t th e bottom . (I n th e ph o to bel ow , I'm da rke ning th e lin e I' ve a lready d raw n.) This lin e sho uld be stra igh t , eve n tho ug h it follo ws the c urve o f th e arm post. You ca n c heck it with a sho rt, stra ight edge, suc h as th e bla de o f a try sq ua re. The n rota te the turn ing to the ne xt ma rk a nd trac e th e seco nd lin e . Repeat thi s process un til a ll 14 lin e s ha ve bee n mark ed . Now yo u a rc re ady to c a rve th e reed s. Lo ck the d rive shaft of th e la th e to ke e p it from turn ing. With a sma ll pa rt ing tool. start at o ne o f th e lin es an d ta ke a hea vy cu t , abo u t Va in . de ep, as yo u m ove ove r the vase . As you move down th e neck , ligh ten th e c u t; for the bottom 1 liz in ., it shou ld be qu ite fine . Ro tate th e turning so that th e next line is co mfo rta b ly po sition ed fo r yo u a nd ca rve it in the same ma nne r. Repe at thi s p ro c e ss fo r th e re mai n ing reed s, but begin pla n ni ng a head as you ap proach th e fin al reed if it is la rger o r sma lle r tha n th e rest. To di stri bute any d iscrepa ncy ove r th e last severa l reeds , sligh tly adjust th e positio n of th e pa rting tool o n th e pen cil lin e .

Cu tt ing th e V-grooves d istinguishe s th e ind ividua l re e ds, b ut th ey still ne ed to be uniformly ro u nded. Start this proc ess using the sa me sm all parting tool. Roll the tool sligh tly, so th at o ne si de of th e V-sha ped cu tting e dge will tr im th e sha rp a rris o f th e ad j o in ing reed. Be caretul nor to tak e too hea vy a c ut. After following the reed all the way down the nec k to th e ring, retu rn to the scribed line and place the pa rting to ol in th e sa me groove. Thi s time, roll it in th e o pposite dire ction to rem ove the arris of the other reed. Repe at th e se two cu ts in each groove to rough out all th e reeds. I sugges t mak ing ro ug h-s hap ing cuts all th e way around the post rath er tha n tryi ng to co m plete each individual reed , o ne a t at ti me. Working o ne step at a time on all the ree ds will e ns ure th a t they will a ll be uni form . O nce you ha ve wo rked your way back to th e groove in wh ich yo u be gan , yo u ca n start finis hing the individual reed s , I use a fla t ca rving c hisel, bevele d o n both sides o f th e c u tt ing edge, to co mplete the ro u ndi ng of the reeds. Afte r fini shing a series of th ree or fou r reeds, you can go back a nd clea n u p the co rne r formed by the beginning o f th e V-groove a nd th e scribed li ne . T his clean up can be d o ne wi th a mat kni fe . Wh e n all th e reeds have been rou nded and the corners c lea ne d. smooth the su rface of each reed with a cabinet scra per. Hold th e scra per blade so that o ne c orner is in the groove, a nd roll the e dge as ne c e ssa ry over the reed . You ca n use sma ll pieces of sa nd pape r to c lean up any irr egul ariti es no t smoo the d by th e scraper.

With the tool rest at the centerline of the lathe and roughly parallel to the turntng, draw a line from each of the 14 marks down the neck of the va se to the rinA s c r ib e d at the bottom (above). Once all the lines have been drawn, begin earvinA out the reeds with a l '- shllped pllrting tool (right).

After the Intrlul cuts have been made, shape the sides of the reed s with the partinA tool (riAht). Thi s time a s you cut, roll the tool sliAhtl)' toward the center of the reed bein~ s h a p e d . Then usc a scraper blade to s m o o t h lind clean up the rounded curve of the reeds (for ri~ht).

- - 34 -

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-

.18 -

Candlestand Chapter 4

ip -to p stands have a dual personality, changing character when their tops are raised or lowered . This characteristic is shared by two other tabl es in this book, the card table (p . 10) and th e Pembroke table (p . ]56). But those two tables rem ain us eful pieces of furniture even with their movable leaves down : a chair can still be pulled up to them, and objects can be set on their fixed leaves. Whcn the top of a tip-top stand is lowered , however, the piece serves no other function than to please the eye. It becom es a piece of sculpture. Federal-period Am ericans obviously appreciated furniture for its visual accomplishment, but they were nonetheless a very practical people . It seems odd therefore that they would greatly enjoy a piece of furniture that. much of the time, contributed nothing more than its own presence . But whether this was out of character or not, their fondness for tip-top stands created a rcal demand for these pieces, and cabinetmakers often invested considcrable effort in making them. I suspect that this particular tip-top table and its larger counterpart (p . 50) were used in a Federal-period home in much the samc way that Ca ro l and I use them now. \Ve make a point of dining at them by candlelight several nights a week . When we arc alone, we usually eat in the parlor rather than in the dining room , and the large tip-top table is therefore ke pt in the center of this room. Although the large table will seat four people, there is not enough space left for serving dishes and candles. We make up for this by strategically placing several smaller stands nearby to keep platters and bowls within casy reach . I usually m ove this small tip-top candlestand to one side of the larger table and place a candelabrum on it. In the summer Carol often uses the stand to hold a vase of freshly cut gardcn tlowers . When the stand is not in use, its top is tipped vertically and the piece is placed against the wall between the secretary and the door to the kitchen .

T

Because of its small size (the table is only a fraction over .18 in. high with its top tipped vertically) , this piece is extremely versatile and fits in nicely almost anywhere in the house. It works well alongside most pieces of furniture, whether formal or informal , smaller or larger. Unlike most other furniture in this book, this tip-top table is a country piece. This isn't a disparaging observation. In fact, like all other rural art, country furniture often displays an originality absent from more studied urban work . I chose to include this stand rather than a more formal example of a small tip-top to illustrate just this point. It is such a successful piece that it never fails to draw notice from visitors . Although the maker of this piece was a rural craftsman, this candlestand proves that he was both familiar with more formal cabinet work and skillful enough to produce it, but preferred instead his own highly individual design. His work displays a spontaneity unseen in most other pieces in this book and is most obvious in this piece in the pedestal. Its turnings are well executed , with each element crisp and clearly defined . The presence on the pedestal of a boss (or base), cove and urn is consistent with urban work . More formal Federal-period tables , however, usually break into a tapered column above the urn. On this table the maker chose instead to use a vase shape above the urn and added to it four bands of decorative rings, spaced to be cornplet ely vis ible only whcn thc top is raised . On more formal work these rings were generally turned on the urn itself and spaced much closer together. Despite the fact that it is country work, this stand embodies the Federal -period idiom as completely as any other piece in this book. It is airy and delicate, even fragile in appearance , an effect strengthened by its small size. With the top tipped vertically , the piece reflects the Federal-period appreciation of geometric shapes. In this position, the oval top seems to hang in space and becomes the stand 's dominant feature.

- -.19--

This vertical ova l is an e xc elle nt place to sh ow off a pi ece o f highl y figured wo od. Our sta nd is made of cherry, whi ch ha s darken ed to a rich tobacco brown. Its co lor is e nha nced by tw o coats of orange sh e llac. If made in a light er wo od s uc h as bi rch or mapl e , the s ta nd c o u ld bri gh ten a d ark co rne r. If a d arker, plainer wood were used . th e piece co u ld b e inlaid with a Federal motif. perhaps combin ed with se ve ra l c oncentric ovals o f s tring ing at th e tabletop 's e dge . While this table mu st b e s m all to b e portable , it must a lso be s ta b le. Th e pi ece is g ive n s ta b ility by it s three legs . since th eir fe et alwa ys rest in a plane . wh eth er o r not the floor it self is flat. Th e maker furth er brac ed th e tabl e by se tt ing the thre e feet 15 in. apart a nd making e ac h foot e xte nd 9 in . from th e ce n te r o f th e boss . He de signed th e ova l top so that it s maj or radiu s is likewise 9 in .. and he kept th e s ta nd's h eight low (with it s top in th e h orizonta l po siti on , th e tabl e is o nly 2S -Y.; in . hi gh ). While th e legs functi on to s ta b ilize the stand . they arc a lso largely responsibl e for it s s p righ tly a p pe a ra nc e . They arc more so p h is t ic a te d than yo u mi ght exp ec t to find on country work and illu strate h ow native ability can make up for a la ck o f formal training. O n urban stands. for exa m ple . th e legs o fte n e nd with tap ered spade fe et or so me times with bands o f ven e er inlaid a t th e ankl e s. The

maker of this s ta nd, howev er, used a s u b tle r device . Fro m th e bo ss to the feet. th e legs s te ad ily taper in b oth thickness and width. This re sults in fe et that a re o nly liz in . thick by % in . wide , whi ch make s th e pi ece a p pe ar to s ta nd o n tiptoe. lik e a wat er s p ide r o n a lily pad . Wh eth er the e ye mov e s up o r d own th e legs. th is dou bl e ta pe r makes visu a l se ns e . If the eye s ta rts at the feet. which se em little more than points. it is d raw n up the legs by the gra cefu l flow o f S-s h a ped cyrna c urves a nd the increasing thickne ss o f the le gs. If th e eye move s downward from th e h eav y b oss. th e tapered legs narrow. announcing that the y will so o n terminate . Wh en the top is rai sed into h ori zontal p osi t io n. it s % -in.-thiclmess ec hoes th e feeling of delicate ne ss c rea ted by the dainty fe et. Th e va se sh a p e o n th e upper pedes tal pr edicts this thinness by narrowing to a ne c k tha t disappears under th e ove rha ng ing top . The eye foll ow s th e curve o f th e vase until it pa sse s out o f sigh t, a nd th e view er draws th e illu sory co nc lus io n that th e vase is very narrow at the top . In re ality , th e pede stal in c re ase s in thi ckness just before it m e ets th e hinge bl ock to e ns u re ample st re ngth for the ten on j oining th ese pa rt s . (A full di scu ssion o f th e hinge -bl ock m echanism th at a llo ws th e tabletop to pivot is found in th e chapte r o n th e tip-top table o n p , 52 .)

Slid ing doveta ils

The s p ide ry lelt s on thi s eandfcstand are joined to the boss, or base, of the pedestal with s li d inlt dove tails.

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1'4,' Huttum Vie w

- - 40 -

Th e legs o f this cnndlesrand and th ose o f th e larger tip-top table arc se c u re d to th e b o ss with slid ing dov etails. Th e first st ep in constructing th e se d ov etail s is to locate th c position o f th e thre e morti se s on th e bottom o f th e b oss . [I' you remember your hi gh- school geome try. you kn ow th at a circle can be wa lked o ff in s ix e ve n segm ents eq u al to its radius. Set a pair o f divid ers to th e radiu s o f the bo ss and loc a te these six points o n th e circumferenc e o f th e boss . Ne x t draw a lin e from the c enter to e ve ry o the r point. These lines will bisect the mortise s. A template for the do vetails can b e made from a c lea rplastic coff e e-can cove r. Plac e o ne leg of the d ivid ers. s t ill se t to th e radius o f th e b o ss, on th e ce nte r d impl e o f th e cov er and sc o re a c ircl e o n th e plastic . Walk o ff th e sa me six e q ua l points on th e diameter of thi s c irc le a nd sco re a lin e from the c enter to e ve ry o th e r point. Th en sc ribe the outline o f a morti se that is perfectly bi se cted by o ne o f the three lin es. After the template is cut o u t. it s ho u ld fit o n the boss so that it s scratched lin e s are directl y a bo ve th e boss' penciled lin e s. The pla sti c cover's center dimpl e will conveni ently sit in th e hol e made in th e boss b y th e lath e center and will help prevent th e pla stic from slip p ing. Trace all three morti ses o n th e b oss using th e templ at e. Then , using a sq u a re. co nt in ue th e layout for the mortise s down th e sides of th e bo ss. '''ith th e ped estal held in a vise . c u t alo ng th e lin e s with a d ov etail saw as you would if making half -blind d o ve tail s in a ve ry thick dra we r fro nt. Remove th e wa st e with a c h ise l. Cu t thre e legs to th e pattern in th e drawing o n p . 43 . I waited to taper the legs until after I h ad cut th e tenons . This made it eas ie r to hold e a c h leg in th e vise without d amagin g its tap ered cross se c tio n. Trace th e dov etail -

sh a pe fro m th e template o nto th e top end o f the leg, be ing s u re to tra c e th e s ho ulde rs so th ey follow th e c u rve o f th e boss . Th en usc a sq u a re to co m ple te the teno n's la yout o n th e s ide of th e leg . Cu t th e tenons wit h a dov eta il saw . Be s u re to c u t o u ts ide th e pe ncil marks in thi s s te p, wh ic h will produ ce a slig h tly overs ized te non that will la te r be fitt ed to th e morti se. Th e saw will not follow the curve o f th e sho u lders , a nd th e c u t will necessarily be s tra igh t. How e ver, th e bevel of th e sho ulde rs will ulti mate ly result in a tight fit b etwe en th e s ho u lde rs a nd th e ro u nd bos s . Fitti ng th e slid ing dov eta ils is a ma tt e r o f tri a l a nd e rro r. Find th e h igh s po ts in e ithe r th e mo rt ise o r teno n and s have the p roblem a reas with a ch ise l. Fine r adjustm e nt s ca n b e mad e wi th a file .

