Wood-turning treadle lathe

Treadle lathe WS 102

The Museum of Lincolnshire Life not far from the centre of Lincoln is a fascinating place to spend a few hours, really well run and just so much to see.  Only one thing is missing: there is not a single Lincolnshire chair in the whole building. However I did come across this lathe; many people ask what sort of lathe the Lincolnshire chairmakers would have used and this picture gives the answer. The treadle on the floor would be pedalled by the turner himself and after a full day turning out components I should think he would have been quite weary. One exception was at Caistor were the chair lathes were driven by an overshot waterwheel fed by a stream - look out for tomorrow's post ...

© William Sergeant 2020

A pair of Lincolnshire rush-seated bar top ladder back side chairs: straight back uprights with tapered feet & flattened stay rail fixed onto prominent button turnings; 3 plain domed ladders; straight turned front legs, morticed into the seat frame, missing rushing bars; front stretcher with turnery often found in Lincolnshire, double side & rear stretchers

A pair of Lincolnshire rush-seated bar top ladder back side chairs WS 100

A few months after I originally found WS 86 I was lucky enough to chance upon these two near identical chairs at the Newark Antiques fair in April 2013; they too are similar to figure NE 214 at p. 159 of Dr B D Bernard Cotton's The English Regional Chair (1990), chair which he attributes to South Lincolnshire. They are both in excellent condition and came a house clearance on the Nottinghamshire/Leicestershire border.  Well-worn front stretchers mean they have been well-used: they have been re-rushed some time ago but without their original rushing  bars being re-attached.

© William Sergeant 2013 and 2020

Lincolnshire Windsor hoop back side chair, with 6 long spindles, straight seat sides, ring and cove turned front legs, plain back legs and H stretcher

Lincolnshire Windsor side chair, Grantham WS 88

A little gem of a chair with a very unusual feature. Although it is unsigned it has all the characteristics that you would associate with a Grantham chair. The seat is made of elm and the rest is ash; but just study those front legs for a moment. They are crisply crafted by an experienced turner but on close inspection they are most definitely not made out of ash. They look remarkably like yew wood but there many woodworm holes: one of yew wood's features is that it is never attacked by them so that rules yew wood out. The only wood that I think it can be is birch and if so this is (was at that time - ed.) the first time I have ever seen it used in a Windsor or kitchen chair. If you have ever seen it used before then please let me know. A further note on the use of birch  was in yesterday's post about WS 60.

© William Sergeant 2020

Peter Tree discovering a front leg made from birch on a Lincolnshire rush-seated side chair

WS 60

The pair of chairs which appear in WS 59 had some wood in the front legs that I didn't recognise - one of the hall marks of a Lincolnshire rush seated chair is that they are invariably made out of ash. So the only thing to do was to pay a visit to my good friend Peter Tree: after some discussion in which we ruled out most woods we could think of Peter found his eyeglass and on closer inspection of the grain he established that the wood in question was in fact birch. It's not at all common in vernacular chairmaking to use birch in the UK but chairs that were imported from Scandinavian countries often were.

In July 2014 I was able to get Adam Bowett to look closely at this chair and he confirmed that it was in fact birch wood in the front legs.

© William Sergeant 2012

Update: further research has revealed that a number of Caistor chairs have birch components, including birch seats.  Since birch does not grow to seat-size dimensions in the UK we did a little more hunting and discovered that there were importations of American birch, which grows to a greater diameter, during the 19th century and quite possibly before that. Instances of birch cargos coming into the port of Hull have been found in advertisements in UK newspapers.

© William Sergeant and Julian Parker 2020

Lincolnshire child's rush-seated armchair, straight backpoles w tapered feet, 3 ladders domed with downward shape, turned front legs morticed into rounded arm turnings, Lincolnshire front stretcher, single stretcher x 4,

Lincolnshire rush-seated child's armchair WS 77

I am grateful to Brian Gray for letting me take this picture of his very rare Lincolnshire child's rush-seated armchair. 

© William Sergeant 2020

Lincolnshire rush-seated bar top ladder back side chair: straight back uprights with tapered feet & flattened stay rail fixed onto prominent button turnings; 3 plain domed ladders; straight turned front legs, morticed into the seat frame, missing rushing bars; front stretcher with turnery often found in Lincolnshire, double side & rear stretchers

Lincolnshire rush-seated bar top ladder back side chair WS 86

Many thanks to Brian Gray for drawing my attention to this chair at a south Lincolnshire auction in 2013; I was away overseas and he kindly bought this one for me in my absence. These bar topped chairs are not common, in fact it's only the third one I have ever seen*. It's also the most simple of all the Lincolnshire rush-seated chairs: those front legs are as plain as can be with no pad feet or off-centre turning involved. In Dr B D Bernard Cotton's The English Regional Chair (1990) there is one very similar on page 159, figure NE 214. One of my neighbours brought a similar one at a south Lincolnshire  auction several years ago and images appear below: WS 5, 6 and WS 7:

Lincolnshire bar top rush-seated chair WS 5

Lincolnshire bar top rush-seated chair - detail of bar top stay rail and button turning WS 6

Lincolnshire bar top rush-seated chair - detail of front leg turning morticed into seat WS 7

