Found! Helen Keller letter
Helen Keller is fundraising for the American Foundation for the Blind in this letter sent in 1929 to Roderick Terry, then President of the Newport Historical Society.
Archive for the ‘FOUND!’ Category
Found! Inscribed Rock (but not in our collections)
This large stone sits at the waterline in Newport harbor, and was brought to our attention by a local beachcomber. The inscription reads: IN HOC SIGNO VINCES, which translates as “with this sign you will conquer.”
Found! Unpainted 18th Century Interiors
Recent restoration work at two of our historic buildings has yielded new information about how early 18th buildings in Newport may have looked inside. Evidence is that both the Seventh Day Baptist Meeting House (1730) and the Colony House (1740) had unpainted wood in their interiors for several decades after each was built.
Reveal of original window sill at the Colony House.
The restoration projects in both buildings included paint analysis, and the removal of some wooden elements for repair. In both cases, it has become clear that the original treament on wood paneling, staircases and windows was minimal — a clear wax or other treatment with a small amount of pigment. Maintenance records for both buildings seem to confirm that neither was initially painted inside. The Colony House seems to have had its first interior painting after the American Revolution. The Meeting House was painted during a fairly comprehensive remodelling some 30 years after it was built.
Why were these interiors not painted? Perhaps it was as simple as the fact that paint was expensive, and the wood was gorgeous.
Found! Thomas Jefferson’s Letter to his Nephew
While this letter has been published, and we cannot claim to have “found” it this year, in honor of Thomas Jefferson’s birthday — April 13th — we offer the text of this remarkable letter to Peter Carr, from Paris, dated August 10, 1787, which resides in our collections.
Dear Peter, — I have received your two letters of December 30 and April 18, and am very happy to find by them, as well as by letters from Mr. Wythe, that you have been so fortunate as to attract his notice & good will; I am sure you will find this to have been one of the most fortunate events of your life, as I have ever been sensible it was of mine. I enclose you a sketch of the sciences to which I would wish you to apply, in such order as Mr. Wythe shall advise; I mention, also, the books in them worth your reading, which submit to his correction. Many of these are among your father’s books, which you should have brought to you. As I do not recollect those of them not in his library, you must write to me for them, making out a catalogue of such as you think you shall have occasion for, in 18 months from the date of your letter, & consulting Mr. Wythe on the subject. To this sketch, I will add a few particular observations.
1. Italian. I fear the learning of this language will confound your French and Spanish. Being all of them degenerated dialects of the Latin, they are apt to mix in conversation. I have never seen a person speaking the three languages, who did not mix them. It is a delightful language, but late events having rendered the Spanish more useful, lay it aside to prosecute that.
2. Spanish. Bestow great attention on this, and endeavor to acquire an accurate knowledge of it. Our future connections with Spain and Spanish America, will render that language a valuable acquisition. The ancient history of that part of America, too, is written in that language. I send you a dictionary.
3. Moral Philosophy. I think it lost time to attend lectures on this branch. He who made us would have been a pitiful bungler, if he had made the rules of our moral conduct a matter of science. For one man of science, there are thousands who are not. What would have become of them? Man was destined for society. His morality, therefore, was to be formed to this object. He was endowed with a sense of right and wrong, merely relative to this. This sense is as much a part of his nature, as the sense of hearing, seeing, feeling; it is the true foundation of morality, and not the to kalon [beautiful], truth, &c., as fanciful writers have imagined. The moral sense, or conscience, is as much a part of man as his leg or arm. It is given to all human beings in a stronger or weaker degree, as force of members is given them in a greater or less degree. It may be strengthened by exercise, as may any particular limb of the body. This sense is submitted, indeed, in some degree, to the guidance of reason; but it is a small stock which is required for this: even a less one than what we call common sense. State a moral case to a ploughman and a professor. The former will decide it as well, & often better than the latter, because he has not been led astray by artificial rules. In this branch, therefore, read good books, because they will encourage, as well as direct your feelings. The writings of Sterne, particularly, form the best course of morality that ever was written. Besides these, read the books mentioned in the enclosed paper; and, above all things, lose no occasion of exercising your dispositions to be grateful, to be generous, to be charitable, to be humane, to be true, just, firm, orderly, courageous, &c. Consider every act of this kind, as an exercise which will strengthen your moral faculties & increase your worth.
