Hampton

Chippendale style, 1770-1800
Maryland

This utilitarian chest is one of the earliest pieces at Hampton with Ridgely family provenance. It is signed in chalk with the name Ridgely, probably to identify the piece when it was moved between the family’s town and country houses. Chests such as this were used in the bedchamber to store bed linens and covers. Though simple, its design and woods indicate that it was made in the mid-Atlantic region, most likely in Maryland. At the time Hampton was being built in the 1780s, Capt. Charles Ridgely maintained a house in Baltimore Town, where there were numerous cabinetmakers who could have supplied him with furnishings for his houses.

Walnut, poplar. H 69.5, L 121.7, D 56.2 cm
Hampton National Historic Site, HAMP 2947