Hannah Davis and Her Beautiful Boxes

E N G L A N D ’ S
M A G A Z I N E
July/August 2009
www.YankeeMagazine.com
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a vibrant blue Hannah
Davis example, 12 inches
high by 18 inches across;
a more delicately patterned
yellow box by Hannah
Davis, measuring 6 by 12
inches. background, this
green top-hat box, 9 by
13 inches, was made by
William griffiths & son of
Boston for Furrier & Bean,
a hat manufacturer
in Belfast, maine.
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cess began with the rawestcess
of materials.
began with the Vermont’s
rawest of materials.
shelburne museum
Vermont’s
(open shelburne museum (open
foreground, left and right:
foreground, left and right:
a vibrant blue Hannah
She roamed the woods near
Sheher
roamed
home,the woods
near her
home,
mid-may
to mid-october)
mid-may
and the to mid-october) and the
Davis example, 12 inches
selected the tallest trees
selected
she could
the tallest
treesacademy
she could
melville
museum (open
melville
sat-academy museum (open sathigh by 18 inches across;
sunday
afternoons
urday
in july
and sunday afternoons in july
find, and then hired localfind,
hands
and
to then
fell hiredurday
localand
hands
to fell
a more delicately patterned
andinvented
august) in
jaff rey center,
and new
august) in jaff rey center, new
yellow box by Hannah
and deliver them. She invented
and deliver
a footthem. She
a footHampshire, boast fine collections
Hampshire,
of
boast fine collections of
Davis, measuring 6 by 12
powered slicing machinepowered
to shaveslicing
off machine
to shave off
inches. background, this
Hannah Davis bandboxes. For
Hannah
more Davis bandboxes. For more
long vertical strips of green
long
wood.
vertical
Shestrips of
green wood.
green top-hat box, 9 by
information,
visit:She
shelburnemuseum
information, visit: shelburnemuseum
13 inches, was made by
bent the strips and molded
bent them
the strips
to and.org
molded
them to
and jcvis.org
.org and jcvis.org
William griffiths & son of
form
the
sides
of
the
boxes
form
and
the
used
sides
of
the
boxes
and
used
Boston for Furrier & Bean,
pine discs for the bottoms
pine
anddiscs
covers.
for the bottoms and covers.
a hat manufacturer
in Belfast, maine.
She affixed wallpaper toShe
theaffixed
outsidewallpaper
to the
merchants,
butoutside
soon found
merchants,
she needed
but soon found she needed
surfaces, newspaper to line
surfaces,
the inside.
newspaper
to lineher
themarket.
inside. Loading
to expand
to expand
up her
her market. Loading up her
The boxes were functional,
Theversatile,
boxes were wagon
functional,
versatile,
with boxes
and taking
wagon
them
withonboxes and taking them on
and affordable, selling forand
12 affordable,
cents for selling
forshe
12discovered
cents for she
the road,
thecould
road,make
she discovered she could make
a trinket-size one just 5 ainches
trinket-size
high, one
justof5a inches
more
profit byhigh,
selling more
them of
directly
a profit by selling them directly
to suitcase-size examplestofor
suitcase-size
50 cents to
examples
for 50 girls
centsin the
young factory
to young
mill towns
factory girls in the mill towns
each. Best of all, they were
each.
beautiful—
Best of all,along
they were
beautiful— River.
the Merrimack
alongWord
the Merrimack
of
River. Word of
her well-made boxes spread,
her well-made
and they boxes spread, and they
soon became fixtures in homes
soon became
across fixtures in homes across
New England.
New England.
“Hannah Davis wasn’t the“Hannah
only per-Davis wasn’t the only person making these wallpapered
son making
boxes,”these wallpapered boxes,”
notes LaGina Austin, notes
specialist
LaGina
in Austin, specialist in
American furniture and decorative
Americanarts
furniture and decorative arts
at Skinner Auctioneers, “but
at Skinner
if one can
Auctioneers, “but if one can
attribute a box to Davis, itsattribute
value immea box to Davis, its value immediately goes up.” That’s especially
diately goes
trueup.” That’s especially true
for examples that carry Davis’s
for examples
printedthat carry Davis’s printed
label inside their covers:label
“Warranted
inside their covers: “Warranted
Nailed BAND BOXES manufactured
Nailed BAND
by BOXES manufactured by
HANNAH DAVIS, East Jaffrey,
HANNAH
N. H.”
DAVIS, East Jaffrey, N. H.”
Prices at auction range from
Prices
a few
at hunauction range from a few hundred dollars to several thousand.
dred dollars
Mostto several thousand. Most
desirable are the smallest desirable
trinket boxes
are the smallest trinket boxes
and the largest, grandest
andexamples.
the largest, grandest examples.
b y c at H e r i n e r i e D ebly c at H e r i n e r i e D e l
Austin cautions that as with
Austin
any cautions
paper that as with any paper
collectible, condition is vitally
collectible,
imporcondition is vitally important; fading, tears, stains,
tant;
foxing,
fading,
or tears, stains, foxing, or
mold may lessen a box’s value
mold signifimay lessen a box’s value signifihile growing up, I sharedhile
a room
growing
withup,
myIvery
shared
neata and
roomorganized
with my very neat and organized
cantly, so opt for near-perfect
cantly,
examples.
so opt for near-perfect examples.
sister. I was the bane of her
sister.
existence.
