Exhibitions

In the early 19th century, Thomas Charles Fletcher was a well-educated New England merchant specializing in fancy hardware, silver, and other stylish goods. Sidney Gardiner was a talented silversmith from Long Island. “One might presume that their paths would never cross,” says Donald L. Fennimore, a Winterthur curator emeritus.

But they met in Boston, established a business in 1808, and moved to Philadelphia three years later. With Fletcher in charge of garnering commissions and creating designs and Gardiner presiding over the silver workshop, “they were perfect business partners,” says Fennimore, co-curator of Silversmiths to the Nation: Thomas Fletcher & Sidney Gardiner, 1808–1842, the exhibition of the firm’s work that will open at Winterthur on July 4.

To register for the “American Silver of the Early Nineteenth Century” Conference, call 800.448.3883.

The accompanying book, Silversmiths to the Nation, is available at the Winterthur Bookstore.

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