Sign for Hammon's Inn
Date1790-1818
MediumPaint on pine board and frame, iron
DimensionsPrimary Dimensions (height x width including hardware): 42 1/4 x 23 7/8in. (107.3 x 60.6cm)
Other (height x width of sign only ): 42 x 23 3/8in. (106.7 x 59.4cm)
ClassificationsPainting
Credit LineCollection of Morgan B. Brainard, Gift of Mrs. Morgan B. Brainard
Object number1961.63.27
DescriptionImages: on side 1: Rhode Island state seal (anchor); on side 2: United States seal
Text: on both sides: in band under image, top line, "R. HAMMON" over [A. Wilkinson]; bottom line, "INN."; on skirt, "1818"; on side 1, over [17??]
Construction: Single board, grain oriented vertically, hand-sawn at top and bottom to create decorative pediment and skirt profiles; no structural frame. Applied, ogee-profiled molding strips, mitered at corners, are nailed to both faces, forming a rectangular image frame. Pediment has scrolls flanking central finial shape; skirt has double ogee lobes.
Text: on both sides: in band under image, top line, "R. HAMMON" over [A. Wilkinson]; bottom line, "INN."; on skirt, "1818"; on side 1, over [17??]
Construction: Single board, grain oriented vertically, hand-sawn at top and bottom to create decorative pediment and skirt profiles; no structural frame. Applied, ogee-profiled molding strips, mitered at corners, are nailed to both faces, forming a rectangular image frame. Pediment has scrolls flanking central finial shape; skirt has double ogee lobes.
Collections
Label TextThe two layers of names on this sign (Hammon and Wilkinson) locate it in Foster, Rhode Island, just across the border from Killingly, Connecticut, on the stage line to Providence. The earlier owner, Almedus Wilkinson, also operated taverns in North Scituate and Providence, Rhode Island, as well as Brooklyn, Connecticut, and his brother Bronwell was licensed in both Plainfield and Killingly, Connecticut. The extent of the Wilkinson family’s inns indicates how irrelevant political borders were, especially for those involved in transportation-related businesses.
NotesTechnique Note: Text is well executed, with calligraphic flourishes flanking the word, "Inn"; lettering is placed within ruled guidelines. Both anchor and eagle have multiple layers of paint on what appears to be the same design, on a white ground. On side 1, the upper layer of paint on the anchor is brown and gold; the lower layer, mostly black and white. The upper corners of side 1 had striped spandrels, now buried under white paint. On side 2, the eagle's upper layer is red and black, with some sponge decoration. The moldings display fewer layers of paint than the board itself.Status
On view
early 20th century
1772-1786