*by January 2013

© William Sergeant 2020

Scroll back bar back Windsor armchair, possibly Northamptonshire, with bell shaped seat, curved stay rail, cross rail with split multiple bobbin turning, turned underarm supports, 3 ring front and plain back legs with vase feet, H stretcher

Scroll back bar back Windsor armchair, possibly Northamptonshire WS 125

I try ever so hard to restrict my chair collecting to chairs that have a Lincolnshire connection but I could not resist purchasing this one a while ago from the Newark Antique fair. Let me explain: there are references in Dr B D Cotton's The English Regional Chair (1990)  and elsewhere of stamped chairs by John March of Geddington and John Powell of Northampton.  James Drake has let me have photos of his signed chairs. They all have features that could originate from Thames Valley and some features from Lincolnshire but one design element that keeps occurring is the split turning applied to the lower back bar. When Bill Cotton called in three years ago I got him to cast his eye over this chair and he reinforced my opinion that this chair could well be attributed to one of the Northants makers.

© William Sergeant 2020

Lincolnshire comb back Windsor armchair with curved crest rail, turned stiles, 7 long spindles, 6 short, turned underarm supports, straight seat sides, 2 ring front leg turnings with vase feet, rear legs plain with vase feet, H stretcher, attributed to the workshop of Samuel Wood of Grantham

Lincolnshire comb back Windsor armchair with curved crest rail and turned stiles

I had just published yesterday's post on the chairs of Samuel Wood of Grantham, in which three chairs with turned underarm supports, believed to be unique to that maker's workshop, are featured, when I thought I might just check again whether there were any other stamped "Wood Grantham" chairs hiding on the web anywhere. I spent a few minutes checking my usual sources amongst auction houses, antiques dealers, and all other material for chair-fans published on the web: nothing emerged. I have a comprehensive private digital database of every known stamped Lincolnshire chair and checked that to make sure I hadn't overlooked one that was already known about. Nothing.

I went for a walk around the garden to get a breath of fresh air in these sad days of self-isolation. I had a chat, from a distance, with one of my wonderful neighbours, decided I was getting a little chilly, and went back to my laptop which is currently set up on the dining room table so I can watch the world go by through the windows.

As I sat down I glanced at one of my chairs that sits around the table and did a double take. I was looking at a front leg absolutely identical to the lower chair in yesterday's post, WS 175. I cautiously looked up and realised that I was now looking at an identical underarm turning. The back legs, plain but with vase feet are the same as WS 175 too. 

The long spindles all are thicker below the arm bow and thinner above the arm bow, which is also true of the upper chair in yesterday's post, WS 173. The ends of the arm bow are finished in the same way. The rear legs and H stretcher, the centre part of which, unusually amongst Lincolnshire chairs, is almost of the same girth as the legs, are the same as WS 173. The front chamfer on the sides and front of the seats are the same. The whole seat shape is very similar.  This comb back, which I bought last year because of its pleasing proportions, can now be attributed to the workshop of Samuel Wood of Grantham.

WS 173, reversed, on the left; comb back on right

It is striking how well the comb back's 3 pairs of turned rings, graduated in descending size, cascading from top to bottom, i) on the stiles (vertical turned outer members); ii) on the turned underarm supports; and iii) on the front legs, bring the design of the chair together into a well-balanced harmonious whole. The craftsman who made this chair was very skilled indeed.

Sharp-eyed readers may notice considerable similarity to this chair by George Wilson.  George Wilson, was of course, Samuel Wood's master when the latter was apprenticed. There are tell-tale differences between the two chairs.

The Samuel Wood workshop went for two similarly-sized inverted isosceles trapezoid spaces either side of the 3 short spindles. This is a pleasingly harmonious method of resolving the angles which happen when the comb leans back and the underarm support, holding the arm bow in tension, leans forward (ditto for WS 173).  Four vase-shaped feet break up the otherwise straight line at the foot of the legs and mirror the turning at the top of the stiles.

The Wilson chair places the first short spindle each side below the arm bow further back, behind the mortice joint where the stile meets the arm bow. This leaves a larger asymmetric trapezoid space at the underarm support, which does not sit so elegantly with the upper obtuse trapezoid space between the last long spindle and the stile of the comb.  The single lower ring, which may be a slightly earlier Grantham trait than vase-shaped feet, has no counterpoint on the back legs. The result, for me at least, is that the Wood chair has a slightly more pleasing feel.

© Julian Parker 2020

A pair of Lincolnshire low bow back Windsor armchairs, one stamped WOOD GRANTHAM with 3-piercing fleur de lys splat, single-pierced lower splat, 6 long spindles, 6 short, turned underarm supports, straight seat sides, 2 ring turned legs with vase feet, front and back, H stretcher with extra rear stretcher on one chair

Lincolnshire low bow back Windsor armchair, stamped WOOD GRANTHAM WS 173, from the workshop of Samuel Wood Grantham 

Lincolnshire low bow back Windsor armchair WS 175, unstamped, with a bow back template cut to replicate that of WS 173, from the workshop of Samuel Wood Grantham

The lower chair WS 175 was given to my mother on her marriage in the 1940s by my grandmother - so it has been in my family for at least 75 years.  It is unsigned and obviously from Lincolnshire but only recently did I manage to verify who made it.