O nce a leg has b een fitted to it s morti se , a nd th e shou lde rs fit tightly, marl , both parts so th a t th e y can b e ea sily identified wh e n it' s ti me for glu ing. Th e m arktng sy s te m I used o n th is s ta nd is a simple but e ffe c t ive o ne . Usi ng a punch (a n awl o r a na il will a lso work) , I marke d ea ch te non with o ne, tw o o r thre e d ots and ide ntifie d its acco mpan yi ng mo rt ise in the sam e way an th e e nd gra in o f the b oss. Whe n th e table is completed an d th e top is re ad y to b e moun ted to th e hinge b lock , b e su re to po siti on th e p ed es tal so that o ne o f th e legs proj ects dire c tl y b a ckward . If th e leg is place d fo rwa rd , it will not o nly d e tra c t from th e im pac t o f th e s us pe nde d oval top, b u t will a lso be prone to damage fro m roo m tr aff ic a nd ma y trip pa ssers b y.

With a pair o f divider» s e t to th e radiu s of the hos a, w a ll. 0(( s ix equal s eg me n ts on the c i rc u mfe re nce of t he ho s s . T h e n draw lines from the center to e very o ther point.

Usc the template to p en cil in the morti"e " on the end of the hos " and tran sfer the layout t o the s ide" u sin~ II s q u a r e,

Milke II template for th e " li d i n g den'et llil " by eo py i n ~ the hos s ' penciled pattern, then euttin~ lin outline of II morti se bis ec t e d b" on e of the line".

With the pedes tal held in II vi se , cut the mort ises with SIlW lind chi sel out the waste,

II

dovetllil

Us c the templute t o mark th e t enon lind the beveled s h o u lde rs on top of eueh le~ (fllr left), and thcn u sc II " q u llre to continuc the layout down both s ides of the leg. With the leg in II vi se , cut the tenon with II doverait SIlW (left). The SIlW will not follow the curve of the tempI lite but will e r e are b cve led s h o u ld e r« that fit tightl,· Ilgllill!;t the boss.

- -4 1 -

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CANI)L"~ST AND

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This simple, dovetailed and veneered box has served numerous owners for about 160 years as an elegant storage chest for treasured objects. (Project: Jointed lid and "matched" veneers, p, 46.)

- - 44 -

-

Lord Box Chapter 5

h e veneered box presented in this chapter is in reality a very well-designed and well-made piece of furniture . Like the display shelf (p . 126) , .th is box is an ideal storage space for the small, cherished, personal objects we all have . The maker and original owner of this piece are not anonymous , however. The story of this box and how I came to o wn it is an interesting one , which I would like to tell. Throughout th c 19th c entury, the Federal-period house I now live in was occupied by the family of Ebenezer Lord. Lord was a successful cabinetmaker whose long career, begun around 1811 , spanned the Federal , Empire and Victorian furniture periods. For more than 50 years, he and his apprentices supplied Portsmouth with wooden products that ranged from furniture to ships' figureheads . Lord was also an important social and political leader in Portsmouth , but time gradually erased the town 's memory of him and scattered his work . When we bought our house in 1976 , I had never heard of Ebenezer Lord . Nor had the townspeople [ questioned after establishing the house 's chronology of owners in the county 's Registry of Deeds. I spent the next few years working in various archives to rediscover the man who had so long been a part of this house and to reconstruct the network of journeymen and apprentices he had trained . While I learned a great deal a bo u t Lord from my research , examples of his work eluded me . Then one evening Carol and I were visiting our lawyer and his wife. After dinner our host said to me , " Since you're interested in Portsmouth history, let me show you some papers I have ." These were papers that he had found as a boy , while rummaging in the attic of his uncle's law office in search of stamps for his collection. He had stuffed the papers and their stamped envelopes into a wooden box that was also in the attic and somehow managed to keep these boyhood treasures a ll his life.

T

When I opened the box , I lost all interest in the papers it contained. My eye was seized by a penciled inscription on the inside of the lid , which read , "Susan B. Lord , New Year's Present, Portsmouth , N.H. " This box had been presented to Susan Boardman Lord, Ebenezer's eldest daughter, who , I had learned in my research , always used her middle initial to distinguish herself from her mother, Susan Lord . The box represented the first object I had ever been able to attribute to the shop of the man I had been studying for years . A number of other pieces made by Lord and his apprentices have since been identified in both public and private collections, but this box remains very special to me because it was also used in the house Carol and I now own. Lord dealt in veneers as a sideline to his furniture business , advertising that he always had a large supply on hand. The pieces of veneer used on this box probably came from his own stock. I don 't believe that the veneers were chosen randomly; in fact, I think they may even have been cut especially for this piece. (Remember that this was a presentation piece for Lord 's daughter, and it is not likely to have been production work.) The carcase of the box is veneered with a very pale gold Honduras mahogany, whose heavy stripes run horizontally around the piece. In real contrast to the sides , the top is covered with a deep red-brown , San Domingo , crotch -grain mahogany with a swirling figure. The effect of this design is intriguing. The stunning gold on the sides of the box makes the piece stand out dramatically in any room . The dark veneer on top produces a drama of its own , creating the illusion that t he box may not really have a lid and that the viewer can look directly down into its contents. The swirling figure of the dark veneer on the lid suggests also that what is contained in the box is a liquid in a surreal state of nux.

--45--

Th e fini shing o n the pi e c e enhance s thi s illu si on . Th e sides o f th e ca rc ase were fini sh ed with a sh e llac, whose shee n is ple asant but not to o glossy . In co ntrast, th e top is Frenc h poli sh ed to a high gloss that makes it look lik e a shee t of tinted glass, through which o ne sees th e se ns uo us form tr apped in sid e . An oth e r curiou s vis u al e ffec t of th e ve nee r is c re a te d b y th e pro no u nced h orizontal s tripes o n th e ca rouse . l3eca use th e gra in retl ects light differentl y as o ne walk s a round th e box , th e figure appears to undulate. To th e lef t o f th e ke yh ol e is a ve rt ical lin e cau sed b y d etl e cti on o f th e wo od around a s pi ke kn ot. Wh en vie we d o bliq ue ly from th e right, th e lin e is just b arel y vis ib le . As o ne mo ve s from right to left , this lin e b e come s more and more o bv io us . And for th e view e r who pa sse s b y th e b ox a t a normal ga it, th e ve nee r's h orizontal s tripes se e m to sh im me r and th e ve rt ica l lin e magi call y a ppea rs . Th e sa me vis ua l e ffec t is ac hieved o n a ll fo ur si des of th e b ox , since th e four s hee ts o f ve nee r a re sis ter c uts from th e same flit ch a nd c a rry th e sa me pattern . It is th e figure in th e ve nee r th at h old s th e sec re t o f th e b ox 's succe ss. Most Fe de ra l furniture th a t produc e s thi s illu si on o f mov em ent do c s so with swee ping c u rves. Sinc e suc h c u rves a re o b viously impo ssibl e o n a rec tangul ar bo x, th e maker lo ok ed to a no the r d es ign e le me nt-a parti cular pattern o f ve nee r-to ac h ie ve the de sired e ffec t. Th e c rea tio n of thi s illu si on. how e ver. depends not o nly o n th e figure o f th e wo od but a lso o n th e view er's mov em ent past th e bo x; th e se a te d vi ew er will sec non e o f it s magi c . I consid er thi s d e si gn th e p rodu ct o f ge ni us . 1I0w e lse can o ne expla in s uc h co m ple x ity a nd so p h is t ica tio n in so me th ing as sim p le as a b ox ? Afte r trying thi s pi e c e in seve ra l s po ts in o u r hom e . Carol a nd I have dec ided that it is bes t di spla yed in o ur parl or. Thi s roo m ha s a s u n ny so u the rn e xpos u re a nd. with th e sh u tte rs o pe n, plenty o f light to retl ect a nd ripple o n th e b ox 's go lde n s tripe d venee r. We usually se t th e b ox o n th e ca rd table (p. 10) , wh o se dark. Sa n Domingo mahogany to p pro vid e s a dramatic backg ro u nd to se t o ff th e light-col o red sides o f th e b ox . The table a nd b ox ha ve bee n give n a spa ce under a window a ll their own, and hardl y a da y goes b y th at I don 't s pe nd a t le ast a moment letting m y eye e njoy th is b ox . If yo u plan to make th is b ox , I re commend that you invest so me tim e a nd th ought in ch oo sing th e vene ers for it , since th e y acco u nt for th e real visua l impact of thi s pi ec e. With out eye- te a sing vene er. th e o bjec t is ju st a plain wood en b ox . Th e cons truc tio n o f th e c arcase and it s lid is ve ry sim ple. Th ey arc mad e o f cl ea r white p in e a nd joi ne d with th rough dove tail s a t th e four co rne rs. 130 th th e top a nd b ottom boards arc merel y glued a nd nail ed in pla ce . As wo od workers, we mi ght b e di sappointed that more com ple x j oin ery wa s not used in a pi ec e so vis ua lly com ple x. Yet th e ca rcase is noth in g more th an a su bs tra te for th e vene ers. Th e o nly requ ir em ent of the c a rc ase is th at it b e s ta ble, since wood movem ent du e to seaso na l c ha nges in humidity cou ld damage th e hi ghl y figu re d ski n that cove rs it.

Whil e making the c a rc ase , give so me tho ught to wha t yo u will ke ep inside . The o rig ina l b ox h as a n u ndi vid e d interi or s pa ce, but you can arrange this s pace any way you wi sh . You ma y want to h av e built· in di viders or even a miniature bank o f draw e rs. No ne o f th ese a lterna tives will affect th e box ' s ex terior. So me h ardware is re quired to du pli ca te th is piece . Th ere is a lock o n th e o rig ina l Lo rd box. but it is not ne c essary to include one o n yo u rs. Do inc lude the keyhole a nd bra ss su rro u nd. th ough , eve n if they do not service a lo ck . I also s tro ngly re c omm end including the brass handl es o n ei the r end . Th ese thre e me tal mounts (a ll of whi ch a rc ava ila b le from th e h ardware su pp liers listed in th e appendi c es) are a part o f th e idi om we associa te with Federa l furniture. A lock a nd h andl es immedia te ly a nno u nce th at thi s is not j us t a fan c y wo ode n box . Th is is a pi e ce o f furniture .

