Old Sturbridge Village has recently acquired two portraits painted by noted artist John Ritto Penniman. The portraits, dated 1831, are of Tilly Mead, a cabinetmaker from Hardwick, Mass., and his wife Caroline Hathaway Mead.
The story of acquiring these portraits begins with Jane Nylander, who serves on the Board of Old Sturbridge Village as a Trustee and former Chair of the Collections Committee. Nylander was leafing through a copy of “The Magazine Antiques” earlier this spring, when she came across an advertisement featuring the two portraits.
Nylander, historian and former Old Sturbridge Village curator, immediately recognized the importance of the portraits, and brought them to the attention of the Village's staff and Collections Committee. The Committee unanimously recommended to the Board that the Village pursue the portraits. An anonymous donor and several other supporters provided the necessary funds, and the Village was able to acquire the portraits in May.
"These portraits will benefit Old Sturbridge Village in many ways," said Jim Donahue, President and CEO of Old Sturbridge Village. "Not least among them letting the public know that the Village is adding to its collection of significant early 19th-century New England objects." Old Sturbridge Village already has a substantial collection of more than 50,000 late 18th- and early 19th-century objects and paintings; these two new acquisitions offer an enormous opportunity for research and exhibition.
The artist, John Ritto Penniman, is best known for his decorative painting on clock faces, furniture, and boxes. He was also an illustrator and portraitist in greater Boston and central Massachusetts. Throughout his career, Penniman worked alongside celebrated craftsmen such as Simon and Aaron Willard and Thomas Seymour. For at least two years (1808-1810), Penniman worked in Thomas Seymour's Boston Furniture Warehouse and collaborated with the cabinetmaker on card tables, work tables, and case furniture.
A cabinetmaker, Tilly Mead was born in Petersham, Mass., and worked in Hardwick, Mass. His estate inventory shows "unfinished furniture, a veneering plane, a turning lathe, a shop stove and pipe, and furniture patterns." His wife Caroline was the daughter of Captain Abraham Hathaway of Ranham (now Raynham), Mass.
While more research needs to be done into the estate and work of Tilly Mead, the portraits speak to the importance of cabinetmaking as an industry in Worcester County during the early decades of the 19th century. From a curatorial perspective, the Mead portraits' detailed backgrounds - particularly that of Mr. Mead - make them even more compelling. He is depicted with a tambour-style desk and bookcase, possibly one of his own design and construction. The inclusion of the desk in the portrait is a bit curious. This style of desk would have been out of fashion by 1831. It may have been made about 1815 or so, when Tilly was around 20 years old. If so, the desk was made by Mr. Mead very early in his career, or towards the end of his training, and as such, was an object of such sentimental value that he chose to have it included in his portrait.
"We are delighted to have the portraits as part of the collection," noted Jane Nylander. "And there is still much to learn about cabinetmaking in Central Massachusetts. This acquisition, among the Village's most significant in many years, was made with the support of our generous Trustees and donors, and we look forward to sharing the portraits with our many visitors."
The portraits will be on public display in the coming months.
Images courtesy of Bernard & S. Dean Levy, New York.