The upper chair WS 173,  is a signed "WOOD GRANTHAM" which I found locally in 2016: it is the first one that I have handled. When I compared the two chairs side by side they looked so similar but just to confirm I made a MDF cut-out of the shape of the back bow of the signed one and offered it up to the other - there was a perfect fit - like Cinderella after the Ball.

So this left me in no doubt that my family heirloom was made in the workshop of Samuel Wood of Grantham.

© William Sergeant 2020

A similar chair appears at figures NE64 and NE65 on p.125 of Dr B D Cotton's The English Regional Chair (1990), although that chair has a crinoline stretcher, rather than the H stretchers on the two chairs featuring in this post. Dr Cotton remarks of figure NE64 that the "turned underarm supports are specific to this maker".  Since all three chairs have identical arm turnings, that statement is confirmed. 

Valentine Samuel Wood was baptised at St Wulfram's Church, Grantham on 17 February 1821.

Samuel Woods aged 20 appears as apprentice in the Manthorpe Road household of George Wilson, chair maker in the 1841 census.  From that, one suspects that his apprenticeship would have started in 1835 or thereabouts. Valentine Samuel Wood married Jane Morris in Grantham in 1846. Samuel Wood appears separately from George Wilson under chair makers and turners in both the Post Office Directory and Pigot's Directory for 1849. Valentine Samuel Wood together with Jane and three children appear in Manthorpe Road in the 1851 census with his occupation given as Chair Manufacturer.


On 12 March 1852 there appears in the Stamford Mercury a Freehold estates sale at the Three Crowns Inn in Little Gonerby which begins as follows: 

"To be SOLD by AUCTION, by Mr. Joseph Roberts, At the Three Crowns Inn in Little Gonerby, near Grantham, on Friday the 26th day of March instant, Six o'clock in the Evening, SEVERAL Freehold MESSUAGES, and Pieces or Parcels of BUILDING GROUND, situate and being in Little Gonerby aforesaid, in the following or such other lots as may be then determined upon:— Lot 1. All that well-accustomed Public-bouse, called the Three Crowns, tbe tenure or occupation of George Newton, his under-tenants or assigns, with a small Garden and Yard contiguous (as staked out), and also a Stable, Shed, and small Yard detached. Lot 2. A Messuage or Tenement, lately occupied by Edward North; together with a Cottage and Stable the back thereof, occupied by Samuel Wood; and a Piece or Parcel of Land or Ground, containing 920 Square Yards or thereabouts; being very desirable situation for carrying on an extensive Business, or for erecting Tenements, having a Frontage of 50 Feet towards the Street, with access to two convenient Roads the back."

Edward North, also mentioned in Lot 2, was a fellow Grantham chair maker. 

On 21 July 1860 at the Grantham Temperance Gala and Flower show, Samuel Wood of Little Gonerby is recorded, whilst unplaced, as having won one of 8 special prizes of 2s each awarded by the judges of "Class 13 Potatoes, Kidney ... the entries all being so very good." 

In the Stamford Mercury of 4 January 1861 there appeared the following letter:

"Christ's Hospital, Lincoln, 1st Jan., 1861. 
Mr. Editor, 
SIR,— The accompanying paper would have been read by the Rev. the Chancellor at the distribution of Prizes the above School on St. Thomas' last, had not that Rev. Gentleman been under the impression that he had forgot to bring it with him. As its publication would tend to show the public the nature of the situations to which my boys generally go, and also to wipe away the slanderous aspersions which have recently been so liberally showered upon them, I should feel obliged by its insertion in your widely-circulated and highly-respectable journal. Although the subjoined list contains, it would at once be presumed and admitted by any intelligent and candid mind, the names of boys widely differing in intellectual power and moral worth, yet in no single instance have I had, up the present moment, complaint preferred to me against any one of them by a master. I am, Mr. Editor, your obedient Servant, W. DALTON."

The subjoined list shows four columns: Name of Boy, Situation, Master, and Residence and 25 boys, the eighth entry of which reads "Geo. Harding, Chair maker, Samuel Wood, Little Gonerby".


And so, in the April 1861 census Samuel Wood Chair maker, appears at 23 Manthorpe Road, with Jane and 4 children, including 13 year old Robert, ditto as chair maker, though presumably like the aforementioned 14 year old member of the household, George Harding, Robert would have been, as Harding is described, a chair maker's apprentice.  Robert's baptism was at St Wulfram's Grantham on 5 December 1847, son of Samuel, Chair maker, and Jane.

The Lincolnshire Chronicle on 11 April 1862 records:

"SPITTLEGATE and LITTLE GONERBY, LINCOLNSHIRE. MR. JOSEPH ROBERTS will offer for SALE AUCTION, at the Angel Hotel, in Grantham, on Tuesday, April 22nd, 1862, at six for seven o'clock in the evening precisely, subject to conditions of sale to be then produced, and the following, or such other lots, as shall be determined on, the following valuable FREEHOLD ESTATES. [...] IN LITTLE GONERBY : - 

Lot 3. All that Piece or Parcel of Land now occupied as Garden Allotments, containing 4,100 square yards or thereabouts, bounded on or towards the north by land belonging to the vicar of Grantham, on or towards the south lot 4, on or towards the east land of the Earl Brownlow, and on or towards the west land of Robert Azlack White, Esq., and now in the occupation of Samuel Woods and others. 