4. Religion. Your reason is now mature enough to examine this object. In the first place, divest yourself of all bias in favor of novelty & singularity of opinion. Indulge them in any other subject rather than that of religion. It is too important, and the consequences of error may be too serious. On the other hand, shake off all the fears & servile prejudices, under which weak minds are servilely crouched. Fix reason firmly in her seat, and call to her tribunal every fact, every opinion. Question with boldness even the existence of a God; because, if there be one, he must more approve of the homage of reason, than that of blindfolded fear. You will naturally examine first, the religion of your own country. Read the Bible, then as you would read Livy or Tacitus. The facts which are within the ordinary course of nature, you will believe on the authority of the writer, as you do those of the same kind in Livy & Tacitus. The testimony of the writer weighs in their favor, in one scale, and their not being against the laws of nature, does not weigh against them. But those facts in the Bible which contradict the laws of nature, must be examined with more care, and under a variety of faces. Here you must recur to the pretensions of the writer to inspiration from God. Examine upon what evidence his pretensions are founded, and whether that evidence is so strong, as that its falsehood would be more improbable than a change in the laws of nature, in the case he relates. For example, in the book of Joshua, we are told, the sun stood still several hours. Were we to read that fact in Livy or Tacitus, we should class it with their showers of blood, speaking of statues, beasts, &c. But it is said, that the writer of that book was inspired. Examine, therefore, candidly, what evidence there is of his having been inspired. The pretension is entitled to your inquiry, because millions believe it. On the other hand, you are astronomer enough to know how contrary it is to the law of nature that a body revolving on its axis, as the earth does, should have stopped, should not, by that sudden stoppage, have prostrated animals, trees, buildings, and should after a certain time gave resumed its revolution, & that without a second general prostration. Is this arrest of the earth’s motion, or the evidence which affirms it, most within the law of probabilities? You will next read the New Testament. It is the history of a personage called Jesus. Keep in your eye the opposite pretensions: 1, of those who say he was begotten by God, born of a virgin, suspended & reversed the laws of nature at will, & ascended bodily into heaven; and 2, of those who say he was a man of illegitimate birth, of a benevolent heart, enthusiastic mind, who set out without pretensions to divinity, ended in believing them, and was punished capitally for sedition, by being gibbeted, according to the Roman law, which punished the first commission of that offence by whipping, & the second by exile, or death in fureâ. See this law in the Digest Lib. 48. tit. 19. §. 28. 3. & Lipsius Lib 2. de cruce. cap. 2. These questions are examined in the books I have mentioned under the head of religion, & several others. They will assist you in your inquiries, but keep your reason firmly on the watch in reading them all.
Do not be frightened from this inquiry by any fear of its consequences. If it ends in a belief that there is no God, you will find incitements to virtue in the comfort and pleasantness you feel in its exercise, and the love of others which it will procure you. If you find reason to believe there is a God, a consciousness that you are acting under his eye, & that he approves you, will be a vast additional incitement; if that there be a future state, the hope of a happy existence in that increases the appetite to deserve it; if that Jesus was also a God, you will be comforted by a belief of his aid and love. In fine, I repeat, you must lay aside all prejudice on both sides, and neither believe nor reject anything, because any other persons, or description of persons, have rejected or believed it. Your own reason is the only oracle given you by heaven, and you are answerable, not for the rightness, but uprightness of the decision. I forgot to observe, when speaking of the New Testament, that you should read all the histories of Christ, as well of those whom a council of ecclesiastics have decided for us, to be Pseudo-evangelists, as those they named Evangelists. Because these Pseudo-evangelists pretended to inspiration, as much as the others, and you are to judge their pretensions by your own reason, and not by the reason of those ecclesiastics. Most of these are lost. There are some, however, still extant, collected by Fabricius, which I will endeavor to get & send you.
