266. Kalm, Travels, 1:63-69.
267. Iron became a leading export of Philadelphia, first to the West Indies, and then to Europe. Kalm, Travels, 1:92-93, 302-303.
268. There are numerous references to "horlen [hauling]" wood. Head Account Book, passim. Another means of transporting wood, however, was "By Work done By himself and his man In Bringing a raft of Bords down To Grays mill from Christion Maryes [Christiam Mary's]." For that work Head issued a £0-17-0 credit to Moses Coats, in 9/0/27. Head Account Book, p. 102 right. Another supplier of wood to Head, who probably did so via water, was John Burr. Burr was credited £3-18-0, on 9/11/40, "By 1330 - foot Sader [cedar] Bord;" and £2-0-0, on 8/31/41, "By - 666 foot of pine Bord." Head Account Book, p. 53 right. Burr owned a Northampton Township, Burlington County, New Jersey saw-mill, with "a great Quantity of Timber and good Conveniences for Floating the Boards to Philadelphia." Pennsylvania Gazette, March 25, 1742. However, because the Delaware had cataracts some distance from Philadelphia which impeded the conveyance of goods to and from the city by water, wagons and carts remained a primary means of transport. Water transport was further complicated by the tendency of the river to freeze "almost every winter for a month or more." Kalm, Travels, 1:48-49.
269. The dimensions and forms of certain wood Head received suggest that they may have been employed in cabinetmaking, rather than another purpose. Cf., the advertisment of "Samuel Williams, Joiner...[who] Continues to sell Joiner's stuff as usual; such as season'd walnut boards, two and three-inch walnut plank, mahogany ditto, suitable for chair-making..., three-inch walnut scantling, mahogany and...half-inch poplar for chair panels, 2 foot 9 wide rule joint stuff, cherry tree boards, high and low post bedstead stuff." Pennsylvania Chronicle, September 9, 1767, cited in Prime, Arts & Crafts, p. 186.
270. A prime use for oak was for building ships in Philadelphia's shipyards. Oak ship planking and black walnut were also exported to England. Kalm, Travels, 1:49-50. John Bartram, however, did not view American oak as resistant to decay as European. It was for the latter reason that the boats plying the Hudson River were of black oak beneath the water line, and red cedar above, "which is reckoned the most hardy wood in the country." Black oak, being less brittle than red cedar, also held up better when the boats ran against river stones. Kalm, Travels, 1:115-116.
271. Kalm, in his section on Penn's Neck (across the river from Wilmington), written December 12, 1748, related joiners' descriptions of local woods, as follows: THE Joiners say, that among the trees of this country they chiefly use the black walnut-trees, the wild cherry-trees, and the curled maple. Of the black walnut-trees (Juglans nigra) there is yet a sufficient quantity. However careless people take pains enough to destroy them, and some peasants even use them as fewel. The wood of the wild cherry-trees (Prunus virginiana) is very good, and looks exceedingly well; it has a yellow colour, and the older the furniture is, which is made of it, the better it looks. But it is very difficult to get at it, for they cut it every where, and plant it no where. The curled maple (Acer rubrum) is a species of the common red maple, but likewise very difficult to be got. You may cut down many trees without finding the wood you want. The wood of the sweet gum tree (Liquidambar) is merely employed in joiner's work, such as tables, and other furniture. But it must not be brought near the fire, because it warps. The firs and the white cedars (Cupressus thyoides) are likewise made use of by joiners for different sorts of work." Kalm, Travels, 2:21.
272. Head Account Book, pp. 18 [Jones, 5/18/23, credited at £7-1-1 with "divers sorts of Linen & Goods"], 66 right [Owen, 8/12/25, £2-15-0], 78 right [Taylor, 8/24/25]. "Black Walnut Plank, Boards, and Scantling, suitable for all kinds of joiners work" were advertised by Samuel Williams, Joiner. Pennsylvania Journal, June 2, 1773, cited in Prime, Arts and Crafts, p. 186. Head bought "33 foot of Goom [gumwood] Bord," but no piece is listed as made of it. Head Account Book, p. 84 right [Daniel Hillman, 4/5/26, £0-2-9]. Gumwood pieces are rare in Philadelphia. "7 Sett Gum bedstead pillars," appear in the "15 10ber 1708" inventory of Charles Plumley. Forman, American Seating Furniture, pp. 371-372, Appendix I; Hornor, Blue Book, p. 9. In 1756, cabinetmaker John Elliott billed merchant Charles Norris for a "Gum" bedstead. Leibundguth, "Furniture-making," p. 65, citing Family Accounts, Norris of Fairhill, vol. I (1740-1773), p. 20, HSP.
273. Head Account Book, p. 69 right. Nor did Head ever record poplar by the name tulip or tulipwood. Kalm described the Tulip tree in Pennsylvania as growing "as high as our tallest oaks and firs, and its thickness is proportionable to its height." Kalm, Travels, 1:143. "The Englishmen in Pennsylvania call it the name of Poplar. It is reckoned a tree which grows to the greatest height and thickness of any in North America, and which vies in that point with our greatest European trees." Kalm, Travels, 1:203.
274. Head Account Book, pp. 48 left [Hooton], 77 left [Warder]; poplar advertisement of Samuel Williams, Joiner. Pennsylvania Journal, June 2, 1773, cited in Prime, Arts & Crafts, p. 186.