Jointed lid and "matched" veneers O ne o f th e in terest in g fe ature s o f th e Lo rd box is the way th e pattern o f th e ve nee r co nt inues across the joint of the lid o n to th e sides . Ve nee ring the b ox a nd lid separately to ac h ieve th is e ffec t would be extre mely d ifficu lt. The method Ebeneze r Lo rd used . h ow e ve r. is easy and e ffec tive: h e co ns truc te d a c losed box a nd th e n sawed it o pe n, jo ining th e lid to th e base with h inges . The b o x ca n b e m ad e of a ny stable wo od . such as pine. ba ssw o od o r tulipwood. Th e la yout of th e do ve ta ils at the four co rne rs is important. Th ere is s ing le hal f pin at the to p o f th e sides . The firs t fu ll pin is located approx imate ly Yl6 in. from th e top and is su fficie ntly large to allow the j oint o f th e lid to b e ce nte re d o n it . The plac e me nt and si ze o f this first fu ll pin are c ritica l since th e lid . whe n cut later, sho uld b isec t th is pi n . The remain in g h e igh t of the sides is com p rised o f tw o o r th ree p in s a nd ta ils- th e ir e xac t number is impo ssibl e to d ete rmin e without X·raying th e box, as th e carcase h as remained so s table that the joints have not tel egr aph ed th ro ugh the ve neer. The sa wke rfs made wh en c u tti ng th e d ov e ta ils don ' t o ffer m a ny clue s e ithe r to th e numb er of pins, since few of these kerfs ex te nd into th e bo x. I can o nly a ssum e from standa rd pra ctices and practi cal ex perie nce that the tails a re cut o n th e e nds o f th e bo x and th e p in s are c ut on the front a nd ba ck . Using an ele c tric s tu d find er, I fo u nd tha t the top and bottom were nailed to th e c a rcase , with th e ir edges tlush with th e sides. Th e slig h t s ta in in the joi nt re ve al s that the top and b ottom we re also glued in place. Wh ile drawn or cut fini sh nail s c an be used to sec u re th e bo ttom on your b ox, it is b est to usc T·headed brads o n th e top. since they will le ave no h ol e s to be fille d. whi ch would la te r sho w th rough th e vene e r. Ma ke s u re thur the b rads used for the top a re o nly 1 in . long, so that th e y will no t exte nd in to th e joint o f th e lid . O nce th e box is constru cted , c lea n up th e outs ide s u rfa ce with a low -an gle b loc k plan e . Th is tool . whi ch the mak er o f th e box would h ave c alle d a mite r p lane . is le ss lik el y to te ar e nd gra in th an is a smooth ing plane. whose iron is se t a t 4 5° .

-46-

.J. Top is ceneered last w itll cOlltras ti llg red ·b rowlI mallOgally.

UsinA cuts from t h e s a m e Oiteh, the box' s maker "matched" the s t u n n in g mahogan,' ve neer on the sides of t h e eareuse by ve ncc rtng a closed box and then s a w in A it open to c reate a lid.

4. Af ter closed IJO,\: is ceneered , jointed lid is laid Ollt a m i box is c u r opell .

1. Ends of closed pine box are 'Veneered f i rst witll pa le gold ma hogally .

2 . Fro n t and ba ck are 'Veneered next with pale go ld mahogany.

Make sure the layout of the dovetails allows enough s p a ce for yo u to center the joint of the lid on the first full pin. After completing tbe carcase of the box, nail on the top aud bottom (left). Us e l-in.-Iong, T-headed brads on the top, which will not interfere with the lid joint (above).

- - 47 - -

The next s te p is to prepare th e shee ts o f ve nee r. It is unlikel y tha t yo u' ll be abl e to dupli cate th e pattern o f the o rigina l light-c ol o red ve nee r, so s im ply se lect a flitch that in teres ts you . Find in g a shee t o f dark , c rotc h-g ra in ven eer like that used o n th e to p o f th e b ox will probabl y b e rc lartvc ly easy . O nce I h ad se lected th e ven e ers I wa nt ed to usc- ma hoga ny for th e sides a nd c ro tc h -grai n bi rc h for th e to p (t he b ot tom is not vcn c crcd )-I c u t the m o n a bandsaw and thi ckn css-pl rmcd th em to 111 6 in. Th e shee ts o f ve nee r ca n be ap pl ied to th e box with co n tac t ce me nt . b ut I p re fe r h o t glue . To pr epare th e ve neer for glui ng. firs t lab el each s hee t as to it s po siti on . The o rder in wh ic h the s hee ts arc a pp lie d is important. The tw o e nds o f th e b o x s h o u ld be ve nee re d firs t to p reve nt th e c nd gra in o n th e s ides o f these shee ts fro m sho wing o n th c front o f th e b o x. With th e e nds ve neered, c ut away an y e xcess wit h a ve neer sa w a nd cl ean up th e edges with a block plan e . Ne xt appl y th e front a nd b ack sheets of ve nee r a nd trim th e e dges with a ve neer sa w. You ca n plan e the long e dges wh e re th e front a nd back me e t th e to p a nd bo tto m o f th e box, but use a ve nee r sa w to tri m th e e nds , as th e pl an e co uld easily inju re th e adjace nt venee r o n th e e nds of th e box . Th e fou r co rne rs

Trim lIn~' excess lit thc cnds with II veneer SllW; dClln up the cdAcS with II hlock phme,

o n th e o rigi nal bo x are slig h tly ro u nded , p roba bl y the result of being c lea ne d up with ve ry fin e sa nd pape r. Last to be appli ed is the top shee t o f ve neer. The edges of this s hee t sho u ld al so b e cl e aned up with a ve nee r saw a nd lightly sa nde d to fin ish th em . O nce th e ve nee r ha s b e en appli ed , lay o ut th e joint for th e lid b y se tti ng a ma rking ga uge to 1 1.4 in . a nd scribing a lin e this di stan ce fro m th e to p o n all four si des of the box. No w sec u re th e bo x in a b ench vise , wrapping a towel a round the bo x to preven t d amage to the veneer. To c ut o pc n th e bo x , I used a 14 -p oint handsaw , wh ic h is fine e no ug h to p rev ent te a rou t in th e ve nee r. Afte r th e lid ha s b e en se p a ra te d , plane away the sa wrnn rks o n b oth e dges . Be s ure to pl an e from all co rners to ward th e middl e to pr e vent ch ip p ing th e veneer. If yo u've used pine or a no the r light-col ored wood fo r th e c a rcase , yo u' ll want to b rus h a thi n red wa sh on the e dges of th e ca rouse a nd lid , as Lo rd did o n th e o r igina l box . I mak e an e xt ra -thi n b a tch o f red milk paint for this wash . wh ic h e lim ina tes the fin e , light lin e th at would a ppea r aro u nd th e j oint of th e lid and ca rcase, were the edges not s ta ined . All tha t rem ains to com p le te th e b ox is to mo unt th e hinges . ke yh ol e s urro u nd a nd h andl es.

With the hox veneered, scribc II linc 1 1A in. from the top on 1111 four sidcs of the box,

Cut the box IIpllrt IIlong the s c r ib c d Iinc, usinA II fine-toothed SlIW to prevcnt rearout of the veneer [abeve}, Then plane lIWIIY the suwmurks on thc edges of the lid lind eurcase, worldn~ from thc corncrs toward the ecntcr to avoid chipping (left).

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I --49 - -

Thi!i formal, mllhogan,- tip-top represents II genre of tables that wus extremely popular during thc Federal pcriod. With it" 0111"sh-c, serpentfne-edged top, thi" tablc would have had II dramut ie presence in an" rOOIlJ. (Projcct: Hinge bloc I., p, 52.)

- - 50 -

-

TiQ -ToQ Table Chapter 6

h is tip-top table o ffe rs a c le ve r so lu tio n to thc fa mi lia r probl em of what to d o with a tabletop wh en it 's not being used. In s im ila r fashion to th e gnte lcg and Pem brok e tabl es (pp, 90 and 15 6 ). th e top o n this tabl e ca n be pivoted out o f th e way. Unli ke th e ga te leg, th ough , thi s table doesn 't io ld up into a com pac t unit that ca n be s to re d uno btru si vel y nga int a wall. Instead , its hinged top swings into a vertical po siti on , and th e tip-top becomes a major pi e c e o i furniture that d ominates th e c orner of the room it occ u pies . Th e hinge m echani sm o n thi s table is th e sa m e device used o n th e c a nd lesta nd (p. 3 8 ) , but th ese tabl es are o the rwise quite di ssimilar. The candle stand is small and so ve rs a tile that it can be used in a lmos t any setting, wh ile thi s tip-top is so large that it functions very differently in a room. When its top is raised for dining, the table must be m oved to a large , open area of the room . With its top position ed vertically. it stands 4 112 ft. hi gh and either dw arfs o r c ompetes with o th e r furniture nearby . Thus, wh en not in u sc , this table demands a c orner unto itself. It is unu sual for a piece o f furniture to b e so aloof. But , as with a ny s pec ia l c a s e, thi s o ne als o presents so me uniqu e o p po rt u n ities . Whenev er [ find a particularly s t rik ing pi e c e o f wo od , [ usually se t it as ide for a special proj e ct-whi ch m e ans that I ge ne ra lly e nd up with m ore s pec ia l wood than s pecia l proj e cts. If yo u are lik e m e , take no te . With it s sens uo us , serpentine e dge , th e top of this ta b le co m ma nds attention and o ffe rs a n ideal place to mak e use o f some wid e boards with a pronounced figu re . Th e o rigina l tabl e is made of e x t re mely dark San Domingo mah o gany. We ke ep th e pi ece in o u r parlor, which ha s b ei ge w o odwork and a pal er beige background in th e wallpaper. This large , dark table is the centerpiece o f th e light- c ol ored room and is placed in the m iddle of th e tlo or with its top positioned horizontally, ready wh en ev er we want to dine in that room .

T

[I' you have a more somb er se tt ing in mind for yo u r table, you might want to use a light-c ol ored wo od lik e curly o r quilted maple , o r e ve n wa vy birch . Wh at e ve r wo od you sele c t, m ak e s u re th at yo u ha ve e no ugh to glue up a 3 6-in.- sq . top. I would sugges t u sing th e sa me s pecies fo r th e table 's le gs and pede st al , but yo u' ll find th e s e pa rts ea si er to m ak e it' yo u work with s t ra ig h t rath er th an wa vy grain . No t o nly would a pronounced figure make it m ore difficult to carve the tabl e' s thre e fe et and c u t d o vetail m ortises in th e b oss o f th e ped est al. it would a lso b e a wa st e o f special wood since th e se parts are hidden wh en the top is displayed and in s ha do w wh en th e pi e c e is us ed . Th e heavy base on thi s table is quit e a contra st to th e candlestand 's thin ped estal and delicately tapered le gs . The legs on the la rge tip-top mu st be s t u rd ie r both beca use of its size and because it is u se d differentl y . Meals arc ea ten at th is table, and the weight of food , drink and tablew are can be considerab le . Furthermore , when diners re s t their elbows on th e ed ge s of th e top, it s large overhang places t heir weight iar away from th e p oint o f s u p po rt in the center. Although the table 's le gs a re 1 ~ in. thi ck at th e p oint wh ere th e y radiate from th e boss. th ey are s t ill attrnct ive . LiI\C th e le gs o n th e candl estand , th os e o n this tip- top foll ow an S-shaped curve . in this case a cyrn a revcrsa , which runs in th e opposite d irec t io n from the cym a recta c u rve found o n th e s ma lle r s ta nd . Th es e tw o tabl e s illu strate c le a rly th e power o f line to c rea te fe clmg. O nc c u rve appears very d elicate , th e o the r robu st. Th e cyma reversa c u rve cre ates a di stinct kne e . round ed o n its upper edge and flat underneath . From th e knee th e t hick le g tapers to an a nkle and from th e ankl e breaks into a pad foot. This foot , with a clear rib on it s upper surface and a so le like platform on the bottom. is a survival feature fro m the Ch ip pe nda le period . Th e upper pedestal , with a vase 1i1\C t hat on a la rge Windsor-chair leg, id e n tifie s the table as a Federal piece , probably from the Boston arca .

