Maine Antique Digest March 2015

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4-A Maine Antique Digest, March 2015
The Meeting Place
Corrections
JAMES T. “PETER”
LOWDER
James T. “Peter” Lowder of
Columbus, Ohio, passed away
peacefully at home on Monday,
January 12, at the age of 74. He
was born in New Bern, North
Carolina, the son of Thomas
Lowder and Margaret Lowder
Motz.
Lowder grew up in Fayette-
ville, North Carolina, where he
discovered a passion for scien-
tific research as well as for the
woods and streams and gardens.
He received his B.S. in nuclear
engineering as well as his M.S.
in metallurgical engineering
from North Carolina State Uni-
versity. While there, he pledged
Sigma Chi and was named to the
honorary societies of Phi Kappa
Phi and Alpha Sigma Mu. After
graduate school, he and his wife,
Ann, left North Carolina for his
dream job as a nuclear engineer
for Battelle Memorial Instute.
Later at General Electric,
Lowder developed a process for
bonding diamonds. He and three
partners soon formed Abrasive
Technology. As president, he
grew the company into a world
leader in the cutting tool indus-
try. During his career, he in-
vented several important new
manufacturing processes and
products, and his developments
resulted in numerous U.S. pat-
ents.
Lowder became interested in
collecting American antiques
and founded the Ohio Antique
Review , a monthly publication
focusing on the market for an-
tiques. Its subscribers were in
all 50 states and seven foreign
countries. He restored several
historic homes in New Bern and
Pinehurst, North Carolina, and
Worthington, Ohio. For the past
James “Pete” Lowder grew up
in Fayetteville, North Carolina,
and earned his B.S. in nuclear
engineering as well as his M.S.
in metallurgical engineering
from North Carolina State Uni-
versity. He and his wife, Ann,
moved to Worthington, Ohio,
when he went to work for the
Battelle research institute. He
later worked for General Elec-
tric and developed a process for
bonding diamonds. He and three
others formed Abrasive Tech-
nology. Pete held numerous U.S.
patents and was the longtime
United States representative to
the International Standards Or-
ganization for Dentistry.
In the early ’70s, Ann became
an antiques dealer, and Pete’s
fascination with her interest soon
became his passion, second only
to fly-fishing. Pete was one who
loved a challenge. When Sam
Pennington launched M.A.D. in
1973, many people thought there
should be such a publication in
the Midwest. “Yes, that would
WRONG CITY
Dear Clayton,
I could not help but notice the
1939 Golden Gate International
Exposition card table pictured
on page 28-C of your review of
the Pier Show in the February is-
sue of M.A.D. That world’s fair
was held in San Francisco, not
St. Louis as captioned. Nice ta-
ble, great publication.
Chris Papadakis
West Lawn, PA
MARY SAMS
Mary Blair Sams, 77, passed
away at her home in Cornwall,
Connecticut, from breast cancer,
on January 9, surrounded by her
family. She was born in Atlanta,
Georgia, in 1937.
Sams was a psychotherapist in
Manhattan for roughly three dec-
ades. After closing her practice,
she moved full time to Corn-
wall, where she ran Ballyhack
Antiques, specializing in Ameri-
can folk art. For nearly a decade,
she gave her time and expertise
to Prime Time House, a charity
that helps people with mental
illness, providing housing and
assistance in finding and holding
jobs in Litchfield County, Con-
necticut. There, and at a related
organization, she served as an
advisor, then chairperson of the
ERIC SHRUBSOLE
Eric Shrubsole, 102, probably
the greatest silver dealer of the
20th century, died peacefully at
home in Florida on Friday morn-
ing, January 30. He was born in
1912, the eldest son of Lilian
and S.J. Shrubsole.
His father was a dealer in Eng-
lish silver. With little interest in
school, Shrubsole joined his fa-
ther’s firm at age 14, learning the
art of the silversmith and the fine
points of antique English silver
that the firm bought and sold.
In 1936 he and his father de-
cided to open a branch of the
business in New York City,
while his brother Charles ran the
London shop on Museum Street
until his death. Eric Shrubsole
came to the United States with
trunks full of old silver and let-
ters of introduction to custom-
ers, retail stores, and museum
directors across the country. He
spent that year driving across
the country, lecturing to interest-
ed groups, and laying the foun-
dations for his shop, which he
opened on 57th Street in New
York City. He was an important
part of the burgeoning antiques
business in New York City at the
beginning in the 20th century.
“Eric was one of the founders
of the New York Antiques Deal-
ers Association, which became
the National Antiques Dealers
association in 1954, along with
Edward Munves Sr., Alex Lew-
is, and my father,” said Paul
Schaffer of A La Vieille Russie,
who, like Shrubsole, exhibited at
DAVID HEWETT
To the Editor:
David Hewett, longtime writ-
er and contributing editor for
M.A.D., has retired, and the an-
tiques community will miss him.
He reported on dealers, shows,
auctions, and even criminal cas-
es of the business for the paper.
He recorded the antiques com-
munity from the bright side to
the dark side.
I think his best writings cap-
tured the personalities of the great
individuals in the antiques busi-
ness. In the most concise manner
he recorded the personalities that
make up our community. He pin-
pointed the unique character that
dealers, auctioneers, promoters,
and all brought to this business.