275. Worldly Goods, checklist #38 caption ("Walnut; poplar, white cedar, yellow pine"); contra as to poplar, Winterthur, Decorative Arts Photographic Collection, Data Sheet #89.220, September, 1989 ("Black walnut, yellow pine, cedar").
276. Head Account Book, pp. 2 [Pool, 11/22/23, £13-17-10 1/2], 8 [Hains, 3/4/21, £3-0-0; 6/7/21, £6-15-4].
277. Head Account Book, pp. 49 right [Coster], 76 right & 93 right [George], 101 right [Rambo]. Rambo and Georg also charged Head for "squaren" logs. Head credited Nathanal [Nathaniel] Pool £13-17-10, on 11/23/23, "By Sundres Timbr And Sawen To This day," but wasn't more specific as to what type of wood or its purpose. Head Account Book, p. 2. James Logan lists an account and transactions, in 1720, for "Nathaniel Pool Shipwright." Logan Ledger, p. 31 left.
278. Head credited Benjamin Hooton [Hooten] £4-14-0, on 2/14/47, "by 1558 foot of pine bord lay in my lot." Head Account Book, p. 138 right. The pine was not meant for cabinetmaking as, by then, Head had ceased recording its production.
279. Head Account Book, p. 77 right.
280. Head Account Book, pp. 16 [Harrison, 2/14/25, £0-4-0], 21 [Elger, 7/12/24, £0-0-8], 55 left [Hansly, 5/17/23, £0-4-0], 118a right [Smith, 5/20/28, £0-0-10 for one pound; 6/10/28, £0-11-2, for thirteen pounds].
281. Head Account Book, pp. 61 right [Griffith Jones], 87 right [Casper Wister], 77 right [Jeremiah Warder], 91 right [Thomas Maul]. Linseed oil received after 1744, which came when Head ceased recording sales of furniture, may have been for other purposes. Head also received unspecified oil from others. Head Account Book, pp. 72 right [Benjamin Shomaker], 121 right [Caleb Ransted]. It may have been linseed oil or some other oil, perhaps that required for lubricating Head's implements or machinery, such as his pump. Linseed oil was also exported in large quantities to Ireland at this time. Kalm, Travels, 1:50. Benjamin Shoemaker was a prominent Philadelphia Quaker. He served as its mayor and on the Pennsylvania Provincial Council. Crane, Diary of Elizabeth Drinker, p. 335.
282. Head Account Book, pp. 8 [Simond Hagal/Edgell], 26 [Harns Lucin], 50 right [Josier Foster], 65 right [Thomas Canan], 130 right [Sary Griskam].
283. Deed of Settlement of the Philadelphia Contributionship, March 25, 1752. Head debited chandler "Thomas Canan" for "18 pound & 3/4 Randerd [rendered] Tallow, on 1/30/22. Head Account Book, p. 25. By 1748, Kalm found that common tallow cost about six pence a pound. Kalm, Travels, 1:192. "Thomas Cannon, Tallow Chandler" had paid £0-15-6 to be admitted a freeman on May 6, 1717. Minutes of the Common Council, p. 122.
284. Head Account Book, pp. 4 [Woodrop], 53 left [Burr, 9/12/40, £3-0-0], 107 right [Pyewell, 1/5/28, £0-12-6].
285. Head Account Book, pp. 40 [Ranstad, 2/7/21, £0-0-8], 70 right [Jonson, 5/9/25, £0-2-0], 89 right [Hoy, 11/6/26, £0-8-0].
286. Head Account Book, p. 2.
287. Head Account Book, p. 4.
288. The other accounts credited, in chronological order, for nails to Head were those of William Clar [Clare] delivered by Jane Marrit, Thomas Canan delivered by William Branson, Isaac Noris Junor [Norris, Jr.], Jon [Jonathan?] Copson, Bangaman Shomaker [Benjamin Shoemaker], Riner Tison [Reiner Tyson?] delivered by Thomas Danham, Franses Knowls [Francis Knowles], Daniel Harrison delivered by Nathanel [Nathaniel] Jenkins, Richard Renshaw, Anthoney Nicholas [Anthony Nichols?], William Vallecot, George Kellay [Kelley?], and Thomas Maul [Maule]. Head Account Book, pp. 20 [Clar], 65 right [Canan], 50 right [Noris Junor], 53 right [Copson], 72 right [Shomaker], 71 right [Tison], 105 right [Knowls], 58 right [Harrison], 34 [Renshaw], 131 right [Nicholas], 118a right [Vallecot], 116 right [Kellay], 91 right [Maul]. The transactions with Kellay, which ran from 5/21/42 to 1/23/45, were both numerous and large, totaling £12-0-0, and including 146 pounds of otherwise unidentified nails, 28 pounds of larth nails, 18 pounds of two penny nails, and 8 pounds of brads. Head Account Book, p. 116 right. Another order for large tacks was credited to Joseph Paschal, at £0-4-8, on 1/11/27, "By 2 m [thousand] Large Taks." Head Account Book, p. 95 right.
289. Head Account Book, p. 91 right.
290. William Vestal was debited £1-11-0, on 9/6/23, "To : 36 : pound of nails & a Bage." Head Account Book, p. 57 left. Debits for nails appear in many other accounts. Head Account Book, pp. 35, 47 left, 93 left, 137 left, 138 left.
