40 Years of Collecting

William Rotch, Jr.

Oil on panel, Edward Dalton Marchant; 1844

Gift of Mary Lou Grinnell, 1985.56.001

This oil-on-panel painting, which hangs on the first-floor hallway toward the pavilion, was copied from an 1828 portrait by Rembrandt Peale, which hangs in the Whaling Museum. 

The donor, Mary Lou Grinnell, was an active member on the Board of Trustees and Collections Committee from the early days of the Museum. A member of the Rotch family, she made significant donations to the collection, many directly related to William Rotch Jr. and his family. After her passing she was made an honor member of the Collections Committee.

We remember Mary Lou Grinnell for her many generous contributions.

Pictured right, bottom: original painting, Portrait of William Rotch, Jr. (1759-1850), 1828, oil on canvas, Photo ©  New Bedford Whaling Museum, New Bedford. CC-BY-NC-ND 3.0 (Unported).

Samuel Rodman, Sr.

Elizabeth Rotch Rodman

Oil on paper, mounted on canvas, Rembrandt Peale; 1828

Gift of Christopher M. Weld, 2008.2.001-002

Our donor, Mr. Weld, acquired portraits of this couple through his paternal great-grandfather Francis Minot Weld (1814-1886), who married Samuel and Elizabeth’s granddaughter, Elizabeth Rodman (1821-1891) in 1841. The portraits now hang side by side in the first-floor hallway.

In addition, Mr. Weld also gifted a letter between Benjamin Rodman—the son of the Rodmans who commissioned these portraits—and his parents, as well as the letter from the artist to him. 

We thank Mr. Weld for these additions to our collection.

Pictured right, bottom: letter from artist Rembrandt Peale to Mr. Benjamin Rodman, 1828. RJD Collections.

Chandelier

Glass, Pairpoint Glass Co., manufacturer; c. 1880-1890

Gift of Mary Lou Grinnell, 1982.77.001

This Pairpoint chandelier was generously donated by Mary Lou Grinnell in 1982 along with several other items, many of which are connected to the Rotch family.

The chandelier was originally made for Henry Huttleston Rogers, a Standard-Oil magnate from Fairhaven. Although it is not original to the house, it is a fine example of a Mid-Victorian clear glass chandelier and its presence in the house enables us to share the history of the Pairpoint Glass Company of New Bedford—one of the most substantial glassworks in the country. 

We remember Mary Lou Grinnell for this and many other valuable contributions to our collection.

Chippendale Desk

Mahogany; c. 1785-1800

Gift of Mary Lou Grinnell, 1984.18.001

This desk is presumed to have been bought and owned by either William Rotch Jr. or his father, and passed down within the Rotch family over several generations. Records indicate that at some point the desk came to the Gifford family—who later put it up for sale at auction in the 1950s. It was brought back by a Rotch descendant, Peter Grinnell, and gifted to the Museum by Mary Lou Grinnell in 1984 as one of our early furnishings. 

In 2007 the Museum arranged for the desk to be brought to an antique furniture restoration business based in Fall River for conservation treatment. That same year it was temporarily loaned to the Winterthur Museum in Delaware and professionally photographed. 

We remember Mary Lou Grinnell for this and many other valuable contributions to our collection.

Chrysanthemums

Pastel, Roxanna Lewis Dabney; 1894

Gift of Hildegarde B. Forbes, 1982.16.001

The Dabneys were close family friends of the Joneses. This pastel, painted by Roxanna Lewis Dabney (1827-1913) and acquired by Amelia H. Jones, hung in a second-floor bedroom—possibly Miss Jones’s bedroom as she favored floral art.

White Azaleas

Oil on canvas, Mary Hathaway Nye; 1885

Gift of Hildegarde B. Forbes, 1982.17.001

The artist of this oil on canvas, M. H. Nye, merits recognition as a self-identified artist whose work sometimes appeared on exhibit in the New Bedford Art Club. Like the Chrysanthemums pastel, this work was acquired by Amelia Jones, and is supposed to have hung in Amelia’s bedroom on the second floor.

Upon Amelia’s death in 1935, her nephew Henry S. Forbes kept both these works in their Milton home until his wife donated them. Today the two pieces hang on the first floor in a rear parlor above the door leading into the hallway, alongside other artworks Amelia Jones collected.

We remember Hildegarde B. Forbes for these and many other valuable contributions to our collection.

French Renaissance-Revival Mantle Garniture Set

Bronze, Shreve, Crump & Low, Boston; c. 1869

Gift of Mary Lou Grinnell, 1982.78.001, 1982.79.001a-b

William James Rotch (1819-1893) displayed this Revival-style French mantle clock set in his Gothic inspired home that was built on land deeded to him by his grandfather, William Rotch Jr.

The donor, Mary Lou Grinnell, was an active member on the Board of Trustees and Collections Committee from the early days of the Museum. A member of the Rotch family, she made significant donations to the collection, many directly related to William Rotch Jr. and his family. After her passing she was made an honor member of the Collections Committee.

We remember Mary Lou Grinnell for her many generous contributions.

Candle Chandelier

Glass, Mount Washington Glass Co., made in New Bedford; c. 1890

Gift of New Bedford Glass Museum / Catherine Crapo Bullard, 1992.8.001

This candle chandelier was used in the home of Catherine Crapo Bullard, who donated it, along with many other Mount Washington glass works, to the New Bedford Glass Museum in 1979. 

Years later, the collection was redispersed during the dissolution of the Museum; with donor approval, the Rotch-Jones-Duff House was identified as a suitable caretaker for the chandelier going forward, and it was rehomed along with a sizable portion of the Bullard glass collection in the early 1990s.