Lot. 4. All those two cottages or tenements with the outbuildings and gardens and land in front of the same, containing 1,140 square yards thereabouts, in the tenure or occupation of Mr. Samuel Woods, bounded on or towards the north by lot 3, on or towards the south by property of Mr. John Collingwood, Mr. Smith, Mr. Garret, and others, on or towards the east road or way dividing this lot from lot 5, and on or towards the west by property of Robert Azlack White, Esq. 

Lot 5. All those four tenements or cottages, blacksmith's shop, stable and outbuildings the respective occupations of Robert Spick, Darins Deacon, W. Singleton, and W. Morris, bounded on or towards the north by land formerly used as a burial ground, on or towards the south the high road leading from Grantham to Manthorpe, and on the west the said road or way dividing the lot from lot 4. All the above lots are tithe and land tax free. Further particulars may be had on application to the Auctioneer, or HENRY BEAUMONT, Solicitor, Grantham. At whose office plan of lots 3, 4, and 5 may be seen. Grantham, April 5th, 1862."

The allotments were doubtless where the prize potatoes were lovingly raised. 

In the Grantham Journal of 24 January 1863 a sign of possible financial strain appears:

"POLICE INTELLIGENCE. GRANTHAM, Monday, January 19.—Before the Mayor, Ex-Mayor, Dr. Eaton, and Messrs. Shipman, Ridge, and Jeans. [...] Mr. George White, smith, Little Gonerby, was also summoned for refusing to pay 1s 6½d., church-rate. Mr. Cooper, vestry clerk, proved the rate. Defendant at first said that he should reserve his defence for a future period; but afterwards stated that part of the rate was applied to defraying the expenses consequent on the "ringing of the church bells," which he objected to pay, and considered a valid objection. He had been three times called upon for the rate. Their worships made an order for payment within one week, or a distress warrant to be issued. The same order was also made against Abraham Clarke and Samuel Wood, chair maker, who did not appear in court."

 From The Grantham Journal of 16 July 1864: 

"The annual Gala in connection with the Temperance movement in Grantham, and the Flower Show, were held on Tuesday, in the grounds ot Arnold Field House, the residence of W. Ostler, Esq. The weather was exceedingly favourable, and a large number of people assembled, and were entertained in various manners. "Dicky Horne," of course, commanded a fair share of attention, and there were other gentlemen on the platform who advocated the desirability of all becoming total abstainers. In other parts of the ground the band of the Robin Hood Rifles,  conducted by Mr. Turpin, and quadrille band, also from Nottingham, discoursed good music in excellent style. There performances formed the principal features of the Gala, and to the latter dancing was entered into in a spirited manner. The Swiss wonder Piping Bullfinch was again to be viewed and listened to for twopence per head, but did not receive so large a share of patronage as on the former occasion. Refreshments were provided by Mr. J. M. Edwards, who was well patronised. [...] COTTAGERS' DEPARTMENT [...] Class 7. Strawberries, dish of. 5s. to David Pyle Spittlegate; 3s. to Samuel Wood, Little Gonerby. 4 entries."

Samuel Wood seems to have turned his back upon the temperance movement: a sad notice in The Grantham Journal of 3 October 1868:

"THE BANKRUPTCY ACT. 1861. IN the County Court of Lincolnshire, holden at Grantham. SAMUEL WOOD, of High Street, Spittlegate, Grantham, in the County of Lincoln, Beerhouse-keeper, and late of Little Gonerby, in the County of Lincoln aforesaid Chair Maker having been adjudged Bankrupt on the 31st day of August, 1868, a Public Sitting for the said Bankrupt to pass his Last Examination, and make application for his Discharge, will be held at the said Court, at the Guildhall, on the 19th day of October, at half-part Eleven o'clock in the forenoon precisely, the day last aforesaid being the day limited for the said Bankrupt to surrender. The Registrar of the Court is the Official Assignee, and Mr. George Belk, of 6, High Pavement, Nottingham, is the Solicitor acting in the Bankruptcy. JNO. G. THOMPSON, Registrar. "

A notice in the Stamford Mercury of 23 October 1868 states 

"The BANKRUPTCY ACT, 1861. In tbe COUNTY COURT LINCOLNSHIRE holden at GRANTHAM. In the Matter of SAMUEL WOOD, of High-street, Spittlegate, Grantham, in the county of Lincoln, beerhousekeeper, and late of Little Gonerby, in the county of Lincoln aforesaid, chair-maker, adjudged Bankrupt on the 29th day of August, 1868. AN Order of Discharge will be delivered to the Bankrupt after the expiration of Thirty Days from this date, unless an Appeal be duly entered against the Judgment of the Court, notice thereof be given to the Court—Dated this Nineteenth day of October, 1868. JNO. G. THOMPSON, Registrar."