-- 51 - -

If yo u decide to make thi s table , I s uggest assembling it with th e th ird leg dire cted backward . Oc ca sio na lly I've co me across a large tip-top with th e od d leg proj ecting forward, wh ic h make s the table lo ok a wkwa rd a nd inte rfe res with roo m tr affi c . Th e on ly ad vantage to positi oning th e leg forward is th at th e pi ec e ca n be placed close to a wa ll. Wi th th e leg o rie n te d to th e ba ck, as it is o n thi s tip -top, th e table s ta nds ni c el y in a co rne r. The we akest struc tu ra l s po t o n suc h a large tr ip od tabl e is th e boss. It is co m mo n to find old th re e -le gged table s o n wh ic h th e boss has s plit. Thi s proble m ca n usu all y be avo ide d by a tt ac h ing a shee t-me ta l trifid s u ppo rt to th e bo ss . This pi ece , whi ch can be c u t o u t o f scra p metal , ha s th re e arm s th at radi at e in th e sa me pattern as the legs o n th e table. A sma ll nail or sc re w is passed th rough th e ce nte r of th e su p po rt to hold it to the unde rsid e of th e boss. An oth er nail o r sc re w is dri ven at an a ngle toward th e boss through each a rm o f th e tri fid pi ec e and int o th e corres po nd ing leg. To ke ep th e top from tipping over wh en wei ght is put o n th e wrong co rne r, b oth thi s tabl e and th e candl estand ha ve a s pec ia lly de si gn ed catch th at locks th e top in its horizontal position. If yo u plan to mak e thi s tabl e , you 'll wa nt to orde r a reproduction bra ss ca tc h from o ne o f the su pp lie rs list ed in the a p pe nd ices. Eac h ca tc h co mes with a kee pe r, a nd th e pa ir must be ca refully mounted. If th e

catch is fit too tightly against th e hinge bl ock , th e slid ing bolt ca nno t be e as ily di senga ged . On th e o ther hand , if the catch is po sitioned to o far from th e bl ock , th e bo lt will no t ca tch se c u re ly in the keeper-i-and ev erything o n th e table co uld e nd up in so rneo nes lap. Th e o riginal ta ble is fini sh ed with o ra nge she llac , wh ich compl em ents th e d ad, c ol or o f th e mah oga ny. We ke e p th e pi ec e well waxed to p rote ct the she llac fro m sp ills a nd we use a mat under hot di sh e s. If yo u wan t a mo re d ura bl e fini sh, try va rn ish or la cqu er. I don 't think th e se ha ve th e d epth o f she lla c, but th e y a re m ore re sistant to we ar and s pills . Th e eas iest c lea r finish o f a ll to a p ply and ca re for is o il a nd wax , but th eir e ffe c t is too flat for m y tas te. The hi ghli ghts that result fro m a hard , poli shed fini sh give th e tabl e a far rich er lo ok .

Hinge b lock Th e hinge mech ani sm fo r ra isi ng th e tabletop o n bo th th is tabl e a nd th e ca ndlesta nd requires tw o cl eats an d a hinge bl ock . The cl eats o n this tabl e are mad e o f ma hogan y, like th e pi ec e itself, whil e th e hinge bl o ck is a nat ive di ffuse porou s hardwood that a p pe a rs to b e ch e rry o r mapl e. Using th e same wo od a s you selec t fo r th e tabl e , make th e c lea ts to the sha pe and dim ensi on s sho wn in the drawing o n p . 57 , with th e gra in o f th e wood ru nn ing in th e directi on indi c at ed .

A wooden hinge block, unehorcd to the pedestal, allows the tabletop to be rai sed and lowered. T his block ha s two pivot pins at one end that fit into holes in th e wooden cleat!! screw e d to the underaidc o f the top.

Hac k of clea ts sho u ld be fl u sl: to back of hillg e blocl« w hell ill ver tica l pos it io ll.

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To p surfaces of cleat W ill lIill ge block s ho uld be f 711s1l for tabletop to be pla ced ill h o risso n ta l po sition,

Mo r t ise, 2 'A. x 2 'A., centered on /ol-i1I.-sq . b lock to accept wedged tenon

-

- 52 -

-

To m a ke the h inge b lock , firs t cut a pi ec e to th e ove rall dime nsions, 9 1;.j in . by 8 in . Now grip t he blo c k in a vise , c nd grain u p , and m e a su re in -Ys in. , the radiu s of th e wooden pivot on which the b lock turns, fro m bo th th e long and sho rt faces. Where these two meas ure me nts intersec t will be the center of the p ivot pi n. Use t h is ce nter to scribe a circle with a pa ir of d ividers se t to -Ys in. Th is ci rc le shou ld to uch or ne a rly to uc h both face s of the block. If yours is not q uite tlus h with o ne face, as is the case with mine , you can remove th e excess wo od later. Re move the b lock from the vise an d use a sq uare to mark a line all the way aro u nd the e dge of the block , % in. in from the edge, or the depth of th e pi vot pin . The n use t he square to transfer the di a m et er of t he pi vo t fro m th e end of the b lock to t he adjacent s ides. These lin e s ind ic at e the waste to be removed . Re pl ace th e b loc k in th e vise, end grain up , and cut a long the in sid e line j ust b eh ind th e p ivot w ith a hacksaw , The n re move the largest area o f waste wit h a cross-cut pa nel sa w and the sma lle r area j us t bel ow the p ivot with the hacksaw to lea ve a prot ru d ing cube with a circle drawn o n its e nd gra in. Underc ut th e cube 's co rne rs with the hacksaw , a nd sh ave t he wa ste away wit h a fis htail go uge o r c h isel. Smoo th a way the facets left b y t he gouge with a file , lea vin g th e pi vot slightly overs ized for no w. Follo w th e sa me p roc ess to make the woode n pivot a t th e o the r e nd of th e b loc k.

••

T o lay out th e wooden pivot, s c r ib e a circle on one corner of the hinge bluek with a pair of divider s s e t to a o/s-i n . radiu s (left}, A f t e r marldn g off the w a ste are a s , make the first cut behind the pivot w ith a backsaw (b e lo w ). C u t away the large waste area u s in g a panel saw.

-

With most of the waste removed, undercut the pivot' s corners with a baeksaw (top left), then rough-shape with a fi shtail gouge (above). Round the faceted edge s of the pivot with a file, leaving the pivot s li g h tl y oversized for later adju stment (left).

- - 53 - -

Round the edAe of the bloek between the ph'otN with II bloek ptune, making sure to ptane IIWIl~' IIn~' CXCCNN from thc cdAc NO rhut the pivot pinN lind cdAc form II cunrlnuous surface,

Place thc ph'ot holc liN close a s pONNiblc to the uppcr cdgc of thc eleut, u sing II block of wood to bolster the thin area whilc drillinA the hole.

Now clamp th e hinge bl ock in a vise with it s u ppe r surface facing o u t and th e pivots p arall el to th e be nc h to p. Round th e sq ua re corn e r o n th e e dge b etwe en the pi vo ts with a block plane , leaving it sligh tly larger than th e pivots' diam eter. You ma y ha ve to furth er adju st th is edge later. The next s te p is to drill th e pi vo t h ol e in the cleats. Lay o ne o f the cleats o n th e bench , a nd with dividers se t to % in ., scribe th e pivot hol e with its cen ter 3 % in . off the cl eat' s ce n te rline a nd so th at it s diam ete r is almos t tangent to th e c le a t' s upper edge. Th en secu re th e c leat in a vise and clamp a sc ra p bl ock a djacen t to wh e re the ho le wi ll be drilled. This sc ra pwood will b ol ster th e th in edge of the cl eat and prevent th e drill bit fro m s p litti ng the edge loo se . Use a ~ - i n . bit to b ore th e % -in.-d e e p piv o t hol e . placing th e lead o f th e b it o n th e c ente rm a rk of the hol e and using a sq ua re to ke ep th e b race a nd b it vertical. O nce th e pi vot h ol e is drill ed , te st -fit th e pivo t. If it is too tight , use a file to a dj us t the pi vot pin . O nce yo u have a satisfa ctory fit , asse mble th e c le a t a nd pi vo t. Now sigh t a lo ng th e edge o f th e bl o ck whil e ro ta ting th e cleat to determin e if th ere a re a ny hi gh s po ts o n th e h inge b lock that need further s hav ing . If th e pi vot pins. e nd of thc hinge bl ock and ba ck e dges o f th e cl eats a re not flus h, th e tabletop ca nno t b e pla c ed in a full y ve rt ica l posit io n. O nc e eve ryth ing fit s , mark th e c lea t a nd pi vo t as a pair to prevent c onfu si on wh en th ey a re late r asse mbled . Nex t se t th e cl eat parall el to the b loc k's up p e r s u rface . Th e piv ot pins , top o f th e block and upper edges of the c le a ts should b e tlu sh in orde r for th e ta bl e to p to be placed in it s full h orizon tal po siti on . If the y are not, plan e the block o r the upper e dges o f th e cl e ats to adj ust th em . Repeat th e ab o ve s te ps to make th e seco nd pivo t hol e . Aft er testing the fit o f thi s p ivot in it s h ol e , re mo ve the c le a t and b ev el th e bottom edges o f th e bloc k in the same way as for th e lid o f the ca ndle box (p. 132) . O nce th e hinge bl ock and cl eats a re fini sh ed, atta ch th e pedes tal to the block with a wedged throu gh tenon , a nd screw the cl eats to th e unde rside o f th e to p .

Aftcr fittinA thc p ivo t , NiAht alonA thc rounded edge of the block lind rotate thc clear to find high Np Ot N on thc block rhut nccd to be removed, If necessary, plane the block or thc cleat so they are f1uNh.

-

- 54 -

-

TIP-TOP TABLE

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- - 58 - -

Secretary Chapter 7

h is combination desk-bookcase is called a secretary. It is one of a group of about a dozen similar Federal-period secretaries in public and private collections around the country that are believed to have been made in Portsmouth. Although Portsmouth was a major Colonial and Federal-period cabinetmaking center, little is known about the furniture manufactured here , and only a surprisingly small amount of surviving furniture can be attributed with confidence to this city's cabinet shops . Several of the secretaries in this group were branded with the names of people known to have lived in Portsmouth during the early 19th century, but these people were probably the owners of these pieces, not their makers. The secretary in this group that, in time , may become the Rosetta stone for identifying more secretaries and other Portsmouth furniture bears a handwritten inscription stating that it was made by Ebenezer Lord , the cabinetmaker who throughout much of the 19th century owned the house my wife and I now own. A second inscription on that piece dates it to 1811 and identifies the shop where Lord worked as a journeyman. On all of these related secretaries, the cupboardbookcase doors have two , three or four long windows, each topped by a Gothic arch. Although this motif is the visually dominant feature of these pieces, it was used by cabtnctmakcrs working in many other cities, too, and cannot alone be used to link these secretaries to Portsmouth. This conclusion is instead based on a combination of similarities among the pieces, such as construction techniques and the choice of moldings, skirts and veneers . Like the mirror (p. 20), this secretary is an architectural piece of furniture, meaning that it bears elements borrowed from classical Greek architecture . It has both an entablature (the elements immediately above the column on a Greek temple) and a pediment above it. The

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entablature is modified by the elimination of its lowest element, the architrave , which is normally positioned beneath the cornice and the frieze. The cabinetmaker probably dispensed with the architrave because the piece would usually have been placed in a formal room . Such a room almost certainly would have had a large cornice molding at the intersection of the walls and ceiling, which would not have included an architrave. (This element was commonly reserved for use as a casement around doors , windows and fireplaces .) Because this piece stands quite tall, the effect of this design is particularly successful. The cornice and veneered frieze on the secretary fall just below the same elements of the wall's molding, echoing their architectural counterparts. Like most cornices, that on the secretary is a combination of several different molding profiles. The cabinetmaker used shapes popular in interior woodwork of the period, since he couldn 't be sure what the makeup of the cornice would be in the room that would house the secretary. The lower molding of the cornice on this piece , called a cove and bead , was a common Federal shape used both on the cornice in a room and as a backband on architraves. The uppermost molding is a quarter-round, which, like the secretary's frieze, is faced with crossbanded veneer. Such cross-banded veneer, which is veneer set at a right angle to the substrate , was a common technique in Federal-period cabinetwork. At first glance, the secretary appears to be an extremely complicated piece of furniture , but actually it is simply a clever combination of several basic elements. It is essentially two separate pieces of furniture : a chest of drawers, and a two-door cupboard-bookcase that sits atop it. The chest of drawers and the cupboard are simple, dovetail-joined, rectangular boxes with solid mahogany sides and pine tops and bottoms. These two boxes, open front and back, are positioned vertically. Backboards fill the rear side of both , and doors or drawers the front.

