Made in Rhode Island: Fine Linens, Silver, Blown Glass, Ceramics, Candles, Furniture and Textiles
Many of the things that fill our houses today also filled the homes of colonial Rhode Islanders, except in their case, they were (of course) handmade right here in RI, and occasionally goods were imported from Europe. Ironically most of the domestic wares needed to “keep house” during the 18th and 19th centuries were made by men and utilized almost entirely by women.
With spring in the air, I’ve been thinking of flowers, picnics and elegant table settings! These musings led me down a rabbit hole of research while searching for early colonial tabletop wares and hand-crafted luxury goods, all intended to queue up an introduction to an exciting new woman-owned business that recently sprung up on Spring Street: Newport Fine Linens.
Inside the Colonial Home: Setting the table
Before one can set the table, one needs to have one! The mid-1700s was considered to be the golden Age of Rhode Island furniture making and it was largely centered in Newport. The Townsend and Goddard families were part of an expansive cabinetmaking community that lived and worked in Easton’s Point (now just “The Point”); a neighborhood that was mostly comprised of Quaker families. Brothers Job and Christopher Townsend along with Daniel Goddard started their businesses in the early 1700s and put Newport on the furniture design map by innovating unique cabinetry features like “block and shell”-carved motifs and the elite Newport furniture hallmark of “ball and claw”-footed legs. Generations of the Townsend and Goddard families intermarried and worked as cabinet makers and carpenters in Newport for over 120 years, filling fine colonial homes with their unique artisan wood pieces.
Easton’s Point was also where the local silversmiths honed their craft. This “Point” location near the harbor was ideal for silversmiths and cabinet makers to observe the latest décor trends of handcrafted pieces that were being carried off the ships coming to America from Europe to trade with the colonies.
Silver was valued as a luxury good for the ease with which the noble metal could be crafted into a variety of useful yet attractive objects, including drinking cups, snuffboxes, jewelry, belts, teapots and utensils. Silver was a prominent household item in Newport homes because of the many refined artisans that lived and worked here, and it was considered a status symbol. Importantly, it also served as financial protection for widows and families against a relatively new and unstable currency system.
Glassware was also considered a hard-to-get luxury item. The first known glasswork operation in America was established in Salem, MA in 1641 but foreign competition caused many smaller glassworks to shut down in the late 1700s. India Point Glass House in Providence, founded by John Brown in 1796, made glass bottles for a nearby distillery but shut down after a few years due to stiff competition in other parts of New England and abroad.
Which brings us to the vital importance of tabletop candles, a craft that working women in colonial RI were involved in making and selling, along with being generally skilled at textile production and sewing, pottery and soap making. Women referred to as “luminaries” made candles by hand and placed them in lanterns to not only light their homes, but often to light the streets at night. It is said that the Black congregation of the Mt. Zion A.M.E. Church regularly did this community service to protect other women and men walking at night. Modern-day business owner Sierra Jones was inspired by these women to establish a hand-made custom candle company on Thames St., which she affectionately named after these “luminaries,” called LMNRY.
Newport was one of the first cities in America to be illuminated by streetlights. David Melville, a pewterer and housewares maker, was the first to create a gas-powered streetlamp to illuminate his house and shop on the corner of Thames and Pelham Streets in the early 1800s. Before this invention, the only light that homes had after sunset was thanks to precious homemade candles made mostly by women.
Passing the Family Torch: Welcoming Newport Fine Linens to Historic Hill
Newporter Jennifer Boarder owns one of the newest shops on historic Spring Street, located near Trinity Church, however, she is not new to fine luxury and retail. Her family has owned the Irish-import retail businesses Basic Irish Luxury in Newport and the Tipperary Stores located in New England (and online) for decades. “Growing up alongside my mother, Nancy McGrath, a well-respected florist and founder of the family businesses, I learned the art of turning tablescapes into experiences, a family ethos we bring to every event.” Boarder understands how social Newporters are, and how much we love unique experiences. When she acquired a large inventory of fine linens recently, she saw an opportunity to take her highly-honed design inspiration talents and share them with our events-loving community.
Newport Fine Linens is a boutique linen and tabletop rental company with an expansive inventory that showcases every color of the rainbow. Whether it’s an at-home dinner celebration, a seaside wedding, or a large corporate event, you’ll find fine linen options and artful tabletop accoutrements to match every theme and occasion. A visit to Jennifer’s Design Studio is sure to cheer you up on even the cloudiest day, and make you feel like your entertainment cup will always runneth over!
Newport Fine Linens is at 132 Spring St. and visits to Jennifer’s Design Studio are available by appointment. newportfinelinens.com
Sources: Newport Historical Society, Western RI Historical Society, Boston Globe.
Michele Gallagher is a lifelong student of history, an energetic supporter of woman-owned businesses, and the founder of City-by-the-Sea Communications.