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<v Speaker 1>Hello, this is Martin Willershire, host and the last time

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<v Speaker 1>I did a monologue basically, I really did get quite

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<v Speaker 1>a bit of email about it. And by the way,

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<v Speaker 1>if you'd like to email me, the easiest email to

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<v Speaker 1>use is Auction Podcast at me dot com dot com.

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<v Speaker 1>So welcome to the show. I'm going to be doing

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<v Speaker 1>a few of these. I do believe these are just

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<v Speaker 1>you know, experiences I've had in the auction and the

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<v Speaker 1>antique business, which I'm still very active in as an appraiser.

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<v Speaker 1>But this is going back to the late nineteen eighties.

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<v Speaker 1>So I grew up just side Portsmouth, New Hampshire, which

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<v Speaker 1>is a wonderful harbor town, historic town. The routes go

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<v Speaker 1>all the way back to sixteen thirty and it's full

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<v Speaker 1>of really beautiful architecture. The downtown area is mostly brick buildings.

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<v Speaker 1>I actually had an art gallery for a while. Right

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<v Speaker 1>around eighteen twelve or eleven, I do believe there was

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<v Speaker 1>a massive fire in the town of Portsmouth and I

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<v Speaker 1>was actually in a wooden building. I had an art

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<v Speaker 1>gallery in my auction office on State Street in Portsmouth,

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<v Speaker 1>and it was the only wooden building down there. And

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<v Speaker 1>what happened was the brick ordinance was to be set

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<v Speaker 1>at a certain time. It was voted on and agreed

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<v Speaker 1>upon that no building could be done without it being

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<v Speaker 1>brick instead of a wooden structure. So the particular building

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<v Speaker 1>I was in was popped up immediately in wood before

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<v Speaker 1>the brick ordnance went in, So I enjoyed it. I

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<v Speaker 1>was right down by the right by the river on

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<v Speaker 1>State Street in Portsmouth, and well, it's a real treasure

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<v Speaker 1>trove regionally for antiques and especially from the colonial and

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<v Speaker 1>federal era. And my dad bought a wonderful historical home

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<v Speaker 1>that was built in sixteen seventy two. I think it

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<v Speaker 1>was called the Hoyit House. When he bought it was

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<v Speaker 1>in the nineteen seventies, and the house was loaded full

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<v Speaker 1>of antiques, and at the time it was a major,

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<v Speaker 1>major auction. I can't remember exactly when in the nineteen

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<v Speaker 1>seventies that he bought it, but at that time he

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<v Speaker 1>sold all the items out of this particular house for

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<v Speaker 1>wopping forty thousand dollars. At the same time he decided

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<v Speaker 1>to purchase the home from the family. And this was

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<v Speaker 1>a waterfront home. It was in a little mill pond,

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<v Speaker 1>but there is access to the river and then to

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<v Speaker 1>the ocean from it, and it was such a beautiful

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<v Speaker 1>as it considered a mansion when it was built, and

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<v Speaker 1>it was built onto it was very I thought the

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<v Speaker 1>place was haunted, to be honest with you. But anyway,

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<v Speaker 1>he bought it for a whopping thirty thousand dollars. I

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<v Speaker 1>think it was nineteen seventy three or four, something like that. Well,

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<v Speaker 1>Portsmouth has this fascinating charm. These homes have stayed in

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<v Speaker 1>the families for several generations. There's lots of antiques tucked

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<v Speaker 1>away in attics and barnes, and for an auctioneer like myself,

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<v Speaker 1>when I was called to clear out one of these places,

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<v Speaker 1>it was like a treasure hunt of dusty, dirty and thrilling.

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<v Speaker 1>And in the late nineteen eighties I got a call

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<v Speaker 1>from the Masonic Lodge of Portsmouth. They reached out to

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<v Speaker 1>me and said that they inherited, or were betweathed, just

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<v Speaker 1>a few items from a prominent local historical family and

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<v Speaker 1>that was a member of the Masonic Lodge. Bequeathed them

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<v Speaker 1>to the Masonic Lodge to raise funds and say they said,

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<v Speaker 1>don't get your hopes up. It was just a couple

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<v Speaker 1>of pieces. I went to the Masonic Lodge. I was

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<v Speaker 1>interested to see what they were given. But when I

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<v Speaker 1>walked in, I saw there were just three portraits. They

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<v Speaker 1>actually looked really interesting to me, but you know, early

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<v Speaker 1>and just very well done, sort of a folk art vibe.