291. Head Account Book, p. 47 left.
292. Head Account Book, p. 116 right.
293. Head Account Book, p. 70 left.
294. Head Account Book, p. 4. The same quantity of till locks were bought from Boulah Coates, on 5/2/26, for slightly less, at £1-2-0. Head Account Book, p. 75 right.
295. Hornor, Blue Book, p. 51. Rutter set up his furnace near Germantown in 1716, producing high quality iron. Scharf and Westcott, History of Philadelphia, 1:191.
296. Head Account Book, p. 53 right. John Copson had for sale "[a] Servant Maids Time for Four Years." American Weekly Mercury, January 2, 1721, reproduced in facsimile in Scharf and Westcott, History of Philadelphia, 1:200.
297. Head Account Book, p. 91 left. "Drawer locks" were among the hardware items which Maule later advertised for sale. Maule Advertisment, Pennsylvania Gazette, August 14, 1755. Thomas Canan had earlier been charged £0-4-6 by Head, "To a drawer and Lok," on 8/13/31. Head Account Book, p. 120 left.
298. The shilling locks were purchased in small quantities. Three were credited to William Crosewhit [Croslwhitt?], on 5/11/25. Head Account Book, p. 74 right. Six each were bought from pewterer Simond Edgal [Edgell], on 4/16/26 and 4/18/26. Head Account Book, p. 86 right.
299. Head credited Joseph Paschal, £0-10-0, on 1/11/27, "By one dosen of Loks." Head Account Book, p. 95 right.
300. Head Account Book, p. 13.
301. Head Account Book, p. 87 left;
302. Head Account Book, p. 35 [1/4/22]. As Cooper's account shows no furniture bought from Head, this must have been for something he had from another shop.
303. Head Account Book, pp. 40 [Williams, 4/11/19], 50 left [Foster, 2/2/24], 60 left [Canby, 4/10/27], 91 left [Maul, 1/6/44]. Thomas Georg [George] was debited £0-3-6, "To a Chest Loke & Sundres." Head Account Book, p. 75 left [5/2/26].
304. Kalm, Travels, 1:208.
305. Head Account Book, pp. 58 right [Davis, 12/8/23], 77 right [Shute, 7/15/25].
306. The actual credit was a combined £0-6-0, for "an ould lok and a gridiron." As Blakham had just been credited £0-4-0, "By a gridiron" alone, Head appears to have valued the "ould lok" at £0-2-6. Head Account Book, p. 36. As Head's first credit for locks is not until his 1721 purchases from Wooddrop, the source of the Williams's lock is unknown. Perhaps it was part of whatever tools and supplies Head may have brought with him from England.
307. Head Account Book, pp. 5 [Cox], 125 left Asp]. The term "screws" was also used as we do today. Thus, Abraham Kinzing, from whom Head had purchased 18 pounds of "hooks & Inges," was credited £0-4-0, for "8 scrues for Loks," on 4/15/37. Head Account Book, p. 123 right.
308. Head Account Book, p. 82 left. Head may have identified Ladwick Sipel by profession so as not to confuse him with another of his clients, Lodwick Spregel [Lodwick Sproegel]. Head Account Book, p. 29.
309. This is another instance of Head charging no mark-up. Head Account Book, p. 28. The iron may or may not have been supplied directly by Leacock. Of the eight orders for iron credited to Leacock's account, six (but not this one or another) were noted as pursuant to orders given Anthoney Nicholas [Anthony Nichols?]. Head Account Book,p. 28. Leacock identified himself as "at Pool Forge or at Philadelphia," when advertising a reward for the return of Anthony Lea, "a bandy kneed" servant who had run off "in Company with a young lusty Woman named Elizabeth." Pennsylvania Gazette, September 12, 1734. Located on Manatawny Creek, Pool Forge, "almost new, in good order," was later advertised for lease or sale "with upwards of three hundred acres of land thereto belonging." Pennsylvania Gazette, November 20, 1746.
310. Pennsylvania Gazette, March 3, 1747. Seipel's house was thus about the same dimensions as Head's own home. John Head's Will.
311. Head Account Book, p. 6 [2/25/37].
312. Pennsylvania Gazette, September 13, 1744.
313. Head Account Book, pp. 62 right [Duche, 1/15/32], 77 right [William Stretch, 10/22/26], 109 right [Peter Stretch, 4/12/28],123 right [Kinzing, 2/25/37].
314. Two more orders are recorded that day for seven dozen more of the same, for an additional £1-8-6. Branson also supplied Head with joint hinges, butt hinges, a grindstone and 1500 feet of "Walnut Bord." Head Account Book, p. 6. In turn, Head supplied Branson with cords of wood, which may have been used in iron production. Head Account Book, p. 5. According to Garvan, Branson, who died in 1760, was a "shopkeeper" in 1720, and a "merchant" in 1726. Garvan, "13. Tankard," Philadelphia: Three Centuries, p. 18. Elsewhere, he is referred to as an "ironmaster." Lawmaking, p. 15. Branson delivered to the Pennsylvania State House iron chimney-backs for the Assembly Room, at £6-1-3, in 1744. Riley, "The Independence Hall Group," p. 17, quoting Votes of Assembly, Pennsylvania Archives, Eighth Series (Harrisburg 1931), 4: 3047, 7: 5903.
