Sampler Symposium Field Trips
Leaving From the Biggs Museum of American Art
March 21, 2014
Trip:Wilmington and Winterthur: A Needlework Excursion
Time: Friday, March 21, 2014
9 a.m. – 5 p.m.
Cost: $110/person
Limited to 10 people
Price includes transportation, tours, and entry fees, but does not include lunch.
Description. This is a full day needlework excursion to see samplers and other historic embroideries in two important Delaware collections. First stop is the Delaware Historical Society’s History Museum in downtown Wilmington. We will be taken behind the scenes into textile storage for a private showing of about 20 Delaware samplers. Jennifer Potts, Curator at the Delaware Historical Society, will be our guide, highlighting pieces in the museum’s collection that showcase Delaware’s important families and significant historical events. This will be followed by a breath of fresh air, and stroll around nearby Williston Square, where six historic houses have been relocated into an urban park. Second stop is Winterthur Museum and Gardens where we will grab a bite to eat at the Garden Café in the visitor’s Pavilion, while enjoying the spring foliage and blooms. During the afternoon we will enjoy a custom tour of Henry Francis du Pont’s magnificent home, with a focus on the historic textiles and outstanding needlework on display. The day will also include a tour of the museum’s Textiles and Needlework Gallery and a peak behind the scenes with Linda Eaton, Winterthur’s Director of Collections and Textile Curator. She will share stories about some of favorite pieces in Winterthur’s collection of decorative needlework, including the museum’s historically important Delaware samplers.
Trip: Historic Odessa
Time: Friday, March 21, 2014
12:30 – 5 p.m.
Cost: $60/person
Limited to 10 people
Price includes transportation, tours,
and entry fees, but does not include refreshments.
Description. Step back in time with a trip to Cantwell’s Bridge, 18th century name for the historic village now owned and operated by the Historic Odessa Foundation. Our tour starts at the Odessa Bank, an impressive 1853 brick building that serves as Historic Odessa’s visitor center. We will then spend the afternoon touring the village’s grounds, gardens, and historic buildings, with a special focus on the samplers and other needlework on display and in storage. At the Corbit-Sharpe House, we will tour the handsome Philadelphia-style Georgian home of William Corbit, original owner of the local tannery. Built in 1774, the home reflects the region’s lifestyle in the late 18th-century, based on an 1818 household inventory. Many of the furnishings are original to the house, making it one of the most well documented historic homes in the mid-Atlantic. In contrast, the furnishings of the Wilson-Warner House, built in 1769 by merchant David Wilson, reflect those recorded in a “List of Sales” during the family’s 1829 bankruptcy. The Collins-Sharp House is a picturesque log and frame home that is one of Delaware’s oldest residences. It provides the perfect backdrop for a demonstration of open fire cooking, to be conducted for our benefit. To round out the afternoon, we will enjoy some relaxing refreshment at Cantwell’s Tavern, an 1822 brick edifice featuring local farm-to-table produce in an early 19th century atmosphere. Along with an array of fine food, local raw oysters are a Friday special at $1 a piece. And there will be an opportunity for a bit of shopping at a local antiques store, housed in the village’s c. 1780 Pump House.
March 23, 2014
Trip: M. Finkel and Daughter Antiques
Time: Sunday, March 23, 2014
12:15 – 5:00 pm
Cost: $50/person
Limited to 10 people
Price includes transportation, refreshments, and drop off at Philadelphia’s International
Airport by 4:00 pm for those with evening flights.
Description: Amy Finkel, of M. Finkel & Daughter Antiques in downtown Philadelphia has invited attendees of the Delaware Sampler Symposium to a private afternoon of sampler viewing and light refreshments. M. Finkel & Daughter is one of the nation’s premier dealers in historic samplers and related girlhood embroideries. For many, Amy’s shop at 936 Pine Street is a destination not to missed if anywhere near this historic American city. Amy promises to have a stunning array of American and European samplers on display for our viewing pleasure, and will be on hand to discuss their various features and merits. Combining this visual treat with tasty light refreshments and drink mean an afternoon of sampler bliss. Sampler Symposium attendees with their own transportation are also welcome to attend. Map and details about parking will be provided.