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<v Speaker 1>But there was a couple in a single portrait of

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<v Speaker 1>a female, a woman and with a bonnet, and I

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<v Speaker 1>believe she had a book in her hand. It's now

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<v Speaker 1>at the Portsmouth Historical Society. It's in they're upstairs in

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<v Speaker 1>their building. Oddly enough, I looked at these paintings in

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<v Speaker 1>the canvases had a red tint a paint on the

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<v Speaker 1>back of the canvas, which I had never seen before.

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<v Speaker 1>It's usually just a you know, a dark oxidized canvas

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<v Speaker 1>in whatever condition it is, if it's original, But these

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<v Speaker 1>had red paint on them, so at the time I

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<v Speaker 1>didn't really think much about it. And then they pulled

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<v Speaker 1>out of this room a pair of fire buckets, and

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<v Speaker 1>these were fire buckets were the fire brigades where they

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<v Speaker 1>used to in the cities. They used to get a

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<v Speaker 1>brigade of people, a line of people to the water

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<v Speaker 1>source and they'd pass back and forth these buckets of

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<v Speaker 1>water and try to put out fires. So there's a

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<v Speaker 1>lot of interesting things. I'll just touch on a little

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<v Speaker 1>bit of that later. But anyway, these had dramatic eagles

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<v Speaker 1>on them. If you look at in the show notes

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<v Speaker 1>or whatever, I will have a picture of the actual

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<v Speaker 1>fire buckets that I'm talking about. These were called the

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<v Speaker 1>Mechanics Fire Society. Let me tell you a little bit

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<v Speaker 1>more about fire buckets. They were made of thick leather,

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<v Speaker 1>painted and often stenciled with the family name. That's just

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<v Speaker 1>so they could be you know, after the fire itself,

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<v Speaker 1>they could get back to the families. They were basically,

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<v Speaker 1>as I said, human chains, passing the buckets of water

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<v Speaker 1>hand to hand to fight fires. Inside of the fire

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<v Speaker 1>fire buckets you'll typically find a bed wrench and a

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<v Speaker 1>valuables bag. The beds at that time and the colonial

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<v Speaker 1>time were very highly valued, so the wrenches were made

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<v Speaker 1>for dismantling them so you could take them out and

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<v Speaker 1>save them from the fire. And cities like Portsmouth, a

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<v Speaker 1>small city, most of the furniture had what's called fire brands,

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<v Speaker 1>and that was a brand of the family's names that

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<v Speaker 1>was burned on the underside of a chair or underside

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<v Speaker 1>of the bedrail or something like that, or even inside

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<v Speaker 1>of a tall clock to identify the family. Because what

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<v Speaker 1>people would do a city or town is they would

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<v Speaker 1>just grab all their valuable items that they could safely

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<v Speaker 1>and put them out in the middle of the street,

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<v Speaker 1>and while they were fighting the fires over the place

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<v Speaker 1>burned down one or the other. Anyway, back to the consignment,

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<v Speaker 1>I had to figure out the story behind these pieces,

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<v Speaker 1>and that's when I called my friend Joe Copley. Joe

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<v Speaker 1>was a guy when it came to Portsmouth history. He

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<v Speaker 1>had a massive amount of knowledge. He never charged for

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<v Speaker 1>any of his research. He just loved, you know, seeing

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<v Speaker 1>Portsmouth items and pieces of history here. He was just

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<v Speaker 1>an amazing guy. When I showed him the portraits and

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<v Speaker 1>the fire buckets, he kept looking at them and examining them,

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<v Speaker 1>and he had kind of a poker face and he

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<v Speaker 1>was muttering, yeah, and after a little bit said, I

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<v Speaker 1>do believe that these fire buckets and the artists of

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<v Speaker 1>the three paintings here were all painted by the same hand,

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<v Speaker 1>the same artist, And he says, and I do believe

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<v Speaker 1>that artist is John S Blunt b l U n T.

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<v Speaker 1>He suggested that I dig into the archives at the

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<v Speaker 1>Portsmouth Atheneum Library. And this atheneum is a beautiful early

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<v Speaker 1>building in downtown Portsmouth. The architecture was just unbelievable. So

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<v Speaker 1>I went in there and to do the research. And

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<v Speaker 1>I didn't even know this, but I walked right by

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<v Speaker 1>a beautiful landscape by John Blunt himself. He had a

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<v Speaker 1>very short life. But anyway, I went in there and

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<v Speaker 1>I poured over the records and I finally found I

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<v Speaker 1>think I mentioned this before, but on the front of

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<v Speaker 1>the fire buckets was the family's name, and also been

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<v Speaker 1>on the shield of these particular fire buckets is the

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<v Speaker 1>trade that the merchant or the person was in. And

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<v Speaker 1>this particular one had a pair of scissors and I

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<v Speaker 1>think one side had a thread or something like that.

