Roswell Gleason
Burning-Fluid Lamp

Public Domain

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Maker Roswell GleasonAmerican, 1799–1887, active 1822–1871

CultureAmerican

Titles

Burning-Fluid Lamp

Datec. 1840–1860

Made inDorchester, Massachusetts, United States

MediumPewter

Dimensions8 × 3 5/8 in. diameter (20.3 × 9.2 cm)

Credit LineThe Bayou Bend Collection, gift of Barbara E. Butler in memory of her husband, Dr. James J. Butler

Object numberB.2006.23

Current Location

Bayou Bend Collection and Gardens

Texas Room

On view

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Department

Bayou Bend

Object Type

METALWORK

DescriptionRoswell Gleason began as a tinsmith in the 1820s, but later with the encouragement of the American statesman Daniel Webster, he and one of his sons opened the first silver-plating establishment in the United States. The firm would become one of the largest Britannia metal manufactories in America. Gleason's ability to adapt to changing tastes and to keep abreast of technical advances in manufacturing allowed his company to prosper. When Gleason began the production of silver-plate, the style of his work began to change from the simple, traditionally inspired design of his early work to a more heavily ornamented and opulent style which better suited the tastes of his Victorian clientele. Upon his death, Gleason was a wealthy and respected citizen of Dorchester, Massachusetts. Architectural features from Gleason's Dorchester 1837 house are in the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, along with an oil portrait of Gleason.
Provenance Research Ongoing Inscriptions, Signatures and Marks

Marked on bottom: R. GLEASON

Cataloguing data may change with further research.

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