In the 1871 census Samuel Wood with Jane and 2 children is at 14 London Road (Ale house), occupation "Wood Turner + Publican".  In White's Directory for 1872 he appears at a beer house at London Road Grantham. In the 1881 census, still with Jane at 24 London Road, he is merely Beer house keeper. In the 1891 census still at no 24, still a beer house keeper but widowed and living with his daughter Emma Watts and her husband Charles, a master tailor. The Probate entry of Valentine Samuel Wood of 24 London Road, Grantham, beerhouse keeper died 8 December 1891, is granted Administration (with Will) on 19 February 1892 to Emma Watts (wife of Charles Watts). Effects £25.

Samuel and Jane's son Robert appears at 59 Norton St Grantham in the 1871 census, with wife Ann Elizabeth neé Wright, whom he had married at the Independent Chapel, Grantham on 10 June 1867, and daughter both called Ann, occupation 'Joiner'. Thereafter there seems to be no trace.

© Julian Parker 2020

Lincolnshire rush-seated ladder back side chair with 4 domed ladders, straight back poles with tapered feet, with Lincolnshire front stretcher, double rear and side stretchers, rushing bars, turned front legs with vase feet morticed into the seat frame

Lincolnshire rush-seated ladder back side chair WS 186

About five years ago I was sent some photographs of two rush seated ladder back chairs that were in a house near to Spilsby. One of them was identical to the chairs in WS 59 and it is of the type that I come across quite regularly. I have been able to trace these sorts of chair to southeast Lincolnshire and I am confident that they were made by the Spikins family of chair makers in Boston and Spalding. The other chair - pictured above - had straight front legs and a front stretcher with the same pattern as the rocking chair in WS 120. Again, I believe that these sorts of chairs come from the southeast Lincolnshire: indeed the rocking chair came out of a junk shop in Bourne.  So the fact these two chairs appeared in Spilsby, an area of the county where I would only expect to find the cabriole front legged chairs like WS 157, got me wondering if I had got my origins of these chairs wrong.

It was after my talk in Spilsby in the spring of 2017 that these two chairs were brought along to my chair surgery open day. I was able to photograph them both and to inquire into their provenance. Their tale was intriguing.

Throughout the nineteenth century there was a successful banking business in Lincolnshire called the Garfit, Claypon & Co Bank that had at one time ten branches throughout the county. In 1891 it merged with another company which was later absorbed into Lloyds. It was at that time when Bartholomew Claypon Garfit - a partner in the business - sold his large house near Boston to buy a large hunting estate near to Spilsby, bringing all his furniture with him. In subsequent years this estate was broken up and part of the furniture found its way into the ownership of a descendant close to Spilsby. It was that family that had brought along these two chairs for me to see.

So my belief that these types of chairs were made in the Boston area was once again re-inforced by the finding out the provenance of them in Spilsby which definitely showed that their history could be linking to the Boston area over 100 years ago.

© William Sergeant 2017 and 2020

Lincolnshire child's originally rush-seated chair with 3 domed ladders front legs and underarm turned in one, turned arms, straight back poles with flattened finials

Lincolnshire child's originally rush-seated chair with 3 domed ladders front legs and underarm turned in one, turned arms, straight back poles with flattened finials

I have no doubt that this tiny child's chair came from the same workshop as that in WS 42. Just compare those front legs and the cross stretcher, there are even some scribe marks just beneath the front leg turnings which is typical of some  Lincolnshire workshops. However it has had a brutal past. It was once rush-seated but someone has taken away the rushing along with the rushing bars and replaced the seat with ply wood. The dealer still wanted a ridiculous price for it which I was not prepared to meet but at least I have recorded it here.  The chances are that I will probably never find another one like this.

P.S. I found out later that a dealer from Holland bought it, so it looks like it has gone overseas ...

P.P.S. UPDATE: By some strange quirk of fate this chair was offered for auction a few months later in Leominster! I wasn't going to miss it this time and I secured it for a very reasonable amount and was so pleased to add it to my collection. See WS 120 for comparison to other chairs.

© William Sergeant 2020

Lincolnshire rush-seated ladder back child's chair compared to ladder back rocking chair and ladder back side chair

WS 120: L-R WS 108 child's rush-seated chair, WS 42 rush-seated rocking chair of small proportions, and WS 59 RH full-size ladder back with pad feet

The child's chair is already featured in WS 108 but is compared here to two other chairs; it has replacement rushing bars but is the most delightful example of Lincolnshire regional furniture. The rocking chair with the missing lower ladder is also pictured elsewhere at WS 42. The full-sized rush-seated side chair on the right, from WS 59 is the most common design that I come across. While there are obvious design features that unite these three chairs,  there is also the fact that all have iron pins driven through from the back to secure the ladders into the back upright. Besides that all have faint scratch rings on the back legs to aid in their construction. All this leads to me to have no doubt that they all came from the same workshop.