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<v Speaker 1>And so these people were in the textile business of

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<v Speaker 1>some type. And by the way, while i'm there, back

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<v Speaker 1>in these times, ulsterers were held of high esteem. They

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<v Speaker 1>were also bed makers and the bed. Like I mentioned before,

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<v Speaker 1>the bed was very important to have a comfortable bed.

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<v Speaker 1>And if you look at colonial beds, you'll kind of

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<v Speaker 1>the mattresses themselves. You know, they're supported by a rope

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<v Speaker 1>that goes back and forth to support whatever it's on. Top.

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<v Speaker 1>But some of these mattresses were full of I've seen

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<v Speaker 1>these before, corn cobs, straw, all different types of things,

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<v Speaker 1>seaweed in this area, I've seen a lot of seaweed,

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<v Speaker 1>horse hair and all kinds of things. But it was

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<v Speaker 1>really really difficult to get a very comfortable bed. Getting

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<v Speaker 1>back to the library, I started looking through the Mechanics

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<v Speaker 1>Fire Society all their minutes, and these in the back

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<v Speaker 1>of these buckets said eighteen eleven. So I went in

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<v Speaker 1>through that and lo and behold, I found the induction

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<v Speaker 1>of the family, the person that the firebugs belonged to,

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<v Speaker 1>and also a notation about John Blunt. So I realized

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<v Speaker 1>that these really did have a tie to the well

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<v Speaker 1>known artist John Blunt, who was very much in high demand.

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<v Speaker 1>So I was told to buy Joe to send away

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<v Speaker 1>for a book, and there was no Internet at that time.

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<v Speaker 1>Back in I think this was I believe this was

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<v Speaker 1>late nineteen eighty eight. I sent away for a book

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<v Speaker 1>that was written by a gentleman named Bishop. He wrote

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<v Speaker 1>a book and at the time had done a lot

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<v Speaker 1>of research on what he called the borden Limnar. And

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<v Speaker 1>the reason he was called the borden Liminar is because

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<v Speaker 1>he was known for the Borden family portraits anyway, that

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<v Speaker 1>was John S. Blunt. The consigners of the Masons told

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<v Speaker 1>me that they had already been offered five thousand dollars

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<v Speaker 1>for the lot of three portraits and for the two

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<v Speaker 1>fire buckets together, and I said that they should not

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<v Speaker 1>accept it, and that I just had a gut feeling

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<v Speaker 1>and I kind of took a big chance at the time,

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<v Speaker 1>and I said, well, I'll guarantee you fifteen thousand dollars

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<v Speaker 1>that these all these items will bring or more, but

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<v Speaker 1>I'll guarantee that. And I just wanted to make sure

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<v Speaker 1>that I did get them for the auction and upcoming auction.

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<v Speaker 1>And so they agreed, and they also you know, signed

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<v Speaker 1>the contract and said there you go, and good luck

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<v Speaker 1>and all that. So the auction day came, and the

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<v Speaker 1>fire buckets were definitely the stars of the show. A

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<v Speaker 1>person who actually became a good friend of mine came

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<v Speaker 1>in that day looking at, you know, the paintings, but

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<v Speaker 1>mostly the fire buckets, and he had a very nice

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<v Speaker 1>dressed gentleman with him, and I heard him, you know,

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<v Speaker 1>I was over by the fire buckets. They were in

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<v Speaker 1>a glass case. I basically took them out of the

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<v Speaker 1>case and was handing them to people that wanted to

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<v Speaker 1>inspect them closely, and I heard him, you know, walk

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<v Speaker 1>over a few steps to this gentleman. He says, you

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<v Speaker 1>have to own these, you have to get these. And

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<v Speaker 1>so at that time, I do believe a pair of

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<v Speaker 1>fire buckets. The world record in New England mostly that's

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<v Speaker 1>where they're known for American firebuckets was somewhere around ten

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<v Speaker 1>thousand dollars at that time, and so I was pretty excited.