--59--

The top of the chest is made up of two distinct areas, one that slopes forward to create a writing desk and a second horizontal surface that supports the cupboard. Nail ed in place over the upper row of dovetails in the ch est is a cove molding that forms a lip and holds the cupboard in position . The pine carcase of the entablature th at tops th e cupboard is also a dovetailed box. Thi s box is open top and bottom, positioned horizontally, and largely covered with mahogany veneer. The secretary's visual statement se e ms equally complex at fir st glance , but this , to o , can be broken down into basic design elements. A combination of several features . s uc h as the sk irt , cornice and shape of the feet , relates this sec re ta ry to the others made in Portsmouth. Yet the use of color. texture and pattern in th e piec e is an expression of the individual cabinetmaker. Like the architectural mirror, this pi ece makes use of two tones of mahogany , but does so for different reasons. O n the sec re ta ry th e cabinetmaker used dark. crotchgrain . San Domingo mahogany on the skirt, outer face of th e writing desk, frieze , center plinth o n the pediment, and drawer fronts . He then used a light Honduras mahogany on the feet. sides of the lower carcase, dividers around the small drawers , finials and outer plinths o n the pediment, and cove molding separating th e upper and lower sections o f th e pi ece. This us e of light mahogany perhaps resulted from th e maker's solution to a problem that arose in designing the se c re ta ry' s French feet. These fe et are su ffic ie ntly strong to support the piece , even wh en it is loaded with books . but th eir proportion is troublesome. The bottom o f th e secretary is th e sa me siz e as an o rd ina ry ch est of drawers . with its fe et in matching scale. Since th e e n tire piece is m ore than twice as tall as a normal bure au, though , feet that are appropriatel y siz ed for the base se em tiny on the full piec e . By making th e feet of a lighter-col ored wood , th e c ra fts ma n visually exaggerated th em without actually increasing their size. This solution , h owever, had to b e integrated into the o ve rall design of th e secretary. Th e cabinetmaker th erefore extended the motif of light-colored wood throughout, visually tying the piece together while also downplaying it s c o m po ne n t construction . Surrounding the tw o small drawers with a band of lighter wood. for e xa m ple , not only sets o ff th e darker drawer fronts but als o s moo ths the transition from the lower ch est to th e cupboard-bookcase . Th e cabinetmaker's use o f bo okmatched veneers on the fronts of th e four large drawers is espe c ia lly worthy of note. Bookrnutched veneers were co m mo nly used o n wide , flat surfaces in Federal furniture . but here the results are exceptional. Th e drawers are fac ed with adjacent sister cuts from th e sa me Hitch , which wa s taken from the base of a limb . Th e re sulting shape o f th e figure is a pronounced wh orl. Wh en b o okmatchcd , the veneer displays th e wh orl not onl y as a mirror image but al so as po sitive and negative images. O n th e left sid e o f th e drawer fronts th e red-brown wh orl is s u rro u nde d b y a dark background. On th e right side th e mirror-image whorl is dark and set against a red-brown b ackground . -

At first glance , few people notice this unusual use o f veneer. The effect is necessarily subtl e, as the purchaser would undoubtedly have been uncomfortable with a pi ece that did not observe the rigid symm etry expected o n furniture of the peri od . With this positive/negative image , however, the cabinetmaker cleverly violated th e rul e o f symmetry without creating offense . All four edges of th e large drawer fronts are o rn a me nted with cock beading. a raised lip made o f a thin . se p a ra te strip of wood set into a shallow rabbet. Thi s d etail. discu ssed at length in th e c h a p te r on th e chest o f drawers (p. 170). protects th e fra gile veneer from chipping, helps articulate the facad e of the drawer fronts and keeps the front of the carcase from reading as a simple plan e . The brass pulls on the drawers are call ed rose ttes. Generally identifi ed with th e Sh eraton style . th ey seem to contradict th e presenc e o f th c French feet, whi ch are associated with the Hepplewhite style. Yet thi s apparent contradicti on confirms that any attempt to rigidly date o r classify furniture by a single feature will often b e inaccurate. The pres ence o f th e rosette s make s me s us pect that this piece dates to around] 8 1S, wh en th e She ra to n style was popular in Portsmouth . Thi s would place its dat e of manufacture a c oupl e of years after th e o nly two dated secretaries in th e Portsm outh group were made. The secretary's cupboard-bookcase wa s int ended to sto re books a nd other trea sured possessions. It is not su rp risi ng that one of the most e la b o ra te piece s o f furniture in a Federal house would have been mad e for thi s purpo se . At the time . books were still very expensive and were hi ghly regarded . Probate househ old inventori e s o fte n noted th e number of books owned by th e deceased, and so me times even list ed them by title . Th e books and other items stored in th e boo kcase were not alwa ys on display. Th e ba ck sid e o f glass- pan ed secretary doors was o fte n cove re d with curtains tacked to the doors' stiles a nd rail s . Tack holes on th e top and bottom rails of the doors o n thi s secretary c onfirm th at these doors were at one tim e curtained. Because the stored books and obj ects would va ry in size . the shelves in this and th e o ther Portsm outh secretaries were adjustable. Th ey co uld be fit into a ny o f eleven closely spaced dadoes cut in th e inside s of th e bookcase carcase and in both sides o f th e cent ral divider. The original crown glass remains in the bookcase do ors and is typical o f sh e et glass available in th e Federal period . The panes were cut from a la rge , flat di sc mad e by spinning molten gla ss . This process resulted in the imperfections that giv e th e glass it s texture . Lo oking through the panes at close range , o ne sees no o bv io us di stortion. Because o f th e imperfection s, how ever, light reflected from the glass ripple s lik e th e s urface o f a p ond disturbed by a sli ght bre ez e. This sam e crown glass is used in all th e window sash in the parl or and e lse whe re in o u r hou se. and it protects th e Fed eral -p e ri od prints o n th e parlor walls and shelters th e ca nd le in th e lantern h an ging in the cen te r o f the room . O n a s u nny day o r by even ing candl eli ght, a vis ito r to th e parlor is gr e eted with a su b tle light sho w o f retl ections o ff th e ro om 's crown glass . 60 -

The muntins s e p a ra t in g the glass panes in the c u p bo a r d -b o o k c a se doors arc formed of two s e para t e pieces of wood-a doublebead molding backed by a thin s p ine.

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The other secretaries in the Portsmouth group are of interest because they illustrate how Federal-period production cabinetmakers variously adapted a design. This secretary, which is 7 ft. 9 in . tall , fits comfortably in our parlor, where the ceilings are 8 ft. 2 in. But because many Federal -period homes would have had lowe r ceilings, cabinetmakers would often have been called upon to shorten this design . This was sometimes done by placing the two small drawers in the bottom of the bookcase behind the doors instead of beneath them. It was also common to reduce the height of the frieze by about a n inch so that the entablature remained in proportion . Wi th these two changes the secretary lost about six inc he s overall , and another four inches could be removed by eliminating the center finial. All these adaptations lowered the height of this design to as little as 6 ft. 11 in . If you want to make a scaled-down version of this secretary for your home , these same changes will work for you, too. One other minor change you might want to make in reproducing this piece involves the writing desk . The sloping surface on the chest of drawers is a folded lid that lowers onto two sliding supports flanking the top d rawe r a nd opens to create the desk . The ample work area is covered with lightweight, green wool fabric, which was quite serviceable when quill pens were used for writing . Now that q uills have been replaced by ba ll-po int pens , which require more pressure for writing , I wo ul d sugges t that you replace this rather de licate fabric with a sturd ier material such as fine le a th e r or high-quality fe lt.

Spines, notched a nd j oined together, glu ed and d ad oed to fr ame

Muntin s The ind iv idual panes of glass in the secretary doors are separated by a web of shaped wooden strips called muntins . These m untins form two lower tiers of small panes and an u pp e r tie r of elongated panes topped by Gothic arches. Like win dow-sash muntins, those in the secretary are T·shaped in cross section. Window-sash muntins , however, are normally made of a single piece of wood, while those in th is secretary are built up of two separate strips. Here , the visible mo lded surface forms the top of the T; the bottom is a thi n sp ine, which forms a rabbet on either side. The edges of the glass panes fit into these rabbets and are held in place by glazing points and glazing compound . Mak e each door frame before making the muntins, using mah oga ny thro ug hout. Cut the st iles and rails to the d imensions shown in the plans , copy ing the Gothic arches in the top ra il. The edges of these arches will be covered by a molding in front and a bead of putty behind , so you need no t la b o r over cleaning up the sawn edges. Join the fra me with mortise-and- tenons , and test· fit the stiles and rails, b ut do no t glue them yet. The s pi nes of the muntins in each door are made of lis-in . by o}.4-in . stock. Their ends are set into dadoes cut into th e insid e edges of th e door frame . Where the vertical a nd h o rizontal spines cross, matching notc hes are cut into each piece to form a b ridle joint. I made the spines by rip ping thin slices off a o}.4-in. mahogany board and planing the m to thickness . After each slice , I rejointed the board so th at each new piece cut would have one finished side.

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Cu t th e dad oes in th e d o or fram e with a dov etail sa w a nd rem ove th e waste with a lis-in. ch ise l. Remember that th ese da does will be covered b y th e appli ed molding, so do n' t ma ke th em a ny deeper than half th e width o f th e mo ldi ng, o r VJ6 in . No w m ark a nd cut th e spines to len gth a nd te st-fit each pi e c e . To locate th e intersections of th e horizontal and vertical strips , firs t partiall y in sert th e ve rt ical strips into th eir co rres po nd ing dado e s, pushing th em sligh tly bel ow th e s u rface o f th e do or fra me. Th en se t th e horizontal strips in th e ir d ad oe s. Th e low er corne rs o n e ac h e nd o f th e horizon tal strips wiII just ca tc h in the fram e , b u t th e assem bly is sta ble e no ug h to a llo w yo u to mark th e joints . Using a m at knife as a sc ri be. begin marking th e join ts o n the ve rtical strips on bo th sides of th e horizontal strips . The n rem o ve th e two ve rt ical str ips a nd use a sq uare to scribe th e joi nts do wn th ei r sides . Place th e se strips toge the r to lin e up th e m arks o n thei r upper edges , put th em in a vise , a nd mak e th e c u ts with a dov etail saw, bei ng ca reful to c ut o nly a bout -Ys in . d e ep . Working with the two str ips toge the r mak e s th em stiffe r and le ss lia bl e to b rea k whil e bei ng sa wn . It also hel ps e ns u re th at th e

four joints wiII be uniform . Afte r removing th e waste with a ch ise l, test th e width o f each slo t b y in serting o ne of th e horizontal strips . Repo sition th e vertic al strips in th e d oor frame , thi s time letting them sit flush . Se t th e horizontal strips in plac e a nd pu sh th em d own into th e slo ts in th e ve rtical pi e c es a nd dad o es . The horizontal stri ps wi ll now sit halfwa y into the ve rtica ls and ca n be adj usted wi th the help of a sq ua re until each o pen ing is sq ua re . When you a re sa tis fie d , mark th e positi on s o f th e ve rtical strips o n th e horizontal s. Th e n re move th e horizontals and cu t the slo ts in th em the sa me way a s for th e ve rtica ls. Th is wi ll p roduc e tw o hal ve s o f a b rid le joi nt, whi ch should asse m ble pe rfectly. Before pr o ce eding to m ak e th e moldings for the front of th e rnuntin s, glue th e morttse- nnd-t cn on joints of the do or fram e and se t th e d oor as ide to d ry . The m u ntins' front moldings are re ed ed , a co m mo n m o tif o n Fe deral furnitu re, wh ich I p roduc ed wi th th e sa me ¥16-in. pla ne used to re ed th e front le gs of th e Fa ncy c ha ir (p. 100) . If yo u ca nno t find o ne o f th e se woo de n pla nes. try a Stanley #4 5 o r # 5 5 , o r a m ulti-pla ne .

A sscmblc the s p t n es in thcir do doc s and mark on the vcrtical s t ri ps wh crc th c horizonta ls and vcrticllis inters ect (left). C u t the notche s in the two verrical s p ines a t the same time (ubove),

Reassemble thc s p ln e s in the door with thc horizontals in the notche s just cut, ehcck that thc horizontal s lind vertical!l a re s q u a rc, and marl. the eorrespnnding slots to be cut in thc horizontal !lpines.