315. Head Account Book, p. 53 right. Handles were being used for drawer fronts even earlier. Head sold James Estugh, a "handle for a drawer," on 7/30/23, at £0-0-9. Head Account Book,, p. 51 left. Of course this may have been for a counter drawer in a shop and not for the drawer of a piece of domestic furniture. Sary [Sarah] Griscom had been debited £0-3-4, "To a drawer in her Counter," on 5/13/23. Head Account Book, p. 130 left.
316. Joseph Peters had for sale, imported from Bristol, England, "plain and screwed handles and escutcheons of sundry sorts." Pennsylvania Gazette, October 15, 1747.
317. Head Account Book, p. 45.
318. Head Account Book, pp. 8 [Hagal], 86 right [Edgal].
319. Donald L. Fennimore, Metalwork in Early America: Copper and Its Alloys from the Winterthur Collection (Winterthur, Del.: Winterthur, 1996), p. 373.
320. Thomas Allen Glenn, Some Colonial Mansions and Those Who Lived in Them (Philadelphia: Henry T. Coates & Co., 1899), p. 109.
321. Head Account Book, pp. 60 right [Whit & Tailor], 75 right [Coates],106 left [Linley].
322. Head had earlier purchased from Duché, "four dosen and 1/2 of nobs," at £0-9-0, on 5/7/31, but made no mention of their composition. On 5/7/31, he ordered a "gros[s] ditto," at £1-4-0. Head Account Book, p. 62 right. Brass knobs had been sold by Head even earlier, on 4/13/24, to Barni Eagelsfield [Barney Eaglesfield], for £0-4-2. Head Account Book, p. 60 left.
323. Head Account Book, p. 91 left [Maul].
324. No clues were otherwise offered by Head's other transactions with Boore, a credit "By Sundres," and a debit, "To a Stand." Head Account Book, p. 89 left & right.
325. Head Account Book, p. 2 [last name of account torn off page]. While Joseph was then a common name, perhaps "Colman" was the name torn off the account page. Although it would have been redundant to mention that the account holder had delivered an item credited to his account, Head sometimes did this.
326. Head Account Book, pp. 59 left [Nicholas], 62 right [Duche].
327. Head Account Book, pp. 37 [Loyd], 80 left [Cooper], 112 left [Clark]. Head does not identify from what wood these pegs were made. According to Kalm: "The wood of mulberry-trees is of all others reckoned the most excellent for pegs and plugs in ships and boats." Kalm, Travels, 2:22.
328. [Benjamin Franklin], Poor Richard Improved, 1752 (Philadelphia: 1752). That being true, one wonders to what "jest" Head wished to put the "Docters stuff" for which he credited Edward Owen on 11/27/29, at £0-9-6, as "By the widdowes account sent In for Docters stuf Received of her Husborn." Head Account Book, p. 96 right.
329. Leibundguth, "Furniture-making," p. viii.
330. Head Account Book, pp. 6 [Branson, 2/12/21, £0-15-0], 58 right [Davis, 9/2/23, £0-2-8 gimlets; 9/10/24, £0-7-0 hatchets], 116 right [Kellay, 10/18/42, £1-0-0]. Joseph Trotter advertised "Newcastle grind stones, and London steel, to be sold...Very cheap for ready money." Pennsylvania Gazette, October 26, 1749. Indicative of their use, hand irons were usually inventoried along with fire shovels and tongs. E.g., Philadelphia Wills, 1744-81 [Joseph Claypoole, Sr.], 1754-141 [Edward Warner], 1761-3 [Joseph Hall].
331. Head Account Book, pp. 11 [Talbert, 10/9/20, £0-10-0], 33 [McClellan, 12/2/22, £0-5-0], 37 [Loyd, 10/9/23, £0-10-0], 59 left [Nicholas, 4/15/24, £0-4-0 plane; 2/22/26, £0-18-0 saws], 61 left [Cassell, 10/1/24, £0-1-6], 126 left [Webb, 3/15/31, £0-1-6]. The "marken iron" may have just as readily been used to brand livestock as furniture. "John Head, hatter" described his stolen horse as "branded with a D on the near shoulder." Pennsylvania Gazette, November 19, 1747. For illustration and discussion of these and other tools of a slightly later period see Charles F. Hummel, With Hammer in Hand: The Dominy Craftsmen of East Hampton, New York (Charlottesville: The University Press of Virginia, 1968).
332. Kalm, Travels, 1:168.
333. Kalm, Travels, 1:165, 206.
334. Unless Head was implying theft on Rouse's part, this charge was probably to repairing Head's chisel with new steel. Head Account Book, p. 106 right [Rouse]. Given Maule's long relationship with Head, these tools may have been given to Head at much earlier dates, but only charged in 1746. Head Account Book, p. 91 right.
335. Head Account Book, pp. 3 [Mocombs, 1/5/20, £0-2-6], 5 [Cox, 7/9/22], 52 left [Dimsdild, 7/15/23, £0-5-6]. "John McComb, Junier" advertised for the return of a runaway 17-year old Indian "Girle." American Weekly Mercury, May 24, 1726, reproduced in facsimile in Scharf and Westcott, History of Philadelphia, 1:200. The estate of a "Sarah Dimsdale, late of Hattonfield [Haddonfield], Glocester County, New Jersey," sought payment of debts in 1741. Pennsylvania Gazette, January 1, 1741. As she was probably "Sary Dimsdild," she is another link to business which Head's shop did across the river.