© William Sergeant 2020

Lincolnshire medium bow back Windsor armchair by Nicholas Allen of Boston with 9 long spindles, 8 short, turned underarm supports, bell-shaped seat, 2 ring front leg turnings with vase feet, plain back legs with vase feet, H stretcher with dart turning

WS 174 Lincolnshire medium bow back Windsor armchair by Nicholas Allen of Boston

Arm turning detail, Lincolnshire medium bow back Windsor armchair by Nicholas Allen of Boston

Nicholas Allen, son of Nicholas Allen and Mary Allen neé Needlar was baptised on 17 June 1764 at Stainton le Vale in the Lincolnshire Wolds, 6 miles north east of Market Rasen and 6 miles south east of Caistor. On 6 March 1835 the Stamford Mercury recorded the 

"Death at Boston on Wednesday last aged 71 Mr Nicholas Allen, chair turner of Wide Bargate."

The St Botolph's Boston burial register shows that he was buried on 9 March and he is recorded as being 70 years old.

Nicholas was the second of twelve children

There appeared in the Stamford Mercury on Friday 6 August 1790 this advertisement: 

"WANTED IMMEDIATELY, A JOURNEYMAN PIN-CHAIR and SPINNING-WHEEL MAKER.—A good Hand may have constant Employ, and good Wages, by applying to NICHOLAS ALLEN, Chair and Wheel-Maker, of Boston, Lincolnshire N.B, Letters (Post paid) duly answered."

"Nicholas Allen, Pin, Chair & Spinning-wheel maker" is his entry in The Universal British Directory 1791.

On 17 May 1790 the register of St Botolph's Church, Boston contains this entry

"This marriage was solemnised between us 

Nicholas Allen

Frances Harrison + Her mark

In the presence of Us

James Hildred H his mark

John Allen"

The Lincolnshire Marriage Licence Bonds and Allegations reveal that Frances was a widow.

As their son John was baptised at St Botolph's on 27 November 1790 just over six months' later there may have been an element of haste over the wedding.

Masters & Apprentices County Series Vol IR 1/66 Folio 179/52 shows an entry in 1793 as follows: "Master: Nicholas Allen, Turner. Apprentice: Wm Haw 1 16 May 93. 7 yrs fm date. Sum paid £7 7s 0d. Duty paid £0 3s 9d. Date Duty Paid 16 May 1793. Date entered 31 July 1793. Collector: Richd Gibbeson Lincolnse."

On 10 June 1803 the Stamford Mercury advertised:

"To Pin Chair-makers and Bottomers. WANTED, a JOURNEYMAN to each of the above Businesses; who will meet with constant Employment, and liberal Wages will be given, by applying to NICHOLAS ALLEN, Chair and Spinning-wheel-maker, Boston, Lincolnshire. 10th June 1803."

On 11 March 1808 in the Stamford Mercury appeared:

To PIN and FANCY CHAIR-MAKERS . WANTED immediatelv, Two Journeymen Chair-makers Good hands will meet with constant employ and liberal wages by applying to NICHOLAS ALLEN, chair-maker and job turner, Boston, Lincolnshire.—Letters to be post paid. March 10th 1808."

Stamford Mercury - Friday 16 November 1827 contained the following sale:

"BOSTON, Lincolnshire. To be SOLD by AUCTION, At the Red Lion Inn in Boston, Wednesday the 28th day of November instant, at Six o’clock in the afternoon, subject to such conditions of sale as shall be then and there produced, unless previously disposed of by private contract, of which due notice will be given; A Valuable Freehold ESTATE, in Boston. 

Lot 1. A Messuage or Tenement, and Grocer’s Shop, in an excellent state of repair, situate in Wide Bargate, near to Pen-street, with Yard, and Rain Water and other conveniences, as the same are now in the occupation of Elizabeth Moody. 

Lot 2. Allotment of Land in the West Fen, (Tithe-free,) in the parochial allotment to Boston East, containing 4A. 2R. 22P, or thereabouts, lying near to Richardson’s Bridge, and abutting on the Horncastle road on the West, well fenced, and in a high state of cultivation, now in the occupation of Nicholas Allen. 

Lot 3. Piece or Parcel Building Ground, situate on the West side of Pen-street, containing about 200 Square Yards, with a Frontage of 21 feet next the street. 

Part the purchase-money may remain on security of the premises, if required.-—For particulars enquire of Mr Nicholas Allen, the owner ; or at the office of Messrs. Thirkill and Rogers, solicitors, Boston."

In Pigot's Directory 1828-39 Nicholas Allen is recorded as a cabinet maker as he is in the 1835 edition.

On 3 July 1829 the Stamford Mercury records: 

"On Thursday the 25th ult., aged 50, the widow Dawney, cowkeeper, of Boston West. Same day, aged 80, Frances wife of Mr. Nicholas Allen, chair turner, of Bargate, Boston." 

and on 6 March 1835 

"Death at Boston on Wednesday last aged 71 Mr Nicholas Allen, chair turner of Wide Bargate."

Nicholas had a much younger brother, Joseph, the twelfth of his parents' children, baptised at Stainton le Vale on 10 July 1785 who died at Boston on 15 February 1848. He is recorded as a Chair and General Turner in Pigot's Directory 1835 at Cheapside, Boston as as a turner in the 1841 census.  When Joseph married Elizabeth Haw, a widow in St Botolph's in 1814, his nephew John, Nicholas and Frances's son, was one of the witnesses.

John appears at Bargate in the 1841 census as a chair maker: he died on 16 September 1841 and was buried at St Botolph's three days later.