- - 62 --

For th e m oldings, I s im p ly m ade a seri es o f reeds o n a n at board . Begin by planing a pi ece o f mahogany to .y}6 in . thick Be s u re to se lec t s truigh t-g ruinc d wood , as a pron ounced figure would te ar. To make th e reeds , roll th e plane slig h tly to th e left so that o ne leg o f th e cutter is set o ver the a rris , while th e o the r rid es o n th e s u rfac e o f th e wood . Tak e a fir st pa ss, which sho u ld produc e a groove in whi ch the plane will track. Se veral more passes will be required to full y devel op the re ed. My wooden plane has a stop that will e ve n tua lly rid e o n th e s u rface of th e b oard and automatic all y cease th e cutting action . Set th e left leg o f th e cutter in th e groove just cut and use it as a tra ck to c u t th e next reed . Repe at this proc es s ac ross th e m ah ogany until yo u have e no ugh m olding m aterial. If yo u ex pe rience tea ro u t, turn th e mahogany a round and s ta rt to reed from th e o the r direction . Wh en you hav e fini sh ed th e re eding, use a mat knife to c u t the mah ogan y into s t rips o f tw o re eds eac h. Cle a n up th e rou gh e dges o f th e s t r ips with a bl ock plan e . Wh en th e m olding is a p p lie d to th e do or fram e , th e \I-groove betwe en th e tw o reeds sho u ld be placed exactly ove r th e ins ide e dge o f the s tile s a nd bottom rail. Position a pi e ce o f m olding o n o ne o f the s tiles, le a vin g e xcess len gth at th e top a nd bottom . Ma rk wh e re th e b ottom rail inte rsec ts, th en sc ribe a miter and make th e c u t. (I find it is eas ie r to d o this with a mat kni fe th an with a dovetail sa w.) Repe at th es e s te ps for th e o the r ve rt ic a l s trip. Ne xt miter o ne e nd o f th e molding st rip for the b ottom rail and lay thi s s trip in place alo ng with th e corresp onding ve rt ica l m olding . If th e two mi ters do not m eet perfectl y, use a low -angle b lock pl an e to m ak e adj us t me n ts . I hold th e plane in o ne h and with its he el aga ins t m y s te rn u m. Holding th e m olding in m y o the r hand , I draw th e miter across th e m outh o f th e plane . removing wood o nly wh ere necce sary in ti ssu e -paper-thin sha vings . Wh en th e mi te r is com ple te , se t the tw o pi ec es in pl ace. Po s iti on th e o t he r ve rt ica l m old ing and rest it s miter o ve r th e e nd o f th e h o ri zontal - th is is mo re acc u ra te th an m e asurin g. Mark a nd c ut th e seco nd miter o n th e bo tto m s t rip a nd use th e bl o ck pla ne to adj us t the fit. With th es e thre e m ol d in g s trips fitt ed an d in pl ac e , po siti on th e g rid o f lls ·i n . s pi nes in th e dad o e s a nd m ark wh ere th e m old in g s trips in tersect th e sp ines . At th e sa me tim e marl, th e fini sh ed h ei ght of th e tw o ve rti cal m olding s t rips. Remove th e thre e m olding s t rips a nd la y out th e ind ented \I o f th e d oubl e mi ter a t each o f th e s ix inte rsec tio ns . I c u t th es e with a do vetail sa w and cle a ne d th em up with a c h isel. Nex t c u t th e reeded m olding for th e pe rim eter s t r ips to length. S pread glue o n th e ba ck s o f th e s tri ps a nd cla m p th em in place o n th e fram e. Th e ten sho rt ho ri zontal a nd ve rt ica l se c tio ns and th e two longer sec tio ns o f m olding th at will cover th e s p ines a re all joine d with four four-wa y m it ers. Th ese occu r at th e co rne rs o f th e m iddle p ane o n th e se co nd ro w. Eac h o f th e sho rt pi ec es ne ed s to have tw o 4 5 ° cuts at e ac h e nd. I sc ribed th e cuts with a m at knife a nd mite r sq ua re but c u t th em wi th a do veta il sa w. Be su re to c u t to the outside of th e scri be m a rk, which will leave a little e xcess wood for adj us t me nt. Test th e fit o f th ese pi e ce s with o ne an oth er

Usc a o/,6-in . center-he ad molding plane, in clined s ligh tly to t h e le ft , to cut a se r ies of re ed s on a n a t hoard. T he plane tracks in t he ~roove of o ne re e d to produce th e adjacen t r eed. After t he reeding is c omple te , cu t the hoard into s t r i ps t wo r eeds w id e.

Us c a lo w-angl e hl o e k pl an e t o fine-tunc t he m i t ers c ut on t he ends of t he moldin ~ s t ri ps.

-63 -

a nd the mun tin s o n th e fram e and m ak e an y co rrec tio ns with the block plan e. Th en glue th e s pines in plac e a nd glue th e re eded mo ld ings to th e spines . The transi tio n from th e vertical muntins to th e c u rve d molding aro u nd th e arche s is made by a sho rt , single ho rizo nta l bar. T his ba r, produ c ed wit h th e re eding plan e , is made fro m Yl6-in. m ah ogan y stock so th at it proje cts above the muntins. No te th a t the two m iddl e ba rs a re lo nger th an th e o u te r o nes to acco mmo da te th e tw o c urved munt ins th at me et a bove th em . Cut th e ba rs to len gth a nd ro u nd bo th e nds wi th sa nd pa per. Cu t the six c u rved moldings to the sha pe a nd d ime nsio ns sho wn in th e draw ing on p. 67. I cu t th em o u t wi th a copi ng saw a nd c leaned u p the ir cu rve d e dges with the sa me sma ll spokes have used on the co nc ave e dges of the seat on the ro d-back Win d so r c hair (p . 118) . To re ed th e c u rved m oldings, I used th e same scra tc h too l as for th e si m ula te d cock beadi ng o n the chest of d raw e rs (p. 17 0) , c u tti ng a lin e para lle l to th e two cu rve d edges. Firs t, how e ver, yo u ne ed to ro u nd th e fen c e o f th e woode n block to allow th e to ol to follo w a co ncave surface . The n tu rn th e wo od screw to set th e wid th o f th e c ut to exac tly o ne- ha lf th e width of the six c urved pi ec e s. I sha ped th e c left of th e m olding with th e sa me sma ll V-sha pe d parting tool used to reed the arm post of th e sofa (p . 30) . Note th at wh e n th e gra in of the pie c e c ha nges, yo u will need to c ha nge th e dire ctio n of yo ur c ut to preve nt spli n teri ng . Smoo th o ut th e c u t wi th a sma ll pi ec e

o f sa nd pa per, fold ed so th at it abrades bo th sides at once , a nd finall y sa nd th e o utside e dge to ro und it. Now asse mb le th e arched m untin s to te st the ir fit both at the to p of th e a rc h and a t th e horizontal transition bar. Wh en yo u a re satisfied with the fit, glue the muntins in plac e a nd cla mp the m till d ry. Du plicating th e origina l crown glass in th e secretary 's doors will be difficult, a lt ho ug h yo u ma y find an antique or archite ctural sa lvage d eal e r who will se ll it by the pane. Cy linder glass will be easie r to find , since window glass co nti nue d to be mad e by this pr ocess int o the 20th century. The rec ta ng ula r pa ne s ca n be easily size d . but a J;.l -in. thi ck wood templa te sho uld be m ad e fo r the arched panes . Test the te mplate 's fit in the a rc hed ope nings. It should no t be too tigh t, as glazing or th e woo d 's seasonal movem ent co uld break a t igh t-fitt ing pane. Using a good q ua lity, d iam ond -po inted glass cu tter and wearing gloves . sco re the pane aro un d the o u tline of th e te mplate. ho ld it over the co rner of a table and sna p off the waste. Set th e glass in th e door a nd hol d it in place with glaz ie r's po ints . (The pu sh points available at hardware stores are too la rge .) Poin ts of any size can als o be made , lik e th o se o n th e o rigi na l sec re ta ry. Sma ll metal triangles we re cu t fro m sheet iron wi th shears a nd then carefully pushe d in place wit h the b it of a sc re wdriver. For glazing. I pr efer a co m po u nd sold under th e b rand name " Old Fas hioned Pu tty," wh ich is m ad e of linse ed oil and whiting a nd is not as dryas other varie ties.

Once you are !iatisfied with thc fit of thc enrved muntin!i. a !i!iemblc and ing thcm in place while they dry.

With a s c r a t c h tool, bcgin rccding the curved molding s t r i p by cutting a g r o O\'c paratlel to the edge of the !it r i p [above left ), T h e n U!iC a s m a ll V- shaped parting tool to round thc initinl groovc made b y the s e r u t c h tool (left).

-64-

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Rabbets (II ). .)1. x %. 2 \4 in . o n ce nte r: fo u nd o n bo t h s ides of ce nter divider a nd interior wall o f earease side

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l1Iah o ~an y

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Section III nrcuk

Adjust able shelf

SECTION AT A Scale. ~ in. = 1 in.

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%-in . pine - --+... center divider

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mahogany fuein/.\ strip (typ.)

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- - 67--

·)4-in . cnrcase side, solid llIaho~any

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Note: Druwer dimen sions for lower mul upper cnrcuscs utul their dovctuil luvouts "I/ry uccordine. to drawer openintis:

-68-

1'J'Y!"

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SECTION AT CENT ERLINE Scale: ~6 in. = 1 in .

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;1 dovetailed pine frame. SYJ. x %. veneered front and sides. Pediment and entablature arc symmetrical from ~. Finial and side plinths are solid mahognny,

Corn cr block

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Molding substrate. x 0/1.

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Purt iul Front Vicw

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-71 -

10/1. f-E-(typ.)

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THE DINING ROOM

"W

salmo n-co lo re d walls and burgundy woodwork.
",, 0 "

st riking fea tu re . The,"

a re the ro om 's orig ina l colo rs, I wa s su r p rise d to di sc ov er wh en restoring it seve ra l ye a rs ago. Th e pa in te rs h ad b e e n co nsistent with the ge ne ra l d ecorating sc he me in the oth er formal area s o f th e hou se . wh ere the wall s were papered a nd t he wo od work painted a darker shade o f th e back ground colo r in the wallpaper. Altho ug h th e dining-ro om wall s a re p aint ed ra t he r than papered . the pairing o f tw o sha des of o ne colo r repeats th e e ffec t found in th e parlo r. bedc ha mber and fro nt h allwa y . The tlo or in thi s ro om wa s o riginally unfinish ed . but at my wif e 's requ est I painted it with a c hecke rboard patte rn o f 12 -in . bl ack sq uares o ve r a white b ase . This was a common tr eatm ent in America n hom es from th e 17th to th e m id -1 9th cen tury . Togeth er. th e c hec ke r boa rd tloor and tw o -tone red wall s make a ve ry b old colo r sc he me, whi ch is in c ha racte r w ith t he Federal period . e ve n if it 's in marked contrast to th e more sed ate parl or next do o r. Th e d ining room 's wo odwork is s im ple r and less abundant than th a t in th e parlo r. The fire place m a nt e l. though si m ila r to th e parlor's, is sma lle r and more restrained . A prominent detail o n th e mantel is th e co rn ice's denticul at ed bed moldi ng. wh ich echoes a ro w o f d entils und er th e crown molding in the ro om 's co rn ice . The wall s a lso h a ve a proj ecting c hai r ra il to p ro te ct th e pla st er from b eing dam aged by th e ten Fan cy chairs that rin g the ro om. Alt ho ug h th e window case me nts are ra b be te d to allo w for hinged s h u tte rs, sh u tte rs were nev er in s talled. Th e a mo u nt o f light e n te ri ng th e room is regul ated by c u rta ins. Th e large st pi ece in the roo m is th c s ide board. Ac co m pa ny ing it are a very large. m ahogan y ga te leg tabl e . a nd a m arbl etopped table , call ed a mixing tabl e , for preparing al c oh oli c beverages (e ve n a s m a ll s p ill o f al cohol wo u ld spot a s hellac fin ish) . A dumbwaiter s e rves as a di splay s ta nd but is pull ed up to th e tabl e a nd used for se rving wh en we are dining . In typica l Federal fashion. we pla c e th e furniture against th e dining-ro om wall s wh en th e roo m is not in u se . le a ving t he c enter o f th e ro om c lear. Th e c ha irs sy m me trica lly flunk e ac h table in imitation of dining-room furniture arra nge ments fo un d in both th e Sh e raton and He p pl e wh ite pattern book s (see p . 2). Our dining roo m ha s an interesting period in it s h is to ry. In 1915 th e hou se was so ld fo r th e fir st tim e o uts ide t he Seawa rdLord fa m ilies . Th e new o wne r repaired watch es and cl ocks and used thi s roo m as hi s s ho p. A ] 920s s ke tc h of o u r s t ree t sho ws a s ign hang ing by th e front d oor advertising this bu sines s. Aft er we b ou ght th e house . I found tha t sig n in the cc lla r. - - 7. 1 -

A vital part of a Federal-period household, trays transported meals and tea eaeh day from the kite hen to a more eomfortable or more formal setting. (Itrojel.!t: Edge banding, p, 77.)

