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I am the resident cat lady. I’ve always had cats, and whenever a cat was spotted on the property, Public Safety would call me, so I got involved with a local cat rescue. I was on one of my many wanders through the museum when I first started 20 years ago, and I was drawn to a cabinet with these chalkware figures. There’s a whole assortment of animals, and they’re all unique and charming in their own ways. I’ve always been drawn to them in general because they have little eyebrows, and any time you put eyebrows on an animal, that just cracks me up. But once I spotted that cat, it was the one. It is so beautifully painted. We don’t know exactly when it was made or where. It’s very generic that way, so it’s like an Everyman’s craft. As a cheap alternative to ceramics, chalkware was an option for the more creative. Made from plaster of Paris, figures could be made at home in any style or shape, using a homemade mold. Early chalkware pieces can be hollow or solid, painted with watercolors, oils, or even tempera. This one is adorable. I’m not normally on the eighth floor to do tours anymore, but I do walk through the museum once or twice a week, and I make a point of stopping up to see all the little chalkware figures, especially my kitty.
Cat figure
England, France, or United States (East Coast), 1850-1900
Lilies: This week the martagon lilies (Lilium martagon) are at their peak in Azalea Woods, Enchanted Woods, and, more sparsely, in other areas of the garden. Catch them now. Their bloom is brief but beautiful.
Primroses: The candelabra primroses (Primula species) are still creating a colorful show of orange in full bloom and red, pink, and white in petal fall in the Quarry Garden.
Escape the heat: The glade from the March Walk to the Icewell Terrace walk is an ocean of green ferns that, together with the tree canopy, create a cool oasis. Try it!
Everywhere: But, listed only here:
The tiny white-to-pale-pink daisies of fleabane (Erigeron annuus) are blooming throughout the Estate.
White clover (Trifolium repens) in the fields and lawns is providing nectar and pollen for the pollinators and nitrogen for the soil.
Roses – hot & cool!: The roses on Sycamore Hill are in full bloom this week. The bright reds of ‘Bess Lovett’ and ‘Radwin’ are bright beacons along the fence, and the pale colors of damask rose ‘Pink Leda’ (Rosa ‘Pink Leda’) and white Meidiland rose MEIvahyn) add to the serenity of the follies along with palest pink New Dawn rose (Rosa ‘New Dawn’) along the fence.
White clouds: The drifts of Kousa dogwood (Cornus kousa) blossoms hover above the white clouds of deutzias (Deutzia species, Deutzia scabra, Deutzia x magnifica) on Sycamore Hill, Oak Hill and in smaller displays throughout the Gardens.
Lilies: The martagon lilies (Lilium martagon) are starting to bloom in Azalea Woods, Enchanted Woods, and, more sparsely, in other areas of the garden.
Primroses: The candelabra primroses (Primula species) are still creating a colorful show of orange in full bloom and red, pink, and white in petal fall in the Quarry Garden.
Escape the heat: The glade from the March Walk to the Icewell Terrace walk is an ocean of green ferns that, together with the tree canopy, create a cool oasis. Try it!
Everywhere: But, listed only here:
The petal-dropping airy white umbels of viburnums (mostly Viburnum dilatatum – linden viburnum & some Viburnum dentatum – arrowwood viburnum) are found throughout the Gardens and Estate this week.
The yellow, green & orange flowers of tulip poplars (Liriodendron tulipifera) can be seen on the trees & also on the ground. Look up or down to see them.
The tiny white-to-pale-pink daisies of fleabane (Erigeron annuus) are blooming throughout the Estate.
The purple, lavender, and white flowers of Dame’s rocket (Hesperis matronalis) are present in lesser or greater abundance in the gardens and fields.
White clover (Trifolium repens) in the fields and lawns is providing nectar and pollen for the pollinators and nitrogen for the soil.
This towering clock by the renowned Peter Stretch stands as the most beautiful example of a tall case clock ever made in America.
Many would call it a grandfather clock, but the label would hardly do it justice, as demonstrated by its place of pride in a space already filled with premium examples of exceptional American craftsmanship.
Walk through the main gallery entrance, turn left, and there it stands front and center. The clock was made between 1730 and 1745 by leading clockmaker Peter Stretch of Philadelphia. It was commissioned by merchant Clement Plumsted (1680-1745) or his son, William Plumsted (1708-1765), to make an impression.