One thing that stands out about Nicholas Allen from the above sequence of advertisements is that had chairs such as the one featured in this post not survived, it would never have been known that his workshop made Windsor chairs.  All the advertisements mention pin chairs or fancy chairs and spinning wheels. Pin chairs are rush-seated - hence the advertisement for chair bottomers in 1803.  

Allen seems to have been a resourceful craftsman with a wide range of output. It is rare in Lincolnshire to find a workshop that made both rush-seated and  Windsor chairs.

© Photos William Sergeant 2020 Text Julian Parker 2020

Unstamped low bow back Lincolnshire Windsor armchair possibly by Thomas Simpson of Boston with 9 long spindles, 8 short, crook underarm supports, bell-shaped seat, ring and cove front leg turnings with lower ring, plain back legs, H stretcher with dart turning

WS 168 low bow back Windsor armchair possibly by Thomas Simpson of Boston 

I had seen this chair in Newark and on inspection I found there was no makers stamp but I was taken by its unusual form of having a low backbow. Even though I had not seen this design before I decided to leave it. On revisiting the shop several months later it was still there so I was able to negotiate a good deal and it joined my collection. I saw it as a challenge to see if I could work out who had made it. A thorough examination showed facets running along the length of the long spindles indicating that they had been made with a draw knife. I was even more intrigued to find out who the chairmaker was . Another feature was the fact that the two outside long spindles were secured in place by pins that had been driven right through the backbow and were visible from the front and back . This is a rare constructional technique as most makers only leave the pins showing at the back. 

A good indication of the maker is the dimensions of the seat as they used their own template over many years; on measuring this one and comparing the result with all the signed chairs that I have, only two came close . One of these had pins only showing from the back but the other had pins visible from both sides; could that maker have made this one as well? It was a chair that I have had for several years (WS 123) and while I was handling it I noticed for the first time that it too had short spindles shaped with a draw knife, not turned on a lathe. By closing my eyes and using my fingers to feel, the facets running up the spindles were obvious. These chairs surely had to have been made by the same maker. And the name of that maker is T SIMPSON of BOSTON . The only other chair by this maker that I have photographed but was not allowed to touch is in the  V&A and if you read the description of that chair it mentions that components of that chair were made with a draw knife as well. For more details on this maker then please read my notes on WS 123 - there were in fact 3 of them - Grandfather, father and son.

© William Sergeant 2018 and 2020

Lincolnshire rush-seated ladder back armchair: 5 ladders with lower indented shape, straight back poles with flattened finials, front legs with graceful pad feet with upper turning joining the arms, Lincolnshire front stretcher turning, double side and rear stretchers

Lincolnshire rush-seated ladder back armchair WS 22

A Lincolnshire rush-seated ladder back similar, but not identical, to one that appears at figure NE189 on page 154 in Dr B D Cotton's The English Regional Chair (1990).  The front legs and turnings are very similar but the arms of NE189 are straight, whereas those in this chair curve and terminate in a flattened rounded saucer shape. This chair is taller and consequently has room for an extra ladder.

© William Sergeant and Julian Parker 2012 and 2020

Leicestershire curved comb back Windsor armchair by William Rowe of Hallaton, with 14 long spindles, 8 short, crook underarms, bell shaped seat, ring and cove leg turnings, front and back, H stretcher with barrels

WS 170 Leicestershire curved comb back Windsor armchair by William Rowe of Hallaton

It is immediately obvious that whoever made this chair was well versed in his trade and could be considered to be a professional chairmaker. While I have not seen another chair quite like this one there are many pointers to where the maker learnt his trade. For instance, the bell shaped seat (in plan view) is just typical of what I would expect from a Lincolnshire maker as are the rings and cove decoration to the front legs. The seat appears to be made from ash and the rest of the chair from yew wood with spindles for back support - all point to an association to early Lincolnshire chairmakers circa 1800 - 1820.

Pictured below is the undercarriage of the chair.  Some features that point to a different influence of manufacture: one design element that appears and which I have never seen on a Lincolnshire chair is the elegant barrel-shaped lozenges on each of the three stretchers. Identical stretchers may be found on this East Anglian chair. The double ring design at the bottom of the legs is found on Mendlesham chairs and others associated with East Anglia.   - I have never seen these on a signed Lincolnshire chair. 

The back spindles being united with a top comb rail may lead some to think that this is a Lincolnshire trait, which is right as a design feature, but it would be wrong by the date, as these did not appear on early chairs but seem to become fashionable after 1835. The number of spindles in the back are 14 long and 8 short which would appear to be excessively high in total and would add nothing extra to its structural integrity; a typical example would be this chair by Amos that has 9 long and 8 short. The size and shape of the top comb is unique as far as I know as are the two outside long back spindles with their beautifully crafted lengths of different diameters. The fact that the two frontmost short spindles have been let through and wedged into the armbow points to superior craftsmanship and has only rarely been recorded before by me.  The final point to note is that the back spindles holes have been drilled right through the seat; the only Lincolnshire chairs that have this feature are those probably made by Joseph Newton of Fenton which are much earlier, dating from 1725 to 1750.  There are Nottinghamshire chairs recorded with this feature from the Retford and Rockley workshops, particularly associated with William Wheatland.