336. Head Account Book, pp. 3 [Alexander Woodrop, £0-0-6 handle & knob for teapot, 7/24/21], 9 [James Steel, £0-1-0 pieces of wood, 1721; £0-0-6 nozzle, 8/1/24], 55 left [Charles Hansly, £0-2-6 two bed posts, 2/18/24], 59 left [John Nicholas, £0-2-6, 2/22/24], 112 left [Benjamin Clark, £0-1-0 four legs, 12/14/28], loose papers inside front cover [Joseph Chatam, £0-4-0 frame, £0-2-6 five legs, both 4/21/40].
337. The inventory, now missing, was said to be dated November 11, 1754. Leibundguth, "Furniture-making," p. 48.
338. The miniature chest of drawers, which may have functioned as a spice or valuables chest, was formerly in the collection of Robert Simpson Stuart.
339. Head Account Book, p. 74 right. The shape of these turned tables is not indicated. They were not necessarily oval, the only "rounded" shape indicated by Head. Some may have been round. A "Round Tea Table" was listed in the inventory of Head's best customer, James Steel, although not necessarily supplied by Head. Philadelphia Wills, 1741-261.
340. Head Account Book, pp. 3 [Woodrop, Mocombs], 9 [Steel], 53 left [Masters], 59 left [Nicholas], 120 left [Wells].
341. Head Account Book, pp. 29 [Snad], 31 [Parker], 103 left [Steel], 132 left [Stretch]. Undesignated tables were mended for Head's other customers, as well. Head Account Book, pp. 1 [Nathanal Pool], 29 [Lodwick Spregel], 55 left [Charles Hansly], 58 left [Daniel Harrison], 50 left [Isaac Noris Junor], 67 left [Samuel Burers Junor], 94 left [William Wallas], 122 left [William Lucin]. Three tables mended were specifically designated as "oval," in two instances for the same people as undesignated ones. Head Account Book, pp. 1 [Pool], 44 [Parsons], 103 left [Steel].
342. Head Account Book, p. 3 [Woodrop], 53 left [Masters]. Cf., James Logan debited to his "Household Goods" account £1-16-0, on 3/17/26, "To Cash for making leather seats to SIX Cane Chairs at 6sh." Logan Ledger, p. 89 left.
343. Webster's Third New International Dictionary of the English Language Unabridged (Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam Company, 1961), p. 705.
344. It is also possible that Head may be referring to a table made in Holland. However, there are no references to that country and only two references to the Dutch in the account book. See "By Ten gallons of linsit [linseed] Ioyl [oil] dd by a duchman at Iermantown onforbos [?]," for which Jeremiah Warder got a credit, Head Account Book, p. 77 right [4 mo. 1746, credit of £2-0-0]; and the account titled "Ladwik Sipel the Dutch Loksmith," ibid., p. 82 left.
345. Head Account Book, p. 3; Hornor, Blue Book, pp. 18-19; Pennsylvania Gazette, September 12, 1732. By 1733, "Lovers of Decency, Neatness and TEA-TABLE DECORUM" could treat themselves to "all Sizes of the best white-metal Pewter Tea-Pots; likewise Tea-Stands,...Tea-Spoons," which had "JUST arrived from London." "Importer JOHN SACHEVERELL" advertisement, Pennsylvania Gazette, March 15, 1733.
346. Head Account Book, pp. 19 [Clar], 40 [Williams], 68 left [Johns].
347. As of 1/1/20, James Logan had in stock "15 doz & 9," valued at £8-6-6. On 3/14/20, he added an additional "Cargoe from Brittain" of "6 doz," at £4-6-5. Logan Ledger, p. 101 left. During 1721-1727, he purchased another 103 dozen and 8, of which 85 dozen were "from abroad." Ibid., pp. 101 left, 220 left.
348. Pennsylvania Gazette, June 1, 1738.
349. Logan Ledger, p. 180 left; Head Account Book, pp. 59 left [Nicholas], 60 left [Eagelsfield].
350. Head Account Book, pp. 1 [two for Nathanal Pool], 3 [Alexander Woodrop, John Mocombs Junor], 15 [Richard Harrison], 31 [Mary Parker Sanor], 56 left [Hugh Cordry].
351. In his most recent book, John Kirk entitles his chapter on high chests of similar construction as "Tall and Precarious." John T. Kirk, American Furniture: Understanding Styles, Construction, and Quality (New York: Harry N. Abrams, Inc., 2000), p. 59
352. Head Account Book, pp. 5 [Cox], 29 [Radman], 49 left [Coster], 53 left [Masters], 64 left [Allen], 118 left [Williams]. "Drawers" was a common abbreviation in probate inventories for chests of drawers and may thus have stood, in the Williams entry, for that form, rather than for the drawers themselves. Nehemiah Allen was a cooper who rented out and eventually sold a brewery to Joseph Taylor. Nehemiah Allen's account book, 1698-1736, is at HSP. Thompson, Rum Punch, p. 223 n. 35; Minutes of the Common Council, p. 125 ["Joseph Taylor, Brewer" admitted freeman on May 20, 1717].