One of about 60 known examples of clocks by Peter Stretch, Winterthur’s clock stands out.
“He’s saying, ‘I am a man of means. I have a lot of capital at my disposal. I’m successful. I can command these resources. I can order, pay for, and ship the mahogany. I have that that global power at my fingertips,’” says Josh Lane, the Lois F. and Henry S. McNeil Curator of Furniture.
One of about 60 known examples of clocks by Stretch, Winterthur’s clock stands out. The heart of the object is the eight-day, weight-powered works. The arched brass dial is beautifully engraved with urn, bird, and fleur-de-lis motifs and the corners are embellished with cast brass spandrels. Roman and Arabic numerals on the large chapter ring mark hours and minutes and Arabic numerals on a small chapter ring mark seconds. A small square aperture reveals the day of the month. A moon phase dial with numbered edge shows the waxing and waning of the moon and timing of the tides. An oval plate bears the engraved signature of the maker.
“The movement has all the bells and whistles that you would expect a Philadelphia-based merchant would want,” Lane says. “The tide dial is geared toward Philadelphia mercantile ocean-going activity. There were other, more complicated and more expensive works made in the period, but it’s the combination of this movement in this case that puts it over the top. It is probably the most elaborate and beautiful case ever made in America.”
Standing more than eight feet tall, the case is distinguished by magnificent carving. An arched hood is surmounted by an ogee sarcophagus top carved with floral and foliate designs surmounted by three flame-and-urn finials. The cornice molding features egg-and-dart carved molding, dentil course, and blind fretwork incorporating the Plumsted coat of arms supported by rampant lions. Colonnettes with Corinthian capitals grace the sides of the hood.
The exact identity of the case maker is not known, but it may be Philadelphia cabinetmaker John Head, based on comparison with other examples of his work. Stretch may have worked with the cabinetmaker directly, or Plumstead may have commissioned the case based on his desires and tastes, a common practice at the time.
“It’s very elaborate, over-the-top, expensive, time-consuming workmanship,” Lane says. “The clock is really an extraordinary architectonic statement. No other compares.”
Born in England, Peter Stretch (1670–1746) learned his trade there and then immigrated to Philadelphia in 1702. He quickly became the city’s most prominent clockmaker and was commissioned by Philadelphia’s Common Council to work on the town clock in 1717. His sons followed him into the trade, although they were not as prolific.
Stretch’s shop stood across Chestnut Street from the Plumsted home. This clock remained in the Plumsted family until it was purchased by a private collector in 1943. Winterthur acquired the clock at auction in October 2004.
So why do we call such amazing tall clocks “grandfather clocks,” when it seems as though the term sometimes diminishes their beauty and importance? Thank a wave of nostalgia for the early days of the Republic, after the American Civil War, when people left the cities for new opportunities across the expanding country, and new value was placed on old objects. When popular composer and songwriter Henry Clay Work penned “The Grandfather Clock” in 1875, it forever changed the common name of the tall case clock:
My grandfather’s clock was too tall for the shelf So it stood ninety years on the floor It was taller by half than the old man himself But it weighed not a pennyweight more It was bought on the morn that my grandfather was born And was always his treasure and pride But it stopped short, never to go again When the old man died.
Museum Purchase with funds provided by the Henry Francis du Pont Collectors Circle, the Centenary Fund, Mrs. C. Lalor Burdick, Mr. and Mrs. Richard L. Chilton, Jr, Mrs. Robert N. Downs III, Mr. William K. du Pont, Mr. and Mrs. Frederick C. Fiechter III, Mr. and Mrs. John A. Herdeg, The Hohmann Foundation, Family of Mr. and Mrs. Walter M. Jeffords, Jr, Kaufman Americana Foundation, Mrs. George M. Kaufman, Mr. and Mrs. Barron U. Kidd, Charles Pollak, Peter A. Pollak, Suzanne W. Pollak, Mr. and Mrs. P. Coleman Townsend, Jr, anonymous donors (2), and numerous friends.
To learn more about this clock and others made by Peter Stretch and his sons, see Stretch, America’s First Family of Clockmakers by Donald L. Fennimore and Frank Hohman III, which is available at the Museum Store, or visit the clock in the first-floor gallery.
Terrific ‘Torch’ azaleas: The brilliant blooms of ‘Torch’ azaleas (Rhododendron kaempferi & hybrids) are lighting up Icewell Terrace and the adjoining edges of Enchanted Woods and Oak Hill.