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<v Speaker 1>I thought they would bring you know, at least at

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<v Speaker 1>least that or more. Fast forward. During the auction, the

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<v Speaker 1>fire buckets go up, there's people. I think I had

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<v Speaker 1>one or two phone bids. Now back in that day

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<v Speaker 1>in nineteen eighty nine, there wasn't a lot of phone

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<v Speaker 1>bidding most of the time people and there's definitely no

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<v Speaker 1>online anything. So there was a big crowd at this

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<v Speaker 1>particul K auction. It was held over in Elliot, Maine,

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<v Speaker 1>where I grew up, in an auction gallery that I had,

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<v Speaker 1>and the bidding started out at five thousand dollars and

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<v Speaker 1>I was pretty excited about that, and then it quickly

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<v Speaker 1>climbed to twenty thousand and just when I thought it

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<v Speaker 1>was over and I was all ready to say sold,

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<v Speaker 1>the well dressed gentleman that I had seen at the

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<v Speaker 1>preview I mentioned before put his hand up and he

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<v Speaker 1>never put his hand down, back and forth bidding, and

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<v Speaker 1>it was a fight for it. Actually hammered down at

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<v Speaker 1>thirty two thousand, five hundred, and that was definitely a

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<v Speaker 1>record at the time. So the portraits did very well.

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<v Speaker 1>Also sold for around twelve to fifteen thousand dollars each,

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<v Speaker 1>and these were all what you consider attributed to the

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<v Speaker 1>Bordenlimitar John Blunt. The consigners were in the audience and

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<v Speaker 1>they I was watching them occasionally I look over at

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<v Speaker 1>them and they were like they were over the moon.

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<v Speaker 1>They were pretty pretty excited about what these things were

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<v Speaker 1>selling for. And they thanked me and thanked me. They

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<v Speaker 1>were so excited. After the auction, they they wanted to

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<v Speaker 1>make sure that they thanked me that night. So that

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<v Speaker 1>was a really good story for them that you know.

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<v Speaker 1>Years later, as things go, the same gentlemen decided to

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<v Speaker 1>liquidate his collection and that pair of fire buckets, and

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<v Speaker 1>I want to say sometime in the two thousands, before

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<v Speaker 1>two thousand and eight. I'm not sure exactly what year

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<v Speaker 1>it was, but I think it was maybe two thousand

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<v Speaker 1>and four or five something like that. The firebucks resold

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<v Speaker 1>at an auction for eighty eight thousand dollars. It really

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<v Speaker 1>proves the point that if you're going to buy something,

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<v Speaker 1>you want to buy something that's really, really good quality

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<v Speaker 1>and rare if you can. Again, there's no guarantees what

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<v Speaker 1>something's going to do. As a matter of fact, if

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<v Speaker 1>you put those same fire buckets, and again, if you

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<v Speaker 1>look at this show, if you follow back to the website,

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<v Speaker 1>you will see a picture of them and it's I

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<v Speaker 1>don't know if they bring higher price in eighty eight

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<v Speaker 1>thousand dollars today, it's very possible because you know, like

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<v Speaker 1>I say, they're very good and rare pieces generally hold

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<v Speaker 1>pretty well. Again, no guarantees. Things change all the time,

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<v Speaker 1>and you know, there's hopefully a new generation of people

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<v Speaker 1>that will appreciate this coming up in the future. A lot,

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<v Speaker 1>as I mentioned, a lot of things have changed since

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<v Speaker 1>that time. My friend Joe Copley passed away in nineteen

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<v Speaker 1>ninety just a year after that, and you know, as

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<v Speaker 1>I mentioned, auction prices skyrocketed for a while actually until

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<v Speaker 1>the peak of two thousand and seven, two thousand and eight,

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<v Speaker 1>after you know, we had a bit of a dip

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<v Speaker 1>in the recession. Things have never really come back, or

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<v Speaker 1>a lot of things have never really come back. I

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<v Speaker 1>had fun, really, I used to love doing the research

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<v Speaker 1>and unraveling the story of John S. Blunt is something

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<v Speaker 1>I'll never forget. A little PostScript here. The Atheneum Library

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<v Speaker 1>was named or renamed for a while after Joseph P. Copley,

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<v Speaker 1>so that Joseph PA. Copley Research Library in honor of Joe.

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<v Speaker 1>It was since renamed by because of another donor. But

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<v Speaker 1>Joe did give so much to preserve Portsmouth history. He

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<v Speaker 1>left his whole research library itself to the Atheneum. And

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<v Speaker 1>so this podcast is to my old friend Joe, real

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<v Speaker 1>gem of Portsmouth, and to the joy of uncovering history.

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<v Speaker 1>Thank you,