353. Head Account Book, pp. 1 [Pool], 3 [Mocombs], 5 [Cox], 31 [Parker], 46 [Todd], 49 left [Preston], 53 left [Masters], 58 left [Harrison], 80 left [Cooper], 94 left [Wallas], 103 left [Steel], 109 left [Stretch], 120 left [Wells], 130 left [Griskam].
354. Cf., "fire screan" Henry Clifton supplied Doctor Samuel Preston Moore's wife. Leibundguth, "Furniture-making," p. 23, citing Ledger of Samuel P. Moore, 1745-1780, p. 37 [0-15-0, August 11, 1748], LCP.
355. Patricia E. Kane, 300 Years of American Seating Furniture, Chairs and Beds from the Mabel Brady Garvan and Other Collections at Yale University (Boston: New York Graphic Society, 1976), p. 44; Joseph K. Kindig III, The Philadelphia Chair, 1685-1785 (York, Pa.: The Historical Society of York County, 1978); Garvan, "24 Armchair," Philadelphia: Three Centuries, p. 28. Kane illustrates an armchair with 4-slat back, Delaware River Valley, c. 1720-1760, with two turned stretchers in front and traces of red paint. 300 Years of American Seating, p. 44, fig. 18. The earliest evidence of slat-back chairs in the Delaware Valley is the representation of an early slat-back, mushroom-finial armchair in the watercolor on paper seated portrait of Johannes Kelpius (1673-1708), the Germantown pietist. It was purportedly sketched, c. 1705, by amateur painter, botanist, doctor, sometime clockmaker, and fellow mystic Christopher Witt (1675-1765). Hornor, Blue Book, pp. 6, 292; Benno M. Forman, "Delaware Valley 'Crookt Foot' and Slat-back Chairs, The Fussell-Savery Connection," Winterthur Portfolio 15, no. 1 (Spring, 1980):52, fig. 8. The date of the portrait was derived from that on a manuscript hymnal, to which it was appended. Both are at HSP. As Kelpius's robe covers part of the base of his chair, the shape of its front stretchers cannot be observed. The broad curvature to the arched slats, the squashed finials atop the rear stiles, and the slender vasoform turnings of the arm supports of the Kelpius chair may also be found on a slat-back armchair, now on the second floor of Independence Hall, in a room adjacent to the Governor's Council Chamber. Like the Yale chair, it also has two turned bulbous front stretchers. Collection of Independence Hall National Historical Park, gift in memory of Beverly & Israel Stiefel.
356. Solomon Fussell Ledger, 1738-1752, Stephen Collins Papers, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.; Downs Collection, Winterthur, microfilm #M-659. First identified in an anonymous note, in Pennsylvania Magazine, 40:121, the ledger is among the papers of Collins, an executor to Fussell's estate. The Fussell Ledger has been extensively analyzed. Forman, Delaware Valley Chairs, pp. 41-64; Forman, American Seating, pp. 78, 168, 170, 246, 298, 347. Leibundguth, who performed what is perhaps the first such analysis, states that the Fussell ledger was only "uncovered" in the summer of 1963. Leibundguth, "Furniture-making," pp. x, 49.
357. Kindig illustrates a rare six-slat sidechair, c. 1745, with "crookt foot," a type made by Solomon Fussell. Kindig, Philadelphia Chair, fig. 29. An armchair of that type is dated by Forman slightly earlier, c. 1735-49. Forman, Delaware Valley Chairs, p. 47, fig. 2. While Head's account book refers to at least one chair with slats, it does not refer to any with a "crookt foot." Credit to account of John Hudson, Head Account Book, p. 83 right. Nor are there any entries in the Head account book mentioning Fussell. Head's chairs, like those of Fussell, were probably mostly of maple, a popular chair wood. Kalm, Travels, 1:168.
358. John Hudson charged Head £1-7-0, on 1/18/26. Head Account Book, p. 83 right.
359. Garvan, "24 Armchair," Philadelphia: Three Centuries, p. 28.
360. Watson, Annals, 1:203.
361. Head Account Book, p. 95 right.
362. Nancy Goyne Evans, American Windsor Chairs, (New York: Hudson Hills Press, 1996), p. 719; Forman, Delaware Valley Chairs, pp. 42, 44.
363. Philadelphia Wills, 1754-141.
364. Windsor chairs appear sporadically in Philadelphia inventories from about 1742, with that of William Fishbourne. Leibundguth, "Furniture-making," pp. 43-44. The earliest advertisement by a Philadelphia Windsor chair maker is that of David Chambers: "David Chambers is removed from his house in Walnut Street, to his house in Plumb Street, on Society Hill, where he keeps shop, and makes Windsor chairs as formerly." Pennsylvania Gazette, August 25, 1748 [advertisement dated August 18, 1748]. The first documented sale of Windsor furniture would appear to be the September 14, 1754 bill to Quaker merchant John Reynall for "2 Double Windsor Chairs with 6 legs," at £3-0-0, from Jedidiah Snowden, who would later advertise himself as in the business of "Cabinet and Windsor chair-making." Coates-Reynall Collection, HSP; Charles Santore, The Windsor Style in America (Philadelphia: The Running Press, vol. 1 1981, vol. 2 1987), 1:42-43; Evans, American Windsor Chairs, p. 80; advertisement in November 24, 1773 Pennsylvania Journal, cited in Prime, Arts and Crafts, p. 183. Unlike either slat-back or banester-back chairs, Windsors have spindled-backs and solid wood seats. See the discussion of these terms in Evans, American Windsor Chairs, p. 719; Forman, Delaware Valley Chairs, p. 44..
