Vermont Record and Farmer, March 24, 1876. Revolutionary War Relics Auction

Gypsy Heart

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THE LADIES' CENTENNIAL ENTERTAINMENT.
--Not disheartened by snow, rain and bad travelling, last Tuesday, preparations for the great centennial gathering went steadily forward, and as if in approval of the committee's perseverance, the clouds lifted in the afternoon and the sun shone out brightly, betokening a favorable evening. But the extremely bad walking predicted a thin attendance, and it was therefore a surprise to many to see the hall crowded at an early hour. The tables in long array loaded with substantials and delicacies in great abundance, occupied the south part of the hall, and ladies in ancient garb flitted back and forth ministering to the wants of their numerous guests. On the north side, extending the entire length of the hall, were the relics of bygone-days and curiosities from foreign lands. This exhibition was unexpectedly large and interesting. The following is a list of articles exhibited, with the names of the persons presenting them:

A.S. Cox exhibited a large and beautiful specimen of needlework resembling a painting, representing Queen Esther's exposure of Haman at the banquet. It was made by Mr. Cox's former wife, who died in 1863, and cost the labor of nearly seven years.

Mrs. J.D. Bradley--the old chair in which Gen. Washington sat at Boston, 1789, at the residence of Mark Richards.

G.C. Lawrence--Benj. Gorton's chair, over 150 years old.

C.K. Field--a chair owned and used by Rev. Aaron Crosby of Newfane in 1770. He was a missionary to the Indians before the Revolutionary War. Pair of rifled dagger pistols used by Gen. Martin Field 60 years ago, and said to have been taken from a British officer in the Revolutionary War. Collection of ancient coins.

B.N. Chamberlain--chair brought from Scotland in 1789 by P. White.

Mrs. B.N. Chamberlain--looking-glass bought in Boston over 100 years ago; $1000 in Continental money was paid for it.

E.T. Warren--shawl 115 years old, or more; picture of the ascension, made in 1801.

Mrs. E.T. Warren--the bag I carried to church 50 years ago; a book 130 years old.

Mrs. Billings--Indian head-dress of feathers.

L.K. Fuller--African cloth made by natives from the bark of trees; Roman coins, time of Julius Cæsar, taken from excavations in Rome, and obtained from the Vatican museum; piece of oak from the Kearsarge; Indian pestle; piece of shell from the bombardment of Strasbourg, France; piece of wood from the house in which Christopher Columbus was born, near Genoa; sword made from sharks' teeth.

Mrs. Parley Starr--woolen bedspread, made in 1818 by Mrs. Elijah Eames of Whitingham; also, linen spread by same.

Mrs. A. Whithed of Vernon--bedspread 100 years old; gilded pitcher 150 years old; needle and thread case 75 years old; profile of Edith Stebbins 65 years old.

Mrs. Geo. Thomas--dress worn over 100 years ago by her grandmother.

Mrs. J.W. Burpee--skirt 150 years old.

Mrs. Frank Bassett--bedquilt 102 years old, passed down through four generations.

Mrs. Gov. Holbrook--two muslin dresses worn by Polly Holbrook 75 years ago; shawl worn by same 70 years ago.

H. Glover--a volume of Roman History, date 1798.

C.A Miles--Works of John Bunyan dated 1767; a button from Geo. Washington's coat; a pin cushion from his waistcoat; a locket containing some of his hair, and a fragment of Lady Washington's dress; a valuable collection of autographs, including several signers of the Declaration of Independence; Poole's Notes on the Bible, 1700; History of the 2d Punick War, 1672; copy of the Boston Gazette, containing an account of the Boston massacre, 1770; diary of Col. Jonathan Badges Abercrombie's Expedition, 1758.

H.C. Willard--commission issued by Gov. Tryon, 1772.

H. Atherton--two teapots made in 1800; silver spoons, knee buckles and other articles dating back to 1750; continental money; pocket book, property of Capt. Joseph Atherton, Harvard, Mass., 1775; Berkley's Anatomy of Melancholy, printed in 1632.

Mrs. S.F. Miles--fragment of the flag fired upon by rebels at Fort Sumter.

Maj. Tyler--letter of Ethan Allen.

Mrs. Thurber--platter and teapot, 124 years old; hand woven linen handkerchief 110 yrs. old.

Eli Lee, Vernon--straw box made by Indians 100 years ago.

Hattie Lee--corsets 140 years old; cup and saucers 100 years old.

Mrs. F.B. Walker--comb 50 years old.

Mrs. Hubbard--a teaspoon 125 years old.

Mrs. King--a spoon buried on Long Island made in 1787.

Mrs. B.D. Harris--a pitcher belonging to a service made of Spanish dollars during the Revolutionary war for Maj. John H. Buel of Conn., the grandfather of Mrs. Harris; a set of earrings 100 years old; infant's shirt 150 years old.