We thank Catherine Crapo Bullard and the New Bedford Glass Museum for their support of our mission—to provide education on local history through the preservation and display of domestic artifacts.

Italian Pietra-Dura Table

Carved and gilded wood base, Italian marble inlaid floral pattern on black onyx; Florence Italy, c. 1870-1890

Gift of Sylvia Winsor Moseley, 1993.71.001

This decorative table is presumed to have been purchased by Miss Amelia Jones during travel to Italy in 1906. According to our records, Amelia gifted the table to Walter Pellington Winsor, the then-President of the 1st National Bank of New Bedford (and grandfather of the donor) in lieu of payment for banking services. It remains one of the most valuable items in our collection; the Museum added the glass top above the inlaid marble design for its protection and preservation.

We thank Mrs. Sylvia Winsor Mosely for this addition to our collection.

The Five Angels 

Oil on canvas

Gift of Barbara A. Courtemanche and Family, 2015.007.001 

The artist of this painting is unknown, but it is a mid-19th century copy of “A Child’s Portrait in Different Views: Angel’s Heads” (1786-7) by Sir Joshua Reynolds. The original painting by Reynolds is on display in the Tate Gallery, London, England. It shows five studies of Lady Frances Isabella Keir Gordon, age five, daughter of Frances Ingram and Lord William Gordon.

A photograph in the collections of the New Bedford Whaling Museum depicts the painting in its current location during Amelia Jones’ occupancy. Amelia later gifted the painting to Mathilde Lindgren, the cook for the Jones family, upon her retirement. Mathilde’s niece Barbara brought the painting back to the RJD in 2015.

We remember Mrs. Courtemanche for this valuable contribution to our collection.

Pictured right, middle: The Five Angels on display on the far right, in Amelia's Jones's front parlor, c. 1906. RJD Collections. An earlier photograph in the collections of the New Bedford Whaling Museum depicts the painting in its current location, positioned to the right of the front windows. 

Pictured right, bottom: Reynolds, Joshua. A Child's Portrait in Different Views: 'Angel's Heads'. 1786–7, oil on canvas, Photo © Tate Gallery, London. CC-BY-NC-ND 3.0 (Unported) 

Dining Room Table

San Domingo Mahogany, Charles F. Hobe, manufacturer; c. 1851

Gift of Hildegarde B. Forbes, 1982.1.001

This Empire-style mahogany dining table was the very first item accepted into our collection, in January of 1982. It was generously donated by Hildegarde B. Forbes.

Records indicate that the table was purchased for $68 in 1851 by Edward Coffin 

Jones to be used in this house. Upon his death, it was inherited by Mr. Jones’s wife, Mary Luce, and later his daughter, Amelia, in 1880. It remained in Amelia’s possession until her death in 1935, when the table passed to her nephew, Henry S. Forbes, the husband of the donor. 

Today the table sits in its original location (before it was used in the Jones family summer home, Skyfield, in Dublin, New Hampshire) in the dining room at 396 County. In its current extended position, with the additional leaves, one can imagine how it would have hosted guests during dinner parties and the annual Jones family Thanksgiving feast. 

We remember Hildegarde B. Forbes for this and many other valuable contributions to our collection.

Sideboard

Walnut, tulip wood, white ash, marble, Benjamin Newhouse, manufacturer; 1851

Gift of James & Mary Stewart Meath, 1986.4.001

This ornate sideboard was purchased by Edward Coffin Jones in New York in 1851 to be used in this house. It remained here during the entire Jones occupancy, through 1935, passing from Mr. Jones’ wife, Mary Luce Jones, to his daughter, Amelia. After Amelia’s passing it went to Sarah Klebs Stewart and later to her daughter, Mary Stewart Meath, and was used at the family home “Skyfield,” in Dublin New Hampshire. 

Mary Meath remembers it as the “hanging duck sideboard from Aunt Amelia’s house,” referring to the high relief carving of a hunting motif on the back of the sideboard. Photographs have verified that the sideboard now sits in its original location. We thank James & Mary Stewart Meath for their donation of this significant Jones-era piece to our collection of furnishings.

Pictured right: Dining room, c. 1917; photo possibly taken by Amelia Jones. RJD Collections

New Bedford Pairpoint Stemware and Cut Glass

Glass, Mount Washington/Pairpoint Glass Co., manufacturer; c. 1850

Gift of Catherine Crapo Bullard, 1992.10.002.001-012

This collection of locally-manufactured stemware and cut glass was owned by Catherine Crapo Bullard, who donated it, along with many other Mount Washington/Pairpoint glass works, to the New Bedford Glass Museum in 1979. 

Years later, the collection was redispersed during the dissolution of the Museum; with donor approval, the Rotch-Jones-Duff House was identified as a suitable caretaker and a sizable portion of the Bullard glass collection was re-homed here in the early 1990s.

We thank Catherine Crapo Bullard and the New Bedford Glass Museum for their support of our mission—to provide education on local history through the preservation and display of domestic artifacts. The New Bedford Glass Museum reopened in the James Arnold Mansion and welcomes visitors to its 7,000-piece collection and extensive research library.

Dinner and Tea Service

Porcelain, “Schumann Arzberg” China; 20th century

Loaned by Deborah Pierce, L2019.9.091

This set of Schumann Arzberg china belonged to Beatrice Duff and was used here during her tenancy, 1935-1980. Her granddaughter Deborah Pierce generously loaned the set to us in 2019, allowing us to use it for temporary display and educational purposes.