5. Travelling. This makes men wiser, but less happy. When men of sober age travel, they gather knowledge, which they may apply usefully for their country; but they are subject ever after to recollections mixed with regret; their affections are weakened by being extended over more objects; & they learn new habits which cannot be gratified when they return home. Young men, who travel, are exposed to all these inconveniences in a higher degree, to others still more serious, and do not acquire that wisdom for which a previous foundation is requisite, by repeated and just observations at home. The glare of pomp and pleasure is analogous to the motion of the blood; it absorbs all their affection and attention, they are torn from it as from the only good in this world, and return to their home as to a place of exile & condemnation. Their eyes are forever turned back to the object they have lost, & its recollection poisons the residue of their lives. Their first & most delicate passions are hackneyed on unworthy objects here, & they carry home the dregs, insufficient to make themselves or anybody else happy. Add to this, that a habit of idleness, an inability to apply themselves to business is acquired, & renders them useless to themselves & their country. These observations are founded in experience. There is no place where your pursuit of knowledge will be so little obstructed by foreign objects, as in your own country, nor any, wherein the virtues of the heart will be less exposed to be weakened. Be good, be learned, & be industrious, & you will not want the aid of travelling, to render you precious to your country, dear to your friends, happy within yourself. I repeat my advice, to take a great deal of exercise, & on foot. Health is the first requisite after morality. Write to me often, & be assured of the interest I take in your success, as well as the warmth of those sentiments of attachment with which I am, dear Peter, your affectionate friend.
P.S. Let me know your age in your next letter. Your cousins here are well & desire to be remembered to you.
Found! Sexy Scrimshaw Busks
A review of our scrimshaw collection by noted expert Stuart Frank revealed several unusual, fine, and intriguing objects. This 19th century busk — a component of a woman’s undergarments — displays an mysterious scene and inscription. Men and women appear to chase each other in play, possibly in masks. The banner says NO TIGHT LACING, which must certainly refer to the corsetry of which this busk would have been part.
Another busk displays a portrait of a sailor and his lady in an intimate embrace.
Learn more about these pieces and other scrimshaw items by attending our workshop with Dr. Frank.
Found! Letter from John Brown
John Brown is known as an abolitionist, with a deeply held moral abhorrence for slavery, who resorted to violent measures in his attempt to end the institution in 19th century America. His attempt to steal arms from the government at Harper’s Ferry, Virginia resulted in his arrest, trail and execution. During his incarceration in Virginia, many in this country were talking about whether he was a hero or a madman, and much correspondence was sent to Governor Wise of Virginia either asking him to commute the sentence, or the opposite.
Quite a few of these letters have found their way into the collections at the Newport Historical Society. We are not yet sure how. Among them are also several letters from Brown himself, including the one shown here. In this letter, written from jail while he was awaiting execution, he tells his cousin that he feels no shame for what he has done. He writes:
I suppose I am the first since the landing
of Peter Brown from the Mayflower that has either been sentenced to
imprisonment; or to the Gallows. But y dear old friend; let not that fact
alone grieve you. You cannot have forgotten how; & where our Grand
Father Capt (John Brown) fell in 1776; & that he too might have perished on
the Scaffold had circumstances been but very little different. The fact that
a man dies under the hand of an executioner (or otherwise) has but little to do with his true character…
Several Newport abolitionists supported Brown’s plans for an armed slave rebellion, and our archives will allow us to tell more of this story as we assemble the information.
UPDATE: Since adding this post, we have learned the following from Louis A. DeCaro:
In the 20th century, the master scholar of John Brown studies, Boyd B. Stutler, investigated this particular letter, from which a good many facsimile letters were produced. He concluded that the original copy of this letter was in the hands of Storer College, a black college located near Harper’s Ferry, West Va. He mentioned a number of editions of this letter and also which schools/archives possessed copies, but he did not mention your historical society as one of them. Regardless, unless your archive obtained the original from the long defunct Storer College, yours is likely a copy.
It seems that a lithograph was made from the original letter, and what we possess, most likely, is one of the lithograph prints.