J. Dalton--a tankard 100 years old, and a porringer 95 years old; ancient tea service; snuff box 75 years old.

A ring made by John Burnham from a nugget of gold found in a gravel bank in Newfane in 1827. Seal and ring made 100 years ago.

John Patch and A.L. Childs--large collection of coins, some 150 years old; snuff box 150 yrs. old.

Mrs. Stevenson--spoons made in 1780; buttons worn by Lieut. Leonard Hoar in war of 1812; doll made by a Cattaraugua Indian girl, 1840.

W.H. Collins--The Vulgate, 387 years old, printed in 1489; sermons printed in 1640, 236 years old; sermon written by the grandfather of Wm. Pitt Fessenden, printed in 1778; works of Cyprian 343 years old.

W.H. Bigelow--John Calvin's Commentaries printed in Geneva, 1581; Tho. Goodwin's Sermons, printed in London in 1651.

Mrs. Bradley--a gold snuff box frequently used by Henry Clay when speaker of the House of Representatives.

Wedding set of Royall and Mary Tyler, 1794.

Dr. Rockwell--forceps from Washington's medicine chest, for pulling teeth.

Mrs. L.K. Fuller--tumbler brought from England 150 years ago, also mug brought from England 150 years ago; saddle trappings; piece of old bell on Boston Common; coins, 1773.

T. Vinton--teakettle brought from Scotland in 1740 by his maternal great-great grandmother; cane cut at Ft. Sartwell in 1740.

Judge Keyes--tea set, 1801.

Dr. H.D. Holton--bark from the big trees of California, 19½ inches in thickness.

Mrs. Holton--watch case made by her great-grandfather.

M.T. Van Doorn--kerchief over one hundred years old; book on Human Nature, printed in 1759; another in 1758; photograph of the house of David Hubbard, father of Mrs. Anthony Van Doorn, in Concord, Mass.; profile of David Hubbard; his discharge from service in 1776; pocket book 100 years old; platter 125 years old and waiter 151 years old; needle case over 100 years.

Mrs. Avery--pillow slips 100 yrs. old

Mrs. Cutts--embroidered coat and vest, 1750.

L. Bullock--wig 150 years old.

Rev. L. Grout--13 pairs of horns, taken from as many different kinds of African animals; horn of a rhinoceros and tusk of hippopotamus.

Mrs. Grout--box made from a wheel of Geo. Washington's coach; a piece of olive wood from Mt. Lebanon; two pieces of Madagascar cloth, native manufacture; a basket from India and an ostrich egg from Africa; section of mammoth bean pod; pieces of vegetable ivory; six African shells; moss acorn from Nashville, Tenn.; a picture of the first American railway train.

M.S. Lee, Vernon--tongs 200 years old; silver pepper box 103 years old.

R.S. Wood--tomahawk taken from an Indian chief, 1665.

Dr. Putnam--pocket book, 1770.

Dr. Gale--Ancient boarding pike and broad sword; cane made from an Indian house in Deerfield, Mass.; piece of shell from Ft. Jackson; bowie knife.

W.E. Eason--revolver taken at Battle of Wilderness.

Henry Devens--mortar 150 years old; shoes taken from the feet of a Chinese woman, some of the celestial earth still adhering; a Mandarin's jade stone ornament; backgammon board of John Hancock; autograph card case of Gen. Lafayette, given by him to F. Fuller, M.C. from 1817 to 1825.

Mrs. Judge Butterfield, Wilmington--prayer book and psalter, London, 1772.

Mrs. Retting--shoes brought from Germany.

E.A. Pratt--Bible, 1760.

Mrs. Julius Estey--lantern, 1784.

G.L. Eason--Bible 288 years old.

Mrs. Kirkland--sermons, 1798.

Commission of Jonathan Childs by Col. Josiah Fish, 96 years old.

Miss A.S. Tyler--continental money.

G.A.H.--cane from door in Ft. Sartwell.

S. Jennie Wood--legal document, 1672; bullets picked up on the site of Ft. Dummer.

R.G. Wood--arrows plowed from the battlefield near Ft. Dummer.

Mrs. Candace Pratt--piece of calico 102 years old; wooden cup, same age.

M. Scott--ancient pewter basin. Mrs. Scott, piece of cloth spun and woven from flax by her grandmother.

C.C. Frost--Bible 145 years old, containing the record of the marriage of Col. John Sargeant, the first white male citizen born in Vermont; also the killing of Capt. Moors and his son Benjamin, and the captivity of Benjamin's wife and child by the Indians 118 years ago at West River; Psalm and Hymn book 120 years old.

Mrs. Eason--ancient gourd; mortar, 150 years old; pair of French wooden shoes.

Mrs. Kirkland--books, 1773.

Commodore Green--wooden card receiver made from the old Frigate Constitution.

Robert Goodenough--a deed on parchment dated 1770, containing a plan of the west part of Brattleboro, conveying land to Capt. Wm. Holton.

