by Claudia Lonkin
Beginning in fall of 2019, the Wethersfield Historical Society has been undertaking a collections project, with the aim of organizing, identifying, and photographing pieces in the society’s furniture and agricultural equipment collections. The collections project team, including Curator Kristina Oschmann, Consultant Elizabeth Pratt Fox, and Intern Claudia Lonkin, have also identified several areas in which future interpretive work could be conducted. One such subject is the cabinetmaker Edward Shepard.
Born June 21, 1783, Edward Shepard was one of the most prominent cabinetmakers in Wethersfield, until his death on September 5, 1862.[1] After working as a journeyman under the chair maker Solomon Cole in Glastonbury, Shepard opened his own shop in Wethersfield in 1805.[2] In a front-page ad placed in the Connecticut Courant that fall, Shepard claims his work is done “in the newest fashion and in the neatest manner” and locates his shop at “Eighteen Rods North of [the] Wethersfield Meeting House.”[3] “Eighteen rods” being equal to almost 300 feet. This places his workshop squarely in the center of Wethersfield’s historic center. The precise scale of the shop seems to be undetermined. The local historian John Willard writes that it was “small” however the antiques dealer Derin Bray, writing in a 2019 Historic New England article, contends with more credibility that it was “large,” based off an analysis of Shepard’s own “impressive ledger.”[4] The precise size of Shepard’s staff is unknown, but based on the high output of his shop, it wa
s certainly sizable, with several identified indentured workers. Willard also writes that “a horse in the basement furnished power for machinery by means of a treadmill,” though the anecdote is unsourced.[5] A little over a year after opening his shop, on December 24, 1807, Shepard married Mary Ayrault.[6] Between the years of 1807 and 1809, he built a house, adjacent to his workshop, that still stands today, although it has been moved back from its original location on Main Street and now stands on Church Street, however the shop was not preserved.[7] Other important Wethersfield cabinetmakers include Elijah Loveland (1745-1826) and Peter Blinn 1640-1725), who is known for his distinctive chests. Blinn preceded Shepard, but his descendant, Frank Stuart Blinn worked as a woodcarver in the 1800s, and was more contemporaneous to Shepard. [8]
Several pieces in the historical society’s collection are known to have been made by or attributed to Edward Shepard: a chest of drawers, on view in the “Legendary People, Ordinary Lives” exhibit, two rocking chairs and Sheraton side chair, all owned by Judith Francis, an unclear relation of the Francis family.[9] The chest of drawers bears a stencil of Shepard’s manufactory.
The society’s archive also contains several documents related to Shepard. Three are bills for assorted services—which record Shepard as having manufactured everything from a coffin to a portable sink, alongside more expected furniture repairs.[10] Perhaps more interesting is a legal complaint leveled by Shepard against Josiah Smith. In fall of 1816, Shepard accused Smith of working on the Sabbath. Smith was arrested, but found not guilty.[11] He does not appear to be a prominent resident of Wethersfield, or a rival furniture maker. This accusation does, therefore, allow for some speculation on Shepard’s character. Either he was a very devout man, or a captious one.
Shepard’s character is neither bolstered by accounts of several runaway workers from his workshop. Bray’s article identifies “at least two apprentices—evidently unhappy with their situations—[who] fled Shepard’s shop.”[12] Mentioned by name in the article is Walter Warner, who was indeed, according to an 1825 notice Shepard posted in the Connecticut Courant, an “indentured apprentice,” distinguished by a “lame toe that obliges him to wear his shoe with a hole through toe top.”[13] Through another series of notices, a further runaway indentured apprentice is identified as James May.[14] First reported missing from Wethersfield on June 22, 1809, Shepard continued to post ads in the Courant into August, imploring his return.[15] Wesleyan University’s Runaway Connecticut project identifies a third escapee, yet another indentured apprentice named Henry W. Wilcox, who fled in 1815.[16] May is said to have the appearance of a “sailor boy,” while Wilcox and Warner as described as having “light hair, [and] light eyes” and being “of light complexion,” respectively, which would seem to confirm all of Shepard’s runaways were white indentured workers, not black slaves. Connecticut’s Act of Gradual Abolition was passed in 1784, but slavery was practiced in the state until 1848.[17] Thus, while Shepard did not own slaves, the obvious rash of runaway indentured apprentices does not speak well for the treatment of workers at his shop.