Found! Newport Chest of Drawers
Chest of drawers, c. 1760-1770
Mahogany
Possibly John Townsend Shop, Newport
This stunning example of Newport cabinet making has been in the Historical Society’s collection storage since 1959. It has received little or no attention until recently. Once removed from its storage location, it revealed itself as a true beauty in its design and its workmanship. In his seminal book ‘The Arts and Crafts of Newport Rhode Island, 1640-1820’, Ralph Carpenter wrote of such pieces:
“Because of the fame acquired by the block-front, shell carved case pieces of the Townsend-Goddard family, we sometimes lose sight of the fact that many pieces of plainer design, but of equally good cabinet work and materials, were made in quantity. Many of these have been overlooked or unrecognized as part of the Newport output”.
The chest of drawers displays many of the stylistic elements associated with Newport pieces in general and pieces known to be the work of members of the Townsend family in particular. Made from beautifully figured mahogany, the matched drawer fronts create a remarkable visual effect that is enhanced by the complex curves of the unusual, reverse-serpentine front. Construction details such as the fineness of the dovetailing, the addition of runners nailed to the bottom of the drawers and the arrangement and carved details of glue blocks and feet behind the brackets, are all traits associated with the John Townsend shop.
Found! Aaron Lopez alias
In 1740, Aaron Lopez and his family fled Portugal, where they could not practice their Jewish faith. They initially lived in New York. Lopez moved to Newport in 1752 and quickly established himself as a merchant. Almost immediately, he began to trade with his native country, using the Lisbon firm of Mayne, Burn & Mayne as his agents. The Aaron Lopez papers at the Newport Historical Society show that in his correspondence with this firm, which began in 1754, Lopez used an alias. Letters to him from Mayne & Co. were addressed to “Mr. Johannes Rhodrick and sometimes to “Mr. Roderick Johannes” before they settled on “Johannes Roderick.” The firm handled sales for Lopez but also provided information about family and friends still in Portugal.
Lopez apparently apandoned the alias after he was granted citizenship in Massachusetts in October, 1762. The letter reproduced here, written in August, 1764, is the last one that uses the alias — and the only one addressed to “Aaron Lopez alias Johannes Rhoderick.”
Found! Oscar Wilde in Newport
In 1882, Oscar Wilde embarked on an American tour, in part brokered by Sam Ward. Wilde came to Newport to perform at the Casino Theater and Ward introduced him to his sister Julia Ward Howe. Henry Marion Hall, Howe’s grandson, recalls Wilde’s visit to Howe’s farm in Portsmouth in his memoir Grandmother’s Blue Coach:
Being a small boy at the time my presence at the tea was not requested, but later I was allowed to accompany the guests down into the vallley. The party included Tom Appleton, the famous Boston wit, Adamowski, leader of the Boston Symphony orchestra, Mrs. Paran Stevens, Lilla Eliott, Grandmother’s nephew F. Marion Crawford, and Oscar Wilde, then at the peak of his popularity.
Knowing nothing about a fad then known as “dress reform” I was bewildered at Wilde’s costume when I walked into the vale beside him. He wore a black velvet jacket, knickerbockers to match, dark silk stockings, and low shoes with glittering buckles. A salmon-colored scarf and slouch hat completed his get-up. It struck me as rather queer, but not half so startling as his hair – long, black, and curling to his shoulders… He held a red rose in one hand and sniffed it as he chatted.
A small program or invitation to Wilde’s lecture, entitled “The Decorative Arts,” was printed in New York, and is part of the collection of materials which Howe’s descendants have donated to the NHS. In September of 2010, the NHS will host a lecture by Kathryn Allamong Jacob, author of King of the Lobby: The Life and Times of Sam Ward.
Found! Gilbert Stuart drawing
The Historical Society owns a pencil sketch that is purported to be drawn by Gilbert Stuart when he was nine years old. Stuart grew up in Newport, and there are stories that his childhood drawings alerted the adults in his life to his gifts. He completed the famous painting Dr. Hunter’s Spaniels, which hangs today in the Hunter House, when he was 12. There is some evidence that the drawing came to us via Stuart’s daughter Jane, a fine artist in her own right. This gives us hope that the provenance is accurate. As we complete our collections records survey (see the special projects page), we hope to learn more about how this now faint, but charming drawing came into our collections.