- - 74--

Tray Chapter 8

n Federal-period home s, food was cooked in the kitchen but often eaten in another room. Becaus e of th e kitchen fireplace 's large opening (in te nd ed to give the cook better access to the fire and kettles} , considerable hear was drawn up the l1ue in winter, so m eals were served in the dining room or parl or where the fire could be kept burning vigorously . In summer, the small bed of coals kept constantly burning in the kitchen fir eplace made the room so hot that housewives would certainly have apprcciated Harry Truman 's admonition to get out of the kitchen (even if their lot in life precluded following his advice) . Since Federa l-period Americans also regularly enjoyed tak ing tea and always did so in a more forma l setting than the kitc hen, this meant that food was carried several ti mes a day from the kitchen to another room . Eac h ho usehold was therefore equipped with severa l trays , or, as they we re then called , waiters (five are listed in the 1805 in ve nto ry of our house). The most common type of tray was made of tin-coated sheet iron and was produced in factories at Pontypool or Usk , Wales . These trays were brightly painted and decorated . The technique used was called japanning, which consisted of several layers of varnish applied over paint, and which produced an attractive, durable and waterproof surface . l\lass production and the low wages paid to thc worne n dccornrors made these metal trays inexpensive . Woodcn trays like this one required more timc to produce and were therefore more costly and less common . \Vhcn a cabinetmaker did make a wooden tray, it was intended for formal use, and mahogany was the usual material . As a woodworker, I have a special fondness for this tray. Most wooden trays of the Federal period had cast-brass handles and a pierced -metal gallery , or rim, that too was oftcn of brass. The maker of this tray was clever enough to make these clements almost entirely of wood . Not using

I

metal created some problems, however, the principal one being how to make wooden handles . Normally these castbrass parts were U-shaped and had threaded ends which cou ld be inserted into holes in the tray 's wooden bottom and secured with nuts. The maker of this tray carved each U-s h a p ed handle from a single piece of wood and oriented the grain to run vertically in the horizontal handhold . To minimize the weakness in this short-grain section, he made this area th icker t han the rest-in addition to the structural advantage, it also makes sense that the handle be rounder and thicker where it will be grasped . The long-grain legs of the ha ndles co u ld be made thinner because they are inherently s tro nge r than the horizontal piece . The fact that the original ha ndles have survived 180 years of use proves the practicality of th is so lution. The meta l strip that was commonly used as the gallery on wooden trays offered strength and durability, was easier to install th a n wood , and could be stamped or pierced to make its surface more interesting. The problem with mak ing the ga llery of a heavily figured wood like mahogany is that it d oe s not bend well and in thin strips is fragile . A light b low to such a thin wooden edge will bruise or chip it . The imaginative so lution the maker employed in this tray was to lam ina te four Yi 6-in .-thick strips of veneer to form the ga llery . This ta kes advantage of the aesthetic qualities of wood while overcom ing its weaknesses . The innermost strip is 1 Y2- in .-wide ma hogany edge band ing, wh ich is c ut so that t he grain ru ns across , rather than the len gth of, the strip. This m e ans t hat th e strip's upper edge is end gra in a nd very fragile . The next la ye r appears to be a combination of b irch (or some othe r diffuse-porous hardwood) a nd brass . The birch forms the lower portion of this layer and a strip of brass the same thickness as the wood has been set in to for m the exposed edge. The wood is visible o nly from the bottom, where it is too thin to be

- - 75--

The two halves of this tray's woodand -brass gallery of edge b~nding fit into vertical grooves in the ends of the handles.

/

T ray bott om

B

T-headed brad Optional felt padding Parts A ami n a re both '1J6-ill .-thick mallOg(OIy. whose graill r Ulls vert ica lly. A is 1 '1.1 ill . soide u ntl B is ~ ill. soide, Pa rt C is 'lI6·ill.·th ick . l -i n. ne id e birch. End graill is orien ted h orisson ta lly to givc strength to ga llcry. Pa rt D is 'lI6-ill.-th ick .

~-i ll. -w idc

bra ss .

po siti vel y iden tifi ed. Nor is it po ssibl e to determine wh ere th e brass e nds a nd the wo od b egin s beca use th e jo int is cove re d o n bo th sides. b u t I s us pec t th at th e brass is a bo u t Y2 in. wid e . The third s tr ip is 1 Y2- in.- wid e mah ogany ve neer, identi cal to th e fir st. Th e upper edge o f th e sa ndwic h created by th e se thre e layers o f vene e r is ro u nde d , e xposing th e brass j us t a hai r ab ove th e mah ogany e dge banding that flanks it. Th e brass protects th e frag ile e nd gra in o f th e mah ogan y a nd al so ta ke s on a light go ld colo r wh en poli sh ed , c rea ting an interesting hi ghlight aga ins t th e dark wo od . Th e fo u rt h layer o f ve nee r is Y2 -in. -wid e mah ogany edge ba nd ing , laid o ve r the low er part of th e third la yer. A s trip o f th e sa me width and thickne ss was appli ed to th e o u tside b ottom edge o f th e handle s a fte r asse m b ly. These Y2 -in.wid e s tri ps create a ste pped low er edge , whi ch is visuall y more inte re st ing than a s tra igh t, un broken lin e would be . Th e b ottom of this tra y is oa k. vene ered with mah ogany . Thi s see ms s tra nge because eve n th ou gh du ring th e Federal peri od mah ogany was a mo re costly wood , th e labor ne ed ed to ve nee r th e bo tt om would ha ve exce ede d th e cos t o f a s hort. solid ma h og a ny bo a rd . I wo uld mak e th e b ottom o u t o f a si ng le Ys-in.-th ick p iec e of mahogan y. -

The construction o f th e tra y it self is sim ple . The laminated galle ry and th e handles are butted against th e e dge o f th e ov a l bottom b oa rd . Tw o .y; 6-in.-d e e p vertical grooves are cut into th e ends o f th e handl es, and th e e nds of the ga lle ry a re se t into these groo ves . No nai ls were used to se c u re th e ga lle ry o f m y o riginal tra y. It was simply glued in place . Th is produced a le ss-tha n-reliabl e glue joint, h ow ev er. sinc e glu e d o es not adhere well to th e e nd grain at th e e nds o f the oval b ottom . The mak er o f this tray so lve d the pr oblem by securing th e handl es to th e bottom with brads. whi ch are h idden by th e o u te r st rip o f edge banding. Wh en d eciding how to finish th e tray. keep in mind th at it may o fte n b e used for transporting vessel s th at c ontain liq u ids and hot fo od . Th e o rig ina l is fini sh ed with shella c . so we keep it well wax ed a nd nlways us e an insula ting pad wh en c a rry ing anything hot. I wo uld finish a new tra y with varnish o r lacqu er, how ever. G lu e a la yer o f fel t o r s mall felt pads to th e bo tto m s u rface o f th e tra y to pr e vent it from sc ra tc h ing table tops.

76 -

Edge banding To cut the edge banding for the gallery, you need about 1 Y2 sq . ft . of veneer, Y16 in. thick. The original is made of San Domingo mahogany , but you could use almost any veneer you prefer. You also need two veneer strips at least 26 in . long for the core . I used birch , but any type of veneer will do , as it is never seen. You can buy veneers, but I make my own by resawing scrap. I joint one edge of the veneer on a shooting board, as shown at right. Be sure to joint a side that is edge grain, not end grain. If you need to joint more than one sheet, lay them together and tap their edges on the b ench top to align them before inserting them in the shooting board. Since the gallery is to be fitted into the handles at either end of the tray, you will be creating two lengths of laminated edge banding, each about 26 in. long (allowing a littl e extra for waste) . In addition to the sheets of veneer, you will also need two strips of brass, Y2 in. wide by Y1 6 in . thick, at least 26 in . long. Brass can be purchased from many industrial suppliers. Ask if they have a 3-ft. shear, and have them cut the strips to width-this will save you a lot of work . Rough both sides of the brass with SO-grit sandpaper so that glue will bond well to it. To cut the banding, lay a sheet of veneer on a smooth surface. Put the jointed edge against a large square so that the blade of the square runs across the grain of the veneer, and with a mat knife square the end of the sheet. Now measure in 1 Y2 in. from this newly cut end and use the square and mat knife to cut off a strip o f banding the width of the sheet of veneer. Repeat this process until you have enough strips to total more than the 104 linear inches needed for the first and third layers of the tray's gallery . Next cut about 52 in. of Y2- in. -wide banding for the lower lip, or fourth layer, that will circumscribe the bottom outside edge of the tray. Joint one edge of the internal layer of birch veneer on the shooting board. To strengthen the banding, the grain in the birch has to run parallel to the tray bottom rather than perpendicular to it , so here you will be cutting with the grain. Cu t two 26-in.-Iong strips of l vln.vwide birch veneer, being careful that the knife does not get caught and follow the direction of the grain instead of the edge of the square. At this point you will have all the strips of veneer needed to make up the gallery . On the strips of mahogany edge banding, only one end is now square with the two edges, so use the square and mat knife to trim the second end square as well. To get lengths of edge banding long enough to make one-half of the gallery , you will probably need to join two or more strips together for each of the first, third and fourth layers . (My strips were 10 in . long, so I used three pieces for each layer and trimmed off the excess after the lamination was glued together.) Butt the pieces together to check the tightness of each joint, and if need be. recut the ends square. Then rape the pieces to gether with masking tape to make four 1 Y2-in. -wide lengths of edge banding and two Y2- in .-wide lengths.

You can makc a !iimplc !ihooting hoard to joint thc vencee strips hy tacking two straight strips of *-in. hoard, about 3 in. widc by 36 in. long, to a widc base, Slip the veneer (making sure to align the edge!i if you're .jointing more than one strip at a time) between the narrow pleecs of plywood and clamp it in plaec by hammering thc nail!i partway into the base,

--77 -

Use a large !iquare and a mat knife to eut a seeund edge on the veneer, this one end grain and at a right angle to the first edge (top). Cut enough 1 Y.-in.-wide !itrip!i to make up the fir!it and third layer» of edge banding for the gallery of the tray-c-abuut 104 linear inches, Thcn butt thc !itrips togcthcr end-to-end to get the Iengchs you need for each half of the gallery, and tape the p icces together (hottom).

-

The sandwich formed by the 1 Y:!- in.-wide mahogany and the birch-and -brass core will be glued up first ; the Y:!-in.wide edge banding will be added later. Although the strips are alrea dy c u t to width , you should do a trial run to fa milia rize yourself with the relationship of these layers whil e th ey 're dry . This way , when everything is wet with glue. you will be able to work with spe ed and confidence. Begin by laying o ne of the wid e mahogan y strips tapedsid e -d own on a smooth surfac e, and place a strip of brass on it. The brass may not have a perfectly straight edge , so wh en positioning it be sure that its upper edge does not dip below th e edge of the mah ogany at any point , eve n if in so me places it projects more th an in others. Lay a strip o f birch beside th e brass to make up th e rest of th e se co nd layer. Now add anoth er strip of mah ogany ov er this core. Now you are ready to glue th e se laminations together. I uscd white glue , but you can use an y glu e you pr efer. Ga the r the clamps yo u will need . and also two pieces of wo od to clamp th e ga lle ry between while the glue dries . Th e e xac t dimensions o f these cauls are not critical. but th e pi ec es must b e wider than the ga lle ry and slightly lon ger. Th ey should also be thick e no ug h (at least -Y.i in .) so that the y won 't bend . Lay on e o f th e cauls o n the bench top and cov er it with a shee t o f wax ed paper to pr ev ent glue sq ueeze-o u t from adhering th e gallery to the board (the wax ed paper it self will not stick to th e glue) . Disa ssemble your test lamination and spread glue on the untapcd side o f the inn ermost strip of mahogany . Lay this pi ec e taped -side-down o n th e wax ed paper, making sure th at neith er the e nd s nor e dges o ve rha ng th e caul. Lay the bra ss o n th e glued su rfa ce , o nce ag a in making sure that its upper edge no wh ere dips bel ow th e upper ed ge of th e mah ogan y. Next lay in the birch . Now spread glue o n th e ins ide s urface o f th e third lay er o f e dge banding and lay it glue d-s tde- do wn o n the bra ss and birch , making sure th e