F.H. Wheeler--ancient document, dated Lexington, Mass., 1744.

Mrs. R. Tyler--letter from Abigail Adams, wife of John Adams, to Royall Tyler, 1873; silver goblet presented to Royall Tyler about 1790.

A.A. Washburn, Vernon--powder horn taken at battle of Bunker Hill.

T.W. Eason--rebel short sword, taken at battle of Antietam.

A. Pratt--cutting tongs, 112 years old.

E. Sargent--his book, 1779.

Olive Sargent--pitcher, 140 years old; mug, 100 years old, presented to S.T.R. Cheney by Rev. Amos Parsons, missioner to Turkey.

E.A. Pratt--pair of shoes made in Suffield, Ct., for my grandmother when nine months old.

Geo. A. Hunt--piece of door from Fort Sartwell.

Misses Harris--mirror 125 years old.

Ch. F. Schuster--collection of minerals and fossils; Prussian eagle from the battle of Waterloo; stone from the Appian Way.

Frank Goodhue--spectacle case belonging to his great- grandfather.

Mrs. A.F. Willard--pitcher 99 years old.

Mrs. Avery--pillow slips more than 100 years old.

Phebe Denison--cups 1750 and 1780; John Alexander's powder horn used at Fort Dummer; cow bell from Fort Dummer.

Mrs. Masa Willis--snow shoes 150 years old.

Mrs. Geo. Howe--elegant china ware, old.

Parley Starr--a pod auger, used when he was young.

Mrs. Isaac Hines--a fan 120 years old.

Mrs. Tolles--linen apron, embroidered during the Revolutionary war.

Sherman Howe--coins.

Mr. Balestier--Dissertation on Prophecies, 1793; autographs of Jefferson, Madison, and others.

J.M. Read--pewter plates 150 yrs. old; fruit dish 100 yrs. old.

Mrs. Frank Harris--sermon book 130 yrs. old; card plate 150 years old; pickle dish and porringer.

Geo. Clapp--books dating 1679, 1763 and 1765.

Mrs. F. Wheeler--table cloth nearly 100 yrs.

A wig worn by Daniel Bullock in Windsor, 1776.

Copy of Brattleboro Messenger, published in 1824 by Alex C. Putnam.

At an early hour of the evening the clear voice of Lieut. Brown rang out from the stage, announcing that Gen. and Lady Washington would give a reception to all who desired to be introduced to the distinguished individuals. Col. Hooker and his wife, dressed in rich and elegant costume, personated the Father of his Country and his beloved Martha most admirably. Taking their stand on the stage, with officers of the Estey Guard on the right and left, the company filed across the stage and were each introduced by Capt. Estey. An amusing scene was witnessed when Papa Billings and his wife came up from the N.E. Kitchen and were introduced to the General and his lady. Mother Billings was decidedly demonstrative in her greetings, and when she came to the front and made a little speech to the audience, dilating upon the merits of her Jerusha, and proposing to bring her out in a song, the fun was almost equal to that of Eli Perkins. Jerusha got safely through with her song, by the help of her mother, and as both waxed enthusiastic on the chorus the audience were convulsed with laughter. So much were the people present interested in the relics and in doing justice to the tables that it seemed almost impossible for the musical and dramatic part of the entertainment to go forward with any success. Yet under the subduing influence of the opening chorus of the Choral Union the surging crowd became quiet and remained so during most of the exercises on the stage. After a song by Miss Sprague, rendered with so good effect that it was necessary for her to appear again, a farce entitled "No Cure no Pay, was acted by Misses E.L. Hubbard, Clara Gale, Annie Estey, Love Frost Sadie Nash, Miss Palmer and Miss Cooke. It was a very amusing piece, and much of the acting was excellent. A song by the Estey Guard Glee Club, a duet by Misses Cooke and Stevens, and a chorus by the Choral Union finished the programme, leaving the sweet strains of the chorus ringing in our ears as we took our departure homeward.

On Wednesday the exhibition of relics was continued, and in the afternoon there was an entertainment for the children. The audience was composed, however, very largely of children of a larger growth, attracted by a desire to share the anticipated pleasure with those of a younger age. This entertainment, under the management of Lt. Com'd'r Brown, was highly enjoyed by the large audience assembled. A series of tableaux illustrating the life of Cinderella was first in order. These were followed by a pantomime from "Mother Goose." The old bachelor chasing the rats and mice; then going to London to buy him a wife; and afterwards taking her home on a wheelbarrow, were capitally acted, putting the audience in best of humor. Other tableaux were given, and the entertainment closed with a reception by a miniature Gen. and Lady Washington, accompanied by Gov. and Mrs. Hancock, the best coming last.

The centennial entertainment has been highly successful in all its departments. The interested manifested has been greater than was anticipated and very creditable both to the committee and to all who gave it their aid and their contributions. Our report of the articles displayed is necessarily incomplete, but is the best we could obtain. The gross receipts from all sources were about $450.
 

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