“—a chair of oak,—
Funny old chair, with seat like wedge,
Sharp behind and broad front edge,—
One of the oddest of human things,
Turned all over with knobs and rings,—
But heavy, and wide, and deep, and grand,—
Fit for the worthies of the land,—
Chief Justice Sewall a cause to try in,
Or Cotton Mather, to sit—and lie,—in.”
In the Bolles collection is a chair similar to the Harvard chair, and one is shown in Illustration [120], owned by Henry F. Waters, Esq., of Salem. A turned chair of the same period with a square seat is owned by the Connecticut Historical Society.
Illus. 121.—Turned High-chair,
Sixteenth Century.
Provision was made for the youngest of the large family of children, with which the colonist was usually blessed, in the high chair, which is found in almost every type. A turned high chair is shown in Illustration [121], brought by Richard Mather to America in 1635, and used to hold the successive babies of that famous family,—Samuel, Increase, Cotton, and the others. The rod is missing which was fastened across the front to hold the child in, and only the holes show where the pegs were placed to support the foot-rest. This quaint little chair is owned by the American Antiquarian Society of Worcester.
A style of turned chair more commonly in use is shown in Illustration [122], said to have been brought on the Mayflower by Governor Carver. The chair in Illustration [123], originally owned by Elder Brewster, is of a rarer type, the spindles being greater in number and more finely turned. Both of these chairs are in Pilgrim Hall, in Plymouth. Turned chairs are not infrequently found of the type of Illustration [122], but rarely like the Brewster chair or the turned chair in Illustration [120].
The wainscot chair was made entirely of wood, usually oak, with a panelled back, from which came the name “wainscot.” Its valuation in inventories was two or three times that of the turned chair, which is probably the reason why wainscot chairs are seldom found.