Trinket Boxc. 18301 3/4 × 3 1/4 × 3 1/8"Paint, asphaltum, tinned sheet ironGift of the Historical Society of Early American Decoration, courtesy Esther Oldham and Anne Oldham Borntraeger53.2.501548594201Ann ButlerButler TinshopAaron ButlerContainersThe American Folk Art Museum believes this work to be in the public domain.in yellow paint verso: 'A.B.'underside: 'Ann Butler'http://nodes.emuseum.com/BU1BGBAG/apis/emuseum/network/v1/vocabularies/termMaster24596Brandy Hill, East GreenvilleBrandy Hill, East GreenvilleUnited StatesNew YorkThree Dimensional WorkseMuseum - Collection HighlightsBrandy Hill, East GreenvilleSigned "Ann Butler"
Ann Butler was the eldest daughter of eleven children born to Aaron Butler (1790–1860) and Sarah Cornell Butler (1793–1869) in Greene County, New York. The bountiful apple orchards on Butler’s property allowed him to establish a successful cider mill and brandy business. He also operated a general store and hay press. The Butlers of Brandy Hill are best remembered today for the beautiful wares that they produced in the tin shop, which opened in 1824 and continued to operate until a few years before his death. While Butler’s sons were occupied with the manufacture and distribution of the tinwares, his daughters engaged in "flowering" the forms, painting the beautiful designs of scrolls, flowers, and decorative bands that made such tinware desirable. This was one of the few socially sanctioned artistic employments for women.
Ann and her sisters may have learned the art of flower painting as part of their education at Greenville Academy. Ann became the primary decorator by the age of fourteen or fifteen and was conversant with all phases of production of the tinware business, sometimes accompanying her father on trips as far away as New York City. Nevertheless, her involvement in the family business effectively ended in 1840, when she married Eli Scutt. She moved with her husband to Livingstonville, New York, where she raised three children. Ann Butler’s short professional life typifies the course of many young women who were expected to cease such activities after marriage and the establishment of their own homes, but her impact on the aesthetics of tinware produced by the family shop helped to determine the popularity of their wares. Several pieces, including those displayed here, are signed with Ann Butler’s name on a heart-shaped device enclosing her initials. The Battersea-type shaped trinket box and Chippendale-style caddy were among seven pieces that descended within the Butler family.
Stacy C. Hollander, "Tea Caddies, Trunk, Trinket Box," exhibition copy for American Perspectives: Stories from the American Folk Art Museum Collection. Stacy C. Hollander, curator. New York: American Folk Art Museum, 2020. This piece is signed and initialed by Ann Butler, eldest daughter of Aaron Butler (1790–1860) who came to Greene County, New York, from Connecticut in 1799 and established a general store, hay press, cider mill, and brandy business. His home on Brandy Hill also became the site of his tin shop, which opened in 1824 and continued to operate until a few years before his death. The tin shop employed as many as forty workers, including most members of his own family.
Butler's sons were occupied with the manufacture and distribution of the tinwares, and several of his daughters painted the floral decorations. Ann took over decorating by the age of fourteen or fifteen and probably taught her sisters how to paint. She married about 1840 and moved with her husband, Eli Scutt, to Livingstonville, New York. Her work is characterized by dense decoration with a variety of tulips, rosebuds, and diamond baskets, with multiple filler elements. Fancy pieces, such as this Battersea-type trinket box, received decoration of heavy white bands on asphaltum backgrounds.
Stacy C. Hollander, "Trinket Box," in American Anthem: Masterworks from the American Folk Art Museum (New York: Harry N. Abrams in association with American Folk Art Museum, 2001), 319.http://nodes.emuseum.com/BU1BGBAG/apis/emuseum/network/v1/vocabularies/termMaster24596http://nodes.emuseum.com/BU1BGBAG/apis/emuseum/network/v1/vocabularies/termMaster24596http://nodes.emuseum.com/BU1BGBAG/apis/emuseum/network/v1/vocabularies/termMaster2459618251859 53 2 5 Signed "Ann Butler"
Ann Butler was the eldest daughter of eleven children born to Aaron Butler (1790–1860) and Sarah Cornell Butler (1793–1869) in Greene County, New York. The bountiful apple orchards on Butler’s property allowed him to establish a successful cider mill and brandy business. He also operated a general store and hay press. The Butlers of Brandy Hill are best remembered today for the beautiful wares that they produced in the tin shop, which opened in 1824 and continued to operate until a few years before his death. While Butler’s sons were occupied with the manufacture and distribution of the tinwares, his daughters engaged in "flowering" the forms, painting the beautiful designs of scrolls, flowers, and decorative bands that made such tinware desirable. This was one of the few socially sanctioned artistic employments for women.
Ann and her sisters may have learned the art of flower painting as part of their education at Greenville Academy. Ann became the primary decorator by the age of fourteen or fifteen and was conversant with all phases of production of the tinware business, sometimes accompanying her father on trips as far away as New York City. Nevertheless, her involvement in the family business effectively ended in 1840, when she married Eli Scutt. She moved with her husband to Livingstonville, New York, where she raised three children. Ann Butler’s short professional life typifies the course of many young women who were expected to cease such activities after marriage and the establishment of their own homes, but her impact on the aesthetics of tinware produced by the family shop helped to determine the popularity of their wares. Several pieces, including those displayed here, are signed with Ann Butler’s name on a heart-shaped device enclosing her initials. The Battersea-type shaped trinket box and Chippendale-style caddy were among seven pieces that descended within the Butler family.
Stacy C. Hollander, "Tea Caddies, Trunk, Trinket Box," exhibition copy for American Perspectives: Stories from the American Folk Art Museum Collection. Stacy C. Hollander, curator. New York: American Folk Art Museum, 2020. This piece is signed and initialed by Ann Butler, eldest daughter of Aaron Butler (1790–1860) who came to Greene County, New York, from Connecticut in 1799 and established a general store, hay press, cider mill, and brandy business. His home on Brandy Hill also became the site of his tin shop, which opened in 1824 and continued to operate until a few years before his death. The tin shop employed as many as forty workers, including most members of his own family.
Butler's sons were occupied with the manufacture and distribution of the tinwares, and several of his daughters painted the floral decorations. Ann took over decorating by the age of fourteen or fifteen and probably taught her sisters how to paint. She married about 1840 and moved with her husband, Eli Scutt, to Livingstonville, New York. Her work is characterized by dense decoration with a variety of tulips, rosebuds, and diamond baskets, with multiple filler elements. Fancy pieces, such as this Battersea-type trinket box, received decoration of heavy white bands on asphaltum backgrounds.
Stacy C. Hollander, "Trinket Box," in American Anthem: Masterworks from the American Folk Art Museum (New York: Harry N. Abrams in association with American Folk Art Museum, 2001), 319.