Caster
William Homes, Sr.
(1716/17–1785)
1750–70
Object PlaceBoston, Massachusetts
Medium/TechniqueSilver
Dimensions12.7 x 5.6 cm (5 x 2 3/16 in.)
Credit LineGift of Mrs. Robert E. Montgomery
Accession number1973.626
On View
Not on viewClassificationsSilver hollowware
Collections
This caster is one of four currently known by Homes. The pierced foliate decoration on the lid is unusual for a Boston-made caster, which ordinarily had more geometric piercings by this date.
This text has been adapted from "Silver of the Americas, 1600-2000," edited by Jeannine Falino and Gerald W.R. Ward, published in 2008 by the MFA. Complete references can be found in that publication.
ProvenanceAccording to the donor, the caster was originally owned by Gov. William Bradford (1589 – 1657), but the engraved initials suggest that a more likely owner was Bradford’s great-granddaughter Lydia Bradford (1719 – 1756). In 1743 she became the second wife of Dr. Lazarus LeBaron (1698 – 1773) of Plymouth, Massachusetts, the son of Francis LeBaron, first doctor of the Plymouth Colony. The caster passed to their daughter Elizabeth (1745 – 1829) and Ammi Ruhami Robbins (1740 – 1813), m. 1762. Due to family history claiming descent through the eldest daughter, the caster probably passed to their daughter Elizabeth Robbins (1770 – 1815) and Grove Lawrence (b. 1766), m. 1789; to their daughter Eliza Lawrence (1793 – 1850) and Timothy J. Gridley (b. 1788); to their daughter Sarah Battell Gridley (b. 1825) and Charles E. Delano (1820 – 1883), m. 1848. The caster was transferred to her third cousin, the Rev. Howard Chandler Robbins, M.D. (1876 – 1952), and Mary Louise Bayles (1879 – 1965), m. 1907, and thence to their niece, the donor.