Edward Shepard was one of, if not the most, prolific furniture-makers of Wethersfield. His volume of work is reflected in the large amount of pieces the Wethersfield Historical Society has 
collected that either can be directly attributed to his shop, or resemble designs he is known to have produced. Outside his work, however, on a personal level, Shepard perhaps does not have the most upstanding reputation. The society’s own archives show him bringing frivolous legal complaints against neighbors, and there are many recorded instances of indentured apprentices fleeing Shepard’s shop, presumably due to poor working conditions. A future assessment of Shepard’s output, and how impressive it is in light of the size, nature, and treatment of his staff, would need to consider Shepard’s accounts, in the collections of Historic New England. Shepard’s influence is clear, but there is still much work to be done and many opportunities for pubic programming and exhibitions related to Shepard’s life.
Wethersfield Historical Society’s Collections Management Project was funded in part through a Capacity Building Grant from CT Humanities. Connecticut Humanities, a nonprofit affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities, supports cultural and historic organizations that tell the state’s stories, build community and enrich lives.
[1] Sherman Wolcott Adams, The History of Ancient Wethersfield, Connecticut, (New York: Grafton Press, 1904), 624.
[2] Bray, Derin. “Transaction Analysis: Account books show early cabinetmakers’ business dealings.” Historic New England, Winter 2019. 30-31.
[3] Edward Shepard, “New Cabinet & Chair Manufactory,” Connecticut Courant, November 27, 1805, 1.
[4] John Willard, “Looking Back: Furniture Makers,” The Wethersfield Post, January 20, 1972; Bray.
[5] Willard.
[6] Adams, 624.
[7] Beverly Lucas, Wethersfield, Images of America, (Charleston, SC: Arcadia Publishing, 2008) 63.
[8] Willard.
[9] Shepard, Chest of Drawers. Wethersfield Historical Society, 1999.28.0, possibly purchased from Paul LaBombard of West Hartford, according to Governing Board Minutes from 1986 see “Governing Board Minutes.” September 9, 1986. Past Governing Board Minutes 1932-1990. Wethersfield Historical Society, Wethersfield, CT, 2 and “Governing Board Minutes.” October 14, 1986. Past Governing Board Minutes 1932-1990. Wethersfield Historical Society, Wethersfield, CT; Shepard, Sheraton Rocking Chair, Wethersfield Historical Society, F204, attributed in Peter Benes, Two Towns, Concord & Wethersfield: A Comparative Exhibition of Regional Culture, 1635-1850, (Concord, MA: Concord Antiquarian Museum, 1982), 57; Shepard, Sheraton Side Chair, Wethersfield Historical Society, 1977.10.4; Shepard, Rocking Chair, Wethersfield Historical Society, 1977.10.5. Numerous other fancy chairs made in a common style, utilized at times by Shepard, belong to the society’s collection, though their exact provenance is unclear.
[10] Shepard, “Bills for a Portable Sink; Altering a Child’s Crib, Repairing a Canopy Top, Repairing a Chair. Received Payment,” 1833 and 1835, Smith Collection, Wethersfield Historical Society Archives, Wethersfield, CT; Shepard, “Bill for Coffin & Handles, and Other Purchases, Received Payment,” September 9, 1836, Smith Collection, Wethersfield Historical Society Archives, Wethersfield, CT; Shepard, “Bill for Purchases Made. Payment Received,” July 13, 1812, Smith Collection, Wethersfield Historical Society Archives, Wethersfield, CT.
[11] Shepard, Edward. “Smith Accused of Working on the Sabbath and Disturbing the Peace, in Defiance of State Laws. Smith is Arrested, but Found Not Guilty.” October 3, 1816. Smith Collection. Wethersfield Historical Society Archives, Wethersfield, CT.