365. E.g., the inventory of "Joyner" Joseph Armitt listed "5 Winsor Chairs" appraised at £1-15-0. Philadelphia Wills 1747-160.
366. Cresson also got good service from Head, including delivery to his home, at no extra charge. Debited to his "Solomon Crison" account were "a chest of Drawers dd at his house," on 7/28/28, at £5-10-0; "a Dask dd att his house," on 4/18/30, at £7-10-0; "a Clock Case dd to his son James," on 11/17/40, at £4-0-0; and "a Clock Case dd to John Hood Clockmaker." Head Account Book, p. 95 left. James Cresson was born 1709. Ethel Hall Bjerkoe, The Cabinetmakers of America (Exton, Pa.: Schiffer Limited, 1978).
367. Caleb Ranstead paid James Logan £12-0-0 per year for ground rent, starting on 12/28/21, for "his 2 houses in 2[nd] Str[eet]." Logan Ledger, p. 144 left.
368. See Elva Tooker, Nathan Trotter, Philadelphia Merchant, 1787-1853 (Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1955), p. 6, for a Trotter genealogy, including Benjamin Trotter's dates. Benjamin Trotter was an early member of what was to become one of Philadelphia's most prolific cabinetmaking families by the last quarter of the 18th century. Trotter also spoke regularly at Philadelphia Quaker meetings. Myers, Hannah Logan's Courtship, p. 80 n. 2.
369. Hornor, Blue Book, p. 3. He appears to be the Solomon Cresson, who was christened on June 30, 1674, in the Dutch Reformed Church, New York City; married Anna Watson, on November 14, 1702, in Philadelphia; and died, in Philadelphia, September 10, 1746. They had a son, also Solomon, born October 4, 1711, in Philadelphia, who died January 27, 1761. Familysearch.com. Solomon's executor, John Cresson, advertised for indebted persons to make payment to his estate. Pennsylvania Gazette, January 27, 1747. Jeremiah Cresson, a "Joyner and Chair-Maker," of the next generation, advertised in the Pennsylvania Gazette, July 9, 1761, to "all those who are pleased to favour him with their Custom." Prime, Arts and Crafts, pp. 163-164.
370. Hornor, Blue Book, p. 3; Minutes of the Common Council, p. 130 ["Alex fforman, Turner" was admitted as a freeman on May 27, 1717]; Prime, Arts & Crafts, p. 167. The source of Hornor's uncited 1718 reference is unknown.
371. Hornor, Blue Book, pp. 3, 296; Minutes of the Common Council, p. 127 ["John Hudson, Chairmaker" was admitted a freeman on May 20, 1717]; Prime, Arts & Crafts, pp. 172-173.
372. The insertion of the word "maple" was by Hornor. Hornor, Blue Book, p. 207. No such wood is mentioned in Trotter's inventory, whereas 100 feet of mahogany boards, 80 of walnut and 57 of red cedar are. Philadelphia Wills, 1768-164. But it is still conceivable that such rounds were of maple. Fussell used maple for his slat-back chairs. Maple was also frequently used to fashion the legs, stretchers and arm supports of Windsor chairs made in early Philadelphia. Santore, The Windsor Style, 1:57-62, figs. 20, 21, 23, 25, 26. It is however too far a reach to state that Trotter was a Windsor chairmaker, as have others. Harold E. Gillingham, "The Philadelphia Windsor Chair and Its Journeyings," Pennsylvania Magazine, 55:303; J. Bennet Hill & Margaret Howe Hill, "William Fisher, Early Philadelphia Quaker, and His Eighteenth Century Descendants Surnamed Bradford, Brown, Browne, Bunner, Cavender, Cooper, Corker, Fisher, Hartley, Leaming, Lloyd, Lyon, Trotter and Wilson," Genealogies of Pennsylvania Families, vol. 1, A-He, Pennsylvania Genealogies, p. 564. While Benjamin Trotter styled himself a "Chairmaker," and his inventory lists "Chair Rounds," "[a] parcel of Joyners & Chair Maker Tools," and "1 Windsor Chair," such information is still insufficient to establish Benjamin Trotter as a maker of Windor chairs. His name is not included, or even discussed, in recent authorities as a Windsor chairmaker. Evans, American Windsor Chairs; Santore, Windsor Style. Indeed, the two lots of chairs he sold Head and the types of chairs left in quantity in his estate would indicate that, if anything, he made leather and rush bottom chairs.
373. Philadelphia Wills, 1768-164.
374. Gillingham, American Windsor Journeyings, 55:306. Trotter was "living in Arch Street," apparently close to Head, when he advertised a lot for sale or let, in 1750. Pennsylvania Gazette, April 5, 1750.
375. Most of his other turning was of small objects, "Pags [pegs]," "a [k]nob," "Two peses of wood," " a handle and nob [finial] for a tee pot," and a "Nosel for a pomp [pump nozzle]." Head Account Book, pp. 3, 9, 55 left, 59 left, 112 left, loose papers inside front cover [Joseph Chatam].