Finally I come to the name stamp - and I find this a real conundrum: most makers who their own name stamps used them with large letters either on the upper surface of the seat or on a side edge; these were put there with the expressed purpose of advertising their wares. The impressed mark of W Rowe is more typical of a retailer but I do not think this applies in this case. It could be easily explained by the fact that the name stamp is the same one used by Mr William Rowe to stamp his own tools in his chest to identify his possessions.

Research into this maker only shows he was recorded working in Hallaton in Leicestershire in the early 1840's. There is a John Rowe, chair turner in Pigot's 1835 Directory in Hallaton. William Rowe appears as chair maker in the 1841 Pigot's Directory. There are 2 William Rowes in the 1841 Poll Book for the Hundred of Gartree which included Hallaton. There are 3 William Rowes in the 1841 census in Hallaton, one a shoemaker aged 55, one a grazier aged 80 and one aged 65 'of independent means'.

He may well have had a business employing several journeymen, as did the Lincolnshire chairmakers, and one of them could have made this chair after learning his trade as an apprentice somewhere in East Anglia and incorporating the design features common to that area. Alternatively, it may be found after more research that it was Mr Rowe who originally came from EA and learnt his trade there. It may be possible to unravel this dichotomy with time and research in the archives.

Below is a picture of the edge of the seat of this chair, clearly showing the impressed name of W ROWE. There are two impressions on this side, one of which is upside down; there is one on the other edge the right way up. It is more like a tool stamp - unlike the larger ones that the Lincolnshire chairmakers used. To date this is the only stamped chair that has been recorded by this maker.

W Rowe stamp

This chair appears at NE 114 on page 135 of Dr B D Cotton's The English Regional Chair (1990).  I did not take these pictures as this chair has been in the USA for the last 40 years. Some time ago while I was talking chairs with Bill Cotton, I expressed a desire to see this chair. That's when Bill told me that it had been taken overseas many years ago. He did remember that a dealer in Burford sold it and gave me his name; I used the internet to try and track him down but with no success, so I just contacted the antique dealers in Burford until I found one who knew where the original dealer was and gave me his contact details.  I tracked this gentleman down in his retirement home on the South Coast and he remembered selling the chair to an American serviceman and as luck would have it he still had some contact details for him. So after some more hunting around on the internet I eventually made contact with the owner of this chair. He was very pleased to hear of my interest in it and after a short while some photographs that his grand daughter had taken arrived as email attachments - and what a wonderful revelation they were! Many thanks to Del Francis in California for allowing me to use these pictures of his chair; they make a very exciting contribution to the understanding of the vernacular chair making in Eastern England.

© William Sergeant 2014 and 2020

Lincolnshire bowback spindleback Windsor armchair by Taylor, Grantham in ash with 8 long spindles, 6 short, turned underarm supports, ring and cove front legs, plain rear legs H stretcher with extra rear stretcher

WS 160 Lincolnshire bowback spindleback Windsor armchair stamped TAYLOR GRANTHAM

Every component is made from ash wood, straight sided seat with the grain running from front to back. Steam bent armbow with turned underarm supports. Six short spindles and eight long spindles. Single ring and cove decorated front legs with plain back legs. Plain H-stretcher with extra one joining the back legs .

This is a superbly crafted early chair from the workshop of Roger and Sophia Taylor of Grantham (c. 1802 to 1811), being light in weight and delicate in construction. The underarm supports are let through the top of the arm bow and wedged: a relatively rare technique on a Lincolnshire chair:

WS 159 underarm support through-mortised and wedged into the top of the arm bow 

Square pins have been driven through from the back but not seen from the front; two on the back bow and four on the arm bow. Weight 10.8 lbs .

From the collection of Brian Gray.

© William Sergeant 2020

Lincolnshire bowback spindle back Windsor armchair stamped AMOS GRANTHAM, 9 long spindles, 8 short (some of laburnum), turned fruitwood underarm supports, elm seat, ring and cove front leg turnings with single lower ring, plain back legs, crinoline stretcher

WS 135 Spindle bowback Windsor armchair stamped AMOS GRANTHAM

This chair, mostly made of yew wood, is clearly stamped on the side of the elm seat AMOS GRANTHAM. Everthing about the chair was original and one would not have guessed that it was by this maker, were it not for the name stamp . The underarm supports are not what one would expect: they are not too dissimilar to the pattern used by Taylor and also by Marsh. The front legs are of the common and typical pattern of early Lincolnshire chairmakers and not of the multiple rings that are associated with Amos. This chair had been well used and there were several issues with splits and cracks. The remarkable feature of this chair is the wood used for the short spindles and underarm supports.

WS 134 Detail of spindle bowback Windsor armchair stamped AMOS GRANTHAM

A close-up of these is in the picture above and it is clearly seen that laburnum has been used for the short spindles and a fruitwood, possibly plum, has been used for the underarm support. Many thanks to Christopher Pye for allowing me to photograph his chair. It is rare for laburnum to be used in chair making, certainly in Lincolnshire*, but it just goes to show how these makers would make use of almost any wood that was available on the day.

© William Sergeant and Julian Parker 2020

* Laburnum is not uncommon in Scottish chairmaking tradition.