The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1924-04-03
COLONIAL ROOM
At MUSEUM :.
ATTRACTS
Scores Of Lovers OF Antiques
Are Visiting Revolutionary
Days Exhibit.

Lovers Of antiques and students
Of colonial history by the scores
are visiting the colonial room just
opened at the National Museum.
The. room was assembled by Mrs.
Gertrude d. Ritter as the unit
around which a typical. colonial
house will be assembled. It pre-
sents in all of the minutest details
the appointments of the living room
or dining room of the early colonial
homes and is declared to be the
finest example Of it's kind In
America.
/. Removed bodily from the old
Bliss home in Springfield, Mass.
erected in 1850, the interior stands
today as 1t did when first installed.
a beautiful specimen Of the ar.
tistry Of its day when the archi.
tect, the carpenter and the build.
or were combined in the single In.
dividual who worked largely by fis
book Of proportions and confined
his decorative designs to the pur.
! est Of ancient schools.
!, When removed it bore little re.
semblence to the appearance il
presents today. Generations of
descendants of the days when IL was
constructed, coming under the in.
fluence Of modern ideas played
/. havoc with its beautiful carvings.
Coat after coat of paints, varnieh
ana Shillac were spread over its
surface. Fortunately no require
ment Of the new idea necessitated
defacing 1t and possibly, after all,
the numerous coats Of paint acted
as a preservative. However that
may be the renovating process to
: which It was submitted after com.
Ing under the supervision Of the
smithsonian institutions specialists
have restored 1t in all its original
beauty, somewhat mellowed by
time, but otherwise exactly as #
would have appeared to please the
exacting housewife Of Revolutionary
days.
Furnishings In Keeping.
The furnishings are strictly in
keeping with the room. They show
more than do the carved and fluted
panelings, cornice mouldings and
mantel the effects Of time, but they
are practically and substantially as
sound today as when in use q
hundred and fifty years ago. Reno
waiting them has been quite sue
cessfully carried out, with the ex-
ception Of a small table. The latter
fell into the hands Of an enthus-
. iastic but misguided mechanic. It
can be remedied. however, to q GER
tain extent, and after all a century
hence it will show few indications
!, of its recent doing over"
: Much OF the, furniture has his.
torical associations. BY the fire
place stands a chair made by Saw
cry, of Philadelphia, for John Potts,
founder of Pottstown. 1T came di.
rectly to the collection from the
Potts family. A PennsyIvania Dutch
chest furnishes an example of the
decorative painting of ITS. A
Windsor rocker, belonging to the
Morton family, Of Georgetown, IL in
the collection. Among the furnish
1ngs is handsome walnut chaise
lounge, of 1925. which came origin
ally from the Otis house in Marsh.
field, Mass. It is of the pure Dutch
type with slat back and, the six
1abrole legs terminating in club
feet, the back legs being plain. The
walnut center table dates back pos
Gibly to 1900. It represents the
American copy of the English oak
tables Of 1550-1600.
Interesting Pine Stand.
A unique and interesting bit of
furnishing is the pine stand with
Its rows of lead candle molds. It
was probably made in 1880.
A rather comprehensive collec-
tiOn Of American glassware features
the room. Represented IL the prod
,uct of Casper Wistar, of New Jer.
gey, 1850. and Of Steigel, Of Lam
caster county. Pa, 1850. A few
pieces of signed American pewter,
gold and silver luster ware, 1870,
and of Lowestoft, of England,
brought over by early settlers, are
Included.
It IL proposed to construct around
the collection a model colonial
house. When completed, it will
include a structure of it's own,
which, according to tentative plans,
will occupy a space on the ground
just west of the National Museum.
CANNOT INDlcT $4,000