- Dressing Table
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Thomas White was born in 1696 in Isle of Wight County, Virginia, to a Quaker family, later moving to Perquimans County, North Carolina, and finally Northampton County, North Carolina. Historians conclude from strong stylistic clues that White apprenticed in Newport, possibly in the shop of one of Newport’s many Quaker cabinetmaking families. When White died in 1788 in Northampton County, North Carolina, his inventory included a workbench, glue pot, lathe, and joiner's patterns. Though there are clues suggesting his presence in Rhode Island, no conclusive evidence placing him there has been uncovered in Colony or town records. (See John Bivins, “Rhode Island Influence on the Work of Two North Carolina Cabinetmakers,” American Furniture [1999]: pp. 81–88; and Rhode Island Furniture Archive at the Yale University Art Gallery).
ProvenanceGeorge Horace Lorimer (1869–1937), Philadelphia; George Burford Lorimer (1908–1952), Philadelphia; […]; [Ginsburg and Levy, New York]; purchased by MFAH, 1987.
Exhibition History"Theta Charity Antiques Show," Reliant Astrohall, Houston, September 11–15, 2002.
"Theta Charity Antiques Show," George R. Brown Convention Center, Houston, November 14–19, 2018.
Inscriptions, Signatures and Marks
Cataloguing data may change with further research.
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