Antiques for Women

Both these chests were made in western Massachusetts, about a century apart, but, most importantly, both were made for women and, most probably, descended through women. Women’s history is written in them.

The Hadley chest was made for Sarah Strong and is one of six related chests that have been convincingly traced to a single town or origin, Northampton, Massachusetts. Four of the chests are carved with the full name of the girl or young woman for which they were made. The "Esther Cook" chest, the "Sarah Strong" chest, and the "Esther Lyman" chest were made for girls born in Northampton between 1695 and 1698, and the "Mary Burt" chest was made for a girl born in nearby Springfield in 1695. For more details go to http://www.historic-northampton.org/collections/chest.html .

The reverse serpentine chest of drawers was made by John Smith of Barre, Mass,
It was accompanied by a card saying that Smith had made it for his wife, in 1793. Since then, it had passed through the female members of the family. This chest is noteworthy for its perfect proportions, and its interesting bracket feet that are slightly splayed and follow the line of both the front and the side. It is not unusual for country makers to conform to fashion for most of the piece, but to add their idiosyncratic touch to a detail such as the feet.