Primroses: The candelabra primroses (Primula species) are brightening the path along the Winterhazel Walk and creating a stunning tapestry of red, pink, orange, and white in the Quarry Garden.
Everywhere: But, listed only here:
The airy white umbels of viburnums (mostly Viburnum dilatatum – linden viburnum & some Viburnum dentatum – arrowwood viburnum) are found throughout the Gardens and Estate this week.
The yellow, green & orange flowers of tulip poplars (Liriodendron tulipifera) can be seen on the trees & also on the ground. Look up or down to see them.
The tiny white-to-pale-pink daisies of fleabane (Erigeron annuus) are blooming throughout the Estate.
The purple, lavender, and white flowers of Dame’s rocket (Hesperis matronalis) are present in lesser or greater abundance in the gardens and fields.
White clover (Trifolium repens) in the fields and lawns is providing nectar and pollen for the pollinators and nitrogen for the soil.
A unique museum object represents a history of strong responses to complex issues.
A recent acquisition now displayed in the Winterthur galleries asks viewers to consider this question:
Are violence and conflict over voter suppression new?
Now part of the Bearing Witness installation, the nearly 150-year-old Anna Pottery Liberty Monument vividly depicts its creators’ scathing criticisms of an incident known as the Colfax massacre. On Easter Sunday 1873, a white mob killed approximately 150 Black citizens of Colfax, Louisiana, as they surrendered after occupying the county courthouse. The Black citizens were defending the result of the 1872 gubernatorial election against an outraged White mob. The election was won by a proponent of recently guaranteed civil rights and voting rights for all.
The Liberty Monument was created by Wallace and Cornwall Kirkpatrick, the white owners of Anna Pottery in Anna, Illinois, from 1859 to 1896. Known to be socially progressive, the brothers were vocal about their views and often commented caustically on events and politics through their work.
The figure of Lady Liberty crowning the monument gives the work its contemporary name. Though the main scene depicted on the monument is the Colfax massacre, other figures represent the Kirkpatricks’ strong view of another Colfax: Schuyler Colfax, who, while vice president of the United States (1869–1873), was implicated in a scandal related to the financing of the Transcontinental Railroad. The monument also criticizes the great cost of the American Civil War, which the Kirkpatricks viewed as theatrical and ineffective in creating a United States in which all were truly free. Though sympathetic to the plight of Black people, the brothers depicted them through common racial stereotypes of the day.
Various accounts of the Colfax massacre were published in newspapers across the country. None of them are definitive. Considered by some to be the worst incident of racial violence in the Reconstruction era, Colfax nonetheless has been largely ignored by mainstream history books.
“The unique Liberty Monument demonstrates unusual skill on the parts of the makers, who typically produced useful wares such as crocks. Much more importantly, it illustrates how vital messages regarding social issues were disseminated via methods beyond the written word and published illustrations,” says Leslie B. Grigsby, senior curator of Ceramics and Glass at Winterthur.
Winterthur acquired the Liberty Monument during the summer 2021 Crocker Farm auction of American stoneware and earthenware. The auction house described the commemorative work as “one of the greatest American ceramic discoveries to come to light in recent decades.”
Grigsby and Alexandra Deutsch, John L. and Marjorie P. McGraw Director of Collections at Winterthur, are working to create a multivocal interpretation for the object by engaging with scholars, students, and others to depict the multilayered history the monument represents.
“We expect the interpretation of this complex object to evolve over time,” Deutsch says. “We fully understand the responsibility we have when we present the challenging history this object represents.”
See the Anna Pottery Liberty Monument (2021.0017) in the galleries as part of Bearing Witness, which considers the stories of underrepresented groups through history.
One of my dad’s favorite games is pool, so we had a table in our basement, and he taught me and my siblings to play when we were kids. I hadn’t played since I moved out six years ago, but then I got to know some new friends who played on a regular basis, and it’s been fun getting back into it. I like this table because it’s a large size that no one has had an opportunity to play on in a long time, and it’s unique for another reason—it’s the oldest American-made table. It also has a lot of presence; it fills up a room that is not small. My exposure to pool tables is fairly modern, so I’m not used to seeing a table with as much decoration in the wood. It’s pretty cool.