376. Too cheap to have been Japanned, the chairs were probably just painted black. As will be seen from an analysis of chairs in a similar price range, they were utilitarian chairs, probably slat-back, now commonly referred to as "ladder-back." The source of these chairs is not known, except that the chairs and the table were both delivered by "Stven [Steven] Miller of Salam [Salem, New Jersey, which is crossed out] Philadelphia." Head Account Book, p. 27. No reference has been found for Miller as a chairmaker or turner. As the debit entry for Hill's chairs cannot be specifically aligned with any credit to Head's later chair suppliers, their source may have been John Hugoford, who was credited £5-10-0, in 1726, "By Chayers at Sundre Times," leaving no precise idea of their quantity, prices, or order dates. Head Account Book, p. 18. Hugoford remains a mystery.
377. Head Account Book, p.121 right. These were not sold by Head and, therefore, may have been for the use of his household. Cf., Thomas Penington [Pennington] paid Fussell £1-7-0, "To 6 black & Slats," on 11/20/46. Fussell Ledger, p. 17. Pennington was also Head's customer, but bought no chairs through him. Head Account Book, pp. 98 left & right. Another common customer was carpenter Edmund Woolley, who bought chairs and other items from Fussell between 1739-1742. Fussell Ledger, p. 41; Head Account Book, p. 13.
378. Head Account Book, p. 31.
379. Cf., Worldly Goods, checklist #s 33 [chest-on-chest], 59 [clockcase], 68 [desk], 71 [secretary desk and bookcase].
380. Alexander Foreman was credited for "Six Chayers," on 1/29/26, at £1-10-0, undoubtedly those debited Jonathan Hains [Haines], on 2/4/26. John Hudson sold two lots of six chairs to Head, each also at £1-10-0, on 2/22/26 and 4/18/28, which were those apparently resold, respectively, to Daniel Hillman, on 3/14/26, and Bangman [Benjamin] Moore, on 4/27/28. Head started acquiring chairs from Solomon Cresson in 1726. The six chairs debited to Joseph Louance [Laurence] on 4/11/26, at £1-10-0, were credited to Cresson that same date quite specifically, "By 6 - Chayers dd [delivered] to Joseph Louance," no doubt to distinguish them from two six-chair lots, credited to Benjamin Trotter, at the same price, and on the same date. Cresson was also credited £1-10-0 for six-chair lots, on 9/19/26, possibly going to Joseph Cooper Junor [Jr.], on 8/18/27, the next chair debit in Head's book; and on 8/7/29 and 7/13/40, neither of which was recorded as sold. The foregoing, as priced at £1-10-0, were probably all 5-slat chairs. By comparison, the six at £1-7-0, which Cresson sold Head, on 7/20/40, were probably 4-slat chairs. Head Account Book, pp. 31 [Moore], 39 [Hains], 51 left [Street], 74 right [Forman], 76 right [Troter], 80 left [Cooper], 83 right [Hudson], 84 left [Hillman], 85 left [Louance], 94 right [Crison].
381. "The type most frequently mentioned in the Fussell ledger were '3 slat,' '4 slat,' '5 slat,' and occasionally '6 slat' chairs. These account for the bulk of the shop's production. He priced chairs with three slats at 4s. each and increased the price at the rate of 1s. per slat unless he added other options, such as arms. On the basis of this pricing formula, perhaps the 3s. common chair had two slats." Forman, Delaware Valley Chairs, p. 42.
382. Head Account Book, p. 95 right.
383. Foreman, who supplied the "13 Chayers" to Richard Hains, did other turning work for Head, including turning at least seven "Tables," probably table tops. Foreman also charged Head for "Turn Work by John Smith," who may have been in his employ. Head Account Book, pp. 42 [Hains], 74 right [Forman]. The Head account book does not have a corresponding credit as to who supplied Branson's chairs. Head Account Book,, pp. 84 left [Branson], 94 right [Crison]. Less informative was the £3-0-0 credited to Cresson and debited to Joseph Wood, on 10/3/28, respectively described as "By Chayers dd to Joseph Wood," and "To an order apon Solomon Crison for Chayers," without stating their number or type. " Head Account Book, 92 left [Wood], 94 right [Crison]. Joseph Wood Parchment Maker," had an account with James Logan. Logan Ledger, p. 97 left. A Joseph Wood married, shortly before 7/29/29, Mary Pound, youngest child of Mary Pound (d. 1762), a widow, and next-door neighbor to John Head. Pennsylvania Gazette, Philadelphia, July 8, 1762, advertisement by her executor, Thomas Say, for the sale of land of Mary Pound, deceased, adjacent to that of the late John Head; Lewis D. Cook, "David Meredith of Radnor, Chester County, and of Plymouth, Philadelphia County, Penna. And His Step-children Surnamed Moore," Genealogies of Pennsylvania Families, vol. 2, Hi-So, Pennsylvania Genealogies, p. 256.
384. Leibundguth, "Furniture-making," p. 48.
385. Cresson's entires, both as of 8/7/29, credited £1-4-0, "By a Couch;" and £1-0-0, "By a Couch omitted dd to James Cofe." Head Account Book, p. 95 right. The lack of an inventory for Head's estate makes it impossible to corroborate whether a daybed was among his effects. The account of John Mocombs Junor [McComb, Jr.] was debited £0-0-6, on 2/25/21, "To mending a Couch." Head Account Book, p. 3. William Clar [Clare] bought the "Couch Hide," on 12/18/22, at £0-3-0. Head Account Book, p.19.