I was the
Artsy
baneand
of her
disheveled,
existence.I proArtsy and disheveled, I proI’m going to keep my eyeI’m
outgoing
for a to keep my eye out for a
vided the perfect foil to her
vided
tirade
the of
perfect
tidiness.
foil “A
to her
place
tirade
for everything,
of tidiness. “A place for everything,
Hannah Davis bandbox—a
Hannah
peace
Davis bandbox—a peace
and everything all over the
and
place”
everything
was myall
motto.
over the
I favored
place”pretty;
was myshe
motto.
likedI favored pretty; she liked
offering to my sister, perhaps.
offeringWild
to my sister, perhaps. Wild
adorned with f lowers, fruits,
adorned
ribbons,
with f lowers,
fruits, ribbons,
practical. I liked fancy; she
practical.
opted for
I liked
function.
fancy;Now,
she opted
years later,
for function.
I think I’ve
Now,
found
yearssomething
later, I think
we I’ve found something we
with decoration,
yet simple
with
in form
decoration,
and yet simple in form and
wildlife, historic f igures,
wildlife,
pastoral
historic
f igures,
can both agree on: bandboxes
can both
by Hannah
agree on:
Davis.
bandboxes by Hannah Davis.
function,
theypastoral
strike the halfway
function,point
they strike the halfway point
Hannah Davis was born Hannah
in Jaffrey,Davis
New was
Hampshire,
born in Jaffrey,
in 1784,
New
the Hampshire,
sole offspring
inof
1784,
gutsythe
piosole offspring of gutsy pioscenes, even fantastic landscapes.
scenes, even
Han-fantastic
landscapes.
Hanbetween
my world
and hers:
between
They’re
my world and hers: They’re
neers. The deaths of her father
neers. and
Thethen
deaths
herofmother
her father
left and
Davis,
then
a 34-year-old
her mother left
spinster,
Davis,
alone
a 34-year-old
and
spinster, alone and
nah Davis boxes struck nah
a chord
Davis
with
boxespretty
struck
a chord with pretty neat.
neat.
nearly penniless. She facednearly
the daunting
penniless.
task
She
of faced
supporting
the daunting
herself task
in a small
of supporting
rural town
herself
surrounded
in a small rural town surrounded
young New England women,
youngadding
New England women, adding
by wilderness: no small feat
byfor
wilderness:
a man in no
thesmall
early feat
19thfor
century,
a man let
in the
alone
early
a woman.
19th century, let alone a woman.
representsCatherine
Skinner Riedel represents Skinner
a splash of color and fancya to
splash
an oftenof color Catherine
and fancyRiedel
to an oftenBoxes to store hats, collarBoxes
bands,toand
store
other
hats,
personal
collar bands,
sundries
andwere
other
necessary
personalaccoutrements
sundries were for
necessary accoutrements for
austere Early American existence.
austere Early American
Auctioneers
existence.
and Appraisers Auctioneers
of Boston and
and Appraisers of Boston and
men and women of the time,
men so
and
Davis
women
summoned
of the time,
her Yankee
so Davisspirit
summoned
and in 1818
her Yankee
began aspirit
cottage
and in 1818 began a cottage Davis first bartered goods
Marlborough,
617-350- Massachusetts. 617-350Davis
and first
ser- bartered
goodsMassachusetts.
and ser- Marlborough,
industry fashioning boxesindustry
out of spruce
fashioning
and pine,
boxes
covered
out of in
spruce
popular
andwallpaper
pine, covered
patterns.
in popular
The prowallpaper patterns. The pro5400,
508-970-3000;
5400, 508-970-3000; skinnerinc.com
vices for the boxes or sold vices
themfor
to the
localboxes
or sold
them to localskinnerinc.com
Hannah Davis Hannah Davis
faced the daunting
faced the daunting
task of supporting
task of supporting
herself in a smallherself in a small
rural town surrounded
rural town surrounded
To survive, this rugged
To survive,
pioneer
thiswoman
ruggedused
pioneer woman used
by wilderness: by wilderness:
what was all around
whather—trees—
was all around her—trees—
no small feat no small feat
to create something
to create
useful something
and lovely.useful and lovely.
for a man in thefor a man in the
early 19th century,
early 19th century,
let alone a woman.
let alone a woman.
64 |
64 |
yankeemagazine.com
courtesy of skinner inc.
Hannah
Hannah
Davis Davis
and and
Her Beautiful
Her Beautiful
BoxesBoxes
courtesy of skinner inc.
N E W
yankeemagazine.com
july | august 2009
july | august 2009
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Reprinted with permission from Yankee Magazine, July/August 2009
YK0709_Antiques_E.indd 64-65
YK0709_Antiques_E.indd 64-65
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6/30/09 11:08:57 AM