Place the sundwieh of vcneera on a board between sheets of waxed paper. Clamp another board on top, appl)'ing unjform presNure along the length of the lamination until the glue NetN.

edges of all the layers are ali gn ed . Place another sh eet of waxed paper on top o f the sa ndwich and se t th e sec ond caul over this . Position clamps e ve nly along th e tw o cauls to e nsu re eve n pres sure. Wh en the glue is dry, unclamp th e boards and remove th e tape. Place the lamination in a vise with th e brass e dge fa cing up . If th e brass protrudes in pla ce s, join t it with a file , holding th e file a t a n a ngle to th e edge o f th e brass. This is known as drawfillng a nd will remov e th e metal quickly and easily. Wh en th e brass is flush with the mahogany, us e th e file to bev el both ed ge s and re mo ve th e a rris from th e wood . Th is will leave the brass p rotrud ing slightl y so that it take s th e forc e of any bl ow to th e banding. Now sand th e file marks out o f both th e mahogan y and the brass. The final e le me nt to be added to this sa ndwic h is th e Y:! -in.-wide o u te r strip o f mah ogany ve nee r. Apply glue to the untaped s ide of thi s s trip and position it flush with th e lower edge o f th e wider laminati on. As before , c lam p th e veneers between tw o boards protected with wa xed pap er. When th e glue is dry , unclarnp a nd remov e th e ta pe. Jo int th e bottom e dge o f th e ga lle ry o n th e shoo ting boa rd . Now bend th e galle ry pieces a round th e tra y bo tto m , and with a mat knife trim the e nds o f th e laminated stri ps wh ere th e y will fit into the handle s. Th e knife will c u t o nly th e wood , not th e b rass, so peel awa y th e excess wood a nd cut the metal with a hacksaw. Eve n th ou gh th e mah ogany its elf is very fragil e , th e e n tire sa ndwic h is quite flexibl e becau se o f the stre ng th o f th e bras s-and-birch co re . Apply glue to th e o u ts ide e dge o f th e tray bo ttom and c la mp th e galle ry in pla c e with a band o r bar cl amp . Slip th e handle s into pla c e . th eir two grooves fitting ove r the e nds o f th e galle ry . Att ac h e a c h handle with two l-in .-Ion g T·h eaded brads. Fina lly, glue th e o u te r Y:! -in. -wid e strips o f mah ogan y edge banding o n th e bottom o f each handl e.

Wbere the braNN projeet» above the edge of the mahogan)', Joint it b)' drawfiling. Then file away the arriN of the mahogany on either edge of the brass. Sand the file marks and putish with 000 steel wool. The upper edge of the gallery should be s li g h tl )· domed so that the hraNs will protect the fragile end grain of the mahogany.

-

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TRAY Scale:

-

P ATIERN FOR TRAY Grid: ~ in. = 1 in .

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in.

=

1 in .

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.-----,Tray bottom, oak veneered on t<>p with mahoguny

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4

8

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- - - - - + - --

--+--+- fi

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Grain -

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Note: Mll.l:imum dimensions of tray '"-bottom are I J U in. by 21 14 in. Gallery is glued JIIICI tucked in position uround bottom ut bundles.

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--:::: ~

Top View

End View

21'0/16 - - - - - - - -----'"..,

Side View

YI6-in.-thic k - - -- ---""-'.;-->,'" mahogany

SECTION A-A Scale: 1 in . = 1 in .

SECTION 8-8 Scale: 74 in. = 1 in.

Brass inlay - - - . -- -./

'YI6- in.-d ia. - -- - , - -- - - --\-- handle grip

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Handle upright, ~ x%

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I l-in.-Iong ----t-~ T-h cadcd brad Brass - -- - -'-- - - - --/;.,.// (b i rc h below) -

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- - 79 - -

8

The maker of this formal lIepple w hite dining chair chose to reNtrain the chair's ornament and concentrate hiN efforts on the elaborate Nplat, hose shupe iN uetuulty an amalgam of deNigns from both lIepple hite'N and Sheraton's pattern books. (Project: Angled mortiNe-and-teIloIlN, p, 83.)

- - HO - -

HeQQlewhite Chair Chapter 9

h is chair has an interesting story. [ was antiquing one day. with some friends in a town near Portsmouth. We stopped at a shop housed in a barn, and high in the old hay [oft, amidst a clutter of nondescript castaways, [ found this chair. The dealer announced condescendingly that it was just a reproduction , which was obvious, he said, because it was so light in weight. [ examined the chair and was certain he was wrong. l t looked to be of good-quality Fcderal-pcrtod workmanship and a nice example of a style often made in Rhode Island and Connecticut between 1790 and 1800. An exceptionally delicate chair, it was light in weight because it was made of Honduras mahogany . [ purchased it , thinking that, if [ were right, its low price would compensate for the dealer's insinuation that my knowledge of Federal-period chairs was inadequate . Since we were in a small car, I was forced to ride home with the chair upside down in my lap . With the bottom of the chair staring up at me , I noticed a piece of paper inserted under the upholstery webbing. Its contents made me crow my vindication . The note , which was dated September 27, 1938, and signed Emily W. Tapley, read: "This chair came from the Reade House at 41 Main Street, Dover, N.H . It was inherited by my aunt Susan Tapley Moulton, who had spent much of her early life with her Read e aunts, in the old house. as her father, John 'I'apley , died when she was only 2 years old . She gave the chair to my sisters and me a few years before she died. There were six chairs of this set. One other Aunt Susan gave to Mary Reade Welch and it is now the property of John Tapley Welch of Dover, N.H. The other 4 were sold after Aunt Susan's death to a dealer in antiques in Boston. The Reade household was broken up in 1855. [ do not know how long the chairs had been in existence before that date ." A couple of years passed, and one day the curator of the New Hampshire H istorieal Society carne to our house to

T

examine some furniture he thought he might like to include in an exhibition of New Hampshire cabinetmaking. [ drew his attention to the chair, noting that it was probably made in southern New England but had an interesting New Hampshire history . As he read the note. he could not contain his excitement. He explained that he was doing the research necessary to have the Reade House listed in the National Register of Historic Places . He told me much about the chair's original owner, Michael Reade, a successful lumber merchant who had built the Reade House. One of Reade 's daughters had married a Tapley. To further verify the note, the curator sent me a copy of the inventory of Reade 's estate taken in 1820 after his death. His household contents included a set of six mahogany dining chairs . This was undoubtedly one of them . One might wonder why Reade would own chairs that were stylistically related to southern New England when the major cabinetmaking center of Portsmouth was only ten miles away. The reason may have been that Federalperiod cabinetmakers were extremely productive and frequently shipped their surplus furniture on vessels sailing from every major port to wherever American ships traded . It is also possible that Reade's chairs were made locally by a man who had trained in southern New England and who retained a preference for this style of chair. \Vhoever the chairmnker, this piece is an exceptional accomplishment. It is a restrained chair, yet its aesthetic statement is neither subdued nor static. At first glance , one m ight assume that it was made by a rural craftsman who was either unable to accomplish more demanding ornament or who did not know how to use such decoration . The shape of the splat, however, is an amalgam of several designs from the two most important furniture pattern books of the day-The Cabinet-Maker and Upholsterer 's Guide by George Hepplewhite and The Cabinet-Maker and Up hols tere r 's Drawing-Book by

-81--

Th om as Sheraton-indicating that the cabinetmaker was familiar with high Federal style. O n this chair, he ma st erfully c ho seto make the splat th e dominant element. Thi s d e tail is an exuberant burst o f emotion that is th e res u lt o f four s tro ng verticals , ea c h of which quickly draws th e e ye upward like a fireworks di spl a y. Eve n th ough th e work o n th e s p la t may ha ve b een s ubco nt ra c te d to a sp e c ia l carver, th e decisi on to include it in th e chair wa s the maker's . I have no doubt th at th e c ha ir's sim plic ity re sults not from a lack of skill o n th e part o f the c ra fts ma n but from o the r considerations . It ma y be that the chair's re strain ed d esi gn was d etermin ed by how much Micha el Reade wa s willing to pay for hi s se t. Were this the case , the d esign o f the c ha ir is parti cularly noteworthy , since it is usually much easier to feign s uccess with an elaborate pi ece o f furniture than with a very sim ple one . Wh ether or not the ohairmaker was working with su c h limitations in crafting this chair, he could have opted to use a number of typical Federal-period chair e m bellis hme n ts, such a s molded front legs, stringing, inlay. ven eer, a se rpe nt ine front rail and d ecorative row s o f brass tacks . He co uld have kept th e cost low by using se ve ra l of th ese possibiliti e s a nd execu ting th em halfheartedly. but h e was to o much o f a craftsman to p rodu ce so me th ing medi ocre. Instead , h e c hose to in clude o ne fin el y e xec u te d feature . th e spl at, a nd b y ex te ns io n the floral ca rto uc he o n th e c res t rail , making th e se th e fo cal points o f th e c ha ir. Eve ry th ing else th at mi ght com pe te with th e splat wa s elimina te d . Even th e cove ring o f th e sea t , whi ch is o rigina l. seems to ha ve b e en se lected with this in mind . The o nly o the r o rn a me n t th e mak er used o n th e ch a ir is as purposeful as hi s d eci si on to e m p has ize the splat. Aware of the Federal -p eriod c usto m of lining up dining ch a irs ag ainst th e wall so that, wh en not in use, th ey were see n from th e front , h e o u tl ine d th e e nt ire front o f th e c ha ir by molding th e e dge s o f th e front le gs, seat frame , s t iles and crest rail. The profile us ed on th e straight edge s o f th e legs and seat frame is an ovo lo , a quarter-round se t o ff b y a fillet on either sid e . Thi s o vo lo is seen as a se ries o f three straight, parall el lin es-conca ve , convex a nd concave . Th e molding used o n th e c u rve d edge s of th e s tiles a nd crest rail is com posed of tw o reeds separated by a V-groove . This molding has th e o p pos ite profile-convex , co ncave, convex- b u t from th e front the three c u rvilinea r e le me nts are lik ewise read as tight, parall el lines. In elimina ting so m any o f th e e m bellis h me nts that normally o rna me n te d Federal -p eri od dining chairs, th e mak er risk ed creating what appeared to b e a strippeddown version o f this typ e o f c hair. To pr e vent this possibility, he reduced th e chair's o ve rall sca le , making it a p pe a r even more delicate th an most o f it s co nte m po ra ries. Indeed , this c ha ir wei gh s o nly ten pounds a nd is redu ced to six with th e se a t removed . Yet s tre ng th wa s not sac rific ed. This c ha ir ha s be en in use for ab out 180 years , and we know that it s five companions s u rv ive d until at least 1938 . The chair's constructi on is as s tra igh tfo rwa rd a s it s d esign. It is joined throughout with mortise-and-tenons .

which was one of tw o popular m eth ods o f joi ni ng Fede ral period chairs. Produced mainly b y cabinetm ake rs, joine d chairs used parts cut o r sh a ped from sa wn lu m b e r for th eir rectangular morti se-and -tenons. These chai rs are usually distingui sh ed not b y individu al typ e but by general s tyle o r peri od-Chippendal e, He pplew hir e or Sheraton, for e xa m ple . In contrast to joine d c ha irs, socke te d c ha ir s were co ns truc te d with turned o r whittl ed tenons fit into drilled. round holes. Th e se ch ai rs reli ed h e avil y o n parts mad e from un sea son ed stock, riven directl y fro m a log and turned o n a lath e. Socketed c hai rs lik e ladder-backs . Fancies and Wind sors were usually p roduced b y specialized cha irmakers . This Heppl ewhite c h a ir is made o f Hondu ra s ma hogany . If you choos e to rep rodu c e it and want to ma ke th e cha ir in an other wo od , c he rry would work well. th ough I woul d darken it with potassium permangenate b e for e fini shing it. I would suggest av oiding mapl e o r birch , whi ch a rc too light in c ol or for this pi ec e . The s pla t c a n b e c u t o u t with a fin e- to o th co p ing saw or ji gsaw with about 20 p oints p er inch , and th e edges of th c cutouts can b e cl e an ed up with a file . The sp lat is mortised into th e b ottom o f th e crest rail an d in to a pr oj ecti on above th e rear sca t rail calle d a s hoe . Th e ovo lo molding a nd d oubl e reed are c ut after the compl