[12] Bray, 31.
[13] Shepard, Classified Ad, Connecticut Courant, October 11, 1825, 3.
[14] Shepard, Classified Ad, Connecticut Courant, July 12, 1809, 4.
[15] Shepard, Classified Ad, Connecticut Courant, August 2, 1809, 4.
[16] Shepard, Advertisement for Henry W. Wilcox, Connecticut Courant, November 28, 1815. In “Henry W. Wilcox, Runaway Connecticut, Wesleyan University, https://wesomeka.wesleyan.edu/runawayct/items/show/4984.”
[17] David Menschel, “Abolition Without Deliverance: The Law of Connecticut Slavery 1784-1848,” The Yale Law Journal, v. 111, no. 183 (2001), 183-222.
Bibliography
Adams, Sherman Wolcott. The History of Ancient Wethersfield, Connecticut. New York: Grafton Press, 1904.
Benes, Peter. Two Towns, Concord & Wethersfield: A Comparative Exhibition of Regional Culture, 1635-1850. Concord, MA: Concord Antiquarian Museum, 1982.
Bray, Derin. “Transaction Analysis: Account books show early cabinetmakers’ business dealings.” Historic New England. Winter 2019. 29-31.
“Governing Board Minutes.” October 14, 1986. Past Governing Board Minutes 1932-1990. Wethersfield Historical Society Archives, Wethersfield, CT.
“Governing Board Minutes.” September 9, 1986. Past Governing Board Minutes 1932-1990. Wethersfield Historical Society Archives, Wethersfield, CT.
Lucas, Beverly. Wethersfield. Images of America. Charleston, SC: Arcadia Publishing, 2008.
Menschel, David. “Abolition Without Deliverance: The Law of Connecticut Slavery 1784-1848.” The Yale Law Journal, v. 111, no. 183 (2001). 183-222.
Shepard, Edward. Advertisement for Henry W. Wilcox. Connecticut Courant, November 28, 1815. In “Henry W. Wilcox. Runaway Connecticut. Wesleyan University. https://wesomeka.wesleyan.edu/runawayct/items/show/4984.”
Shepard, Edward. “Bills for a Portable Sink; Altering a Child’s Crib, Repairing a Canopy Top, Repairing a Chair. Received Payment.” 1833 and 1835. Smith Collection. Wethersfield Historical Society Archives, Wethersfield, CT.
Shepard, Edward. “Bill for Coffin & Handles, and Other Purchases. Received Payment.” September 9, 1836. Smith Collection. Wethersfield Historical Society Archives, Wethersfield, CT.
Shepard, Edward. “Bill for Purchases Made. Payment Received.” July 13, 1812. Smith Collection. Wethersfield Historical Society Archives, Wethersfield, CT.
Shepard, Edward. Chest of Drawers. Wethersfield Historical Society, 1999.28.0.
Shepard, Edward. Classified Ad. Connecticut Courant, July 12, 1809. 4.
Shepard, Edward. Classified Ad. Connecticut Courant, August 2, 1809. 4.
Shepard, Edward. Classified Ad. Connecticut Courant, October 11, 1825. 3.
Shepard, Edward. “New Cabinet & Chair Manufactory.” Connecticut Courant. November 27, 1805. 1.
Shepard, Edward. Rocking Chair. Wethersfield Historical Society, 1977.10.5.
Shepard, Edward. Sheraton Rocking Chair. Wethersfield Historical Society, F204.
Shepard, Edward. Sheraton Side Chair. Wethersfield Historical Society, 1977.10.4.
Shepard, Edward. “Smith Accused of Working on the Sabbath and Disturbing the Peace, in Defiance of State Laws. Smith is Arrested, but Found Not Guilty.” October 3, 1816. Smith Collection. Wethersfield Historical Society Archives, Wethersfield, CT.
Willard, John. “Looking Back: Furniture Makers.” The Wethersfield Post. January 20, 1972.