Brightest Color – Primroses: The candelabra primroses (Primula species) are brightening the path from the Koi Ponds in the Glade towards Magnolia Bend, the Winterhazel Walk, and creating a stunning tapestry of red, pink, orange, and white in the Quarry Garden.
Everywhere: But, listed only here:
The tiny white-to-pale-pink daisies of fleabane (Erigeron annuus) are blooming throughout the Estate.
The purple, lavender, and white flowers of Dame’s rocket (Hesperis matronalis) are present in lesser or greater abundance in the gardens and fields.
White clover (Trifolium repens) in the fields and lawns is providing nectar and pollen for the pollinators and nitrogen for the soil.
Dove Tree: Check the corner created by the back of the glass Soup Tureen corridor & the Library to see the fluttering white bracts of the rare Dove Tree, or Handkerchief Tree (Davidia involucrata var. vilmoriana) in bloom.
Azaleas & Rhododendrons: The azaleas and rhododendrons in Azalea Woods and the native azaleas in the Pinetum and on Oak Hill are at their best this week, accompanied by azaleas throughout the gardens.
Primroses: The Quarry Garden is filled with a tapestry of red, pink, and white primroses (Primula species).
Mayapples: The ‘umbrella’ leaves of mayapples (Podophyllum peltatum) appear throughout the gardens and estate. They are listed only here as they are ubiquitous. Look for plants with a ‘double umbrella’ to find the white flowers hidden beneath.
Dogwoods and Doublefiles: White or pink dogwoods (Cornus florida species & varieties) are in bud or in bloom throughout the Estate including the edge of Brown’s Woods. They are mentioned only here. The bright white of doublefile veburnums (Viburnum plicatum forma tomentosum) continue the show of white as listed below and throughout the Estate.
Violets: Blue, blue & white, & yellow violets (Viola species) are blooming throughout the gardens and fields. They are mentioned only here.
Everywhere: The tiny white-to-pale-pink daisies of fleabane (Erigeron annuus) are beginning to bloom throughout the estate. They will become numerous as the season progresses. They are listed only here.
As a lifelong museum visitor, one of the things I really appreciate about Winterthur is that during a visit, it’s very easy to move from inside to outside, to enter and reenter, to have time outdoors and time inside with all the extraordinary art from the past. At some museums, you have to commit to being inside their vast buildings without a chance to refresh your senses in nature. Winterthur has a great fluidity to it in that way.
My perfect day here would begin with the exhibitions because I enjoy being in the galleries during the quiet time of day–even though as a curator, I am pleased to see them crowded. I especially love Outside In: Nature-inspired Design at Winterthur. This exhibition is a collaboration with the Delaware Museum of Nature and Science. It is stimulating to see how these different collections can be integrated and appreciated with fresh eyes by two institutions that are across the street from each other.
The first sight that gets me is the little western meadowlark. I’ve never seen one alive, so I can’t help but imagine how incredibly bright and yellow its feathers were then. It’s a yellow that Henry Francis du Pont clearly loved. That color will stay in my imagination when I go back into the garden to listen for birds and think about the creature habitats on the grounds around the museum. Artistic imaginations are so inspired by our environment, and I am proud that Winterthur is working to protect the corner of Delaware that we are in.
After saturating myself with all the thoughts and lush visions encountered in the museum galleries, I would next take the tram or the shuttle back to the parking lot, pick up my picnic lunch from my car, then take a good stroll through the garden and landscape.
One of my favorite spots is Oak Hill. I love it not just for the views, but because it reminds me of a colleague who really treasured his time there, Bruno Pouliot. Bruno was one of our conservators, and I like to remember him using his lunch hour, in his wheelchair, to wheel strongly up that hill to just enjoy the vistas.
My afternoon adventure would first include a quick peek at my favorite objects in the Campbells Collection of Soup Tureens on my way back to the museum. These are such over-the-top dining vessels. I always have to say hello to the silver tureen with the boar handles (object 1996.0004.237 A). It’s not everyone’s taste, but I love the line and movement on the surface and the way the whole tureen undulates and reflects light. It’s such a dynamic design, it’s hard to believe it was hammered from silver.
I know the historic house pretty well but even I discover something new each time I am inside. So my next stop would be a house tour to explore that visual time capsule of America’s creative past. Finally, if I still had energy at end of the day, I would take a near-dusk stroll. The other day I saw the full moon rise over the train station. It was picture perfect.