WAFER IRON
To the Editor:
The caption for the photo of
a wafer iron on page 32-B in
the February edition of M.A.D.
needs correcting. I grew up in a
cooking family in England, and
after consulting my Mrs. Bee-
ton’s Book of Household Man-
agement (originally published in
1861—mine
seems to be
an 1888 edi-
tion, and I
also have a
1972 revised
edition) and
r e f e r r i n g
to my now
Norwegian
d a u g h t e r
and anoth-
er family
member of
direct Swed-
ish descent,
this is an American-made wafer
iron for making Scandinavian,
probably Swedish, wafers.
The 1888 edition mentions
a waffle iron and a broiler and
toaster with American grip but
no wafer iron or recipes. They
have apparently been made in
this country since the 18th cen-
tury.
I have been privileged to meet
and get to know some great
cooks along the way with my
antiquing. Along with traveling
to shows and watching our cho-
lesterol, I wish happy cooking
and eating to everyone. Clay-
ton, even in Florida we have
cold spells and days of rain, and
M.A.D. is so enjoyable at such
times.
Margaret J. Yarranton
New Smryna Beach, FL
Letters
He began covering shows and
auctions for M.A.D. in the 1980s
from his home in Vermont. His
insights and highlights in his re-
porting kept everyone informed.
Hewett’s coverage of the fake
Mormon printing and later trail
were eye-opening and memora-
ble.
I became friends with David
37 years ago when he was a
picker in southern Vermont. He
brought great antiques to my
house to sell. He knew about the
antique—its history and age. He
enjoyed knowing when the item
sold and where it had found a
home. I often advertised an an-
tique purchased from him in a
half-page ad in M.A.D.
I trust David will stay in touch
with us all through M.A.D. from
time to time. His positive con-
tributions to the business have
been memorable.
Timothy Stevenson
Manchester Center, Vermont
Obituaries
the very first New York Winter
Antiques Show.
“Eric was a real gentleman,
generous with his tremendous
knowledge, with a flair for busi-
ness,” said Jonathan Trace of
Portsmouth, New Hampshire,
who until this year had a stand at
the Winter Show down the aisle
from Shrubsole. “People liked to
buy from Eric.”
Known equally for his techni-
cal knowledge, taste, salesman-
ship, limericks, and ribald hu-
mor, Shrubsole was a ubiquitous
raconteur, lecturer, and advisor
to shows, museums, and private
collections throughout the coun-
try. He was a specialist in Ameri-
can silver as well. He bought and
sold many of the greatest antique
silver objects ever made, count-
ing among his customers H.F. du
Pont, William Randolph Hearst,
the Duke of Windsor, Katharine
Hepburn, and Groucho Marx,
who, in being told that every-
thing in Mr. Shrubsole’s shop
was antique and English, point-
ed his cigar at the Brooklyn-born
porter and asked, “Even him?”
Dynamic and quick-witted, he
could be seen roaming the halls
of art and antiques fairs in Eu-
rope and America well into his
nineties, often with some fresh
purchase in hand. A recent in-
troduction to his annual catalog
read: “Hurry in! The items in the
catalog are like me: unique, in
great condition for their age, and
probably won’t be around very
long!”
Tim Martin, Shrubsole’s step-
son and president of S.J. Shrub-
sole, said: “I would say that his
infectious enthusiasm for all
things made of silver was such
that simply to be around him and
watch his responses to the var-
ious things that came our way
was an education in itself. He
didn’t have a whole lot of pa-
tience for explaining his judg-
ments, but standing around and
watching what he bought and
what he didn’t buy was the best
osmotic learning experience one
could have.
“I would also like to stress that
he was well known for treating
everybody—every customer
large and small, every dealer
large and small, everyone who
ever crossed his path—with per-
fect courtesy and graciousness
and kindness, as well as ‘flashes
of merriment that were wont to
set the table on a roar.’
“I shall not look upon his like
again.”
board, cochair, and co-president.
Sams was predeceased by her
husband, Dr. William K. Rash-
baum, Sr. She is survived by
her two sons, David Edelman
of McLean, Virginia, and Jona-
than Edelman of New York City
and Kent, Connecticut; stepchil-
dren William K. Rashbaum, Jr.
and Sara Phillips, both of New
York City; grandchildren, An-
nabel and Antoine Edelman; a
step-granddaughter, Isabel Phil-
lips; and brother, Robert Sams,
Jr., of Decatur, Georgia.
A memorial service be will
held at a future date. In lieu of
flowers, the family asks that
donations be made to Memorial
Sloan Kettering Cancer Center.
Please make checks payable to
“MSK,” and write “Mary Sams”
in the memo section. Send
checks to the Office of Develop-
ment, Memorial Sloan Kettering
Cancer Center, 633 Third Ave-
nue, 28th Floor, New York, NY
10017.
few years, he managed the Gran-
ville Antique Fair, benefiting
the Robbins Hunter Museum,
and had recently signed on as a
docent, delighting in engaging
visitors with his knowledge of
antiques and architecture.
For many years, Lowder
served as the United States rep-
resentative to the International
Standards Organization for Den-
tistry. This provided an opportu-
nity for travel around the world.
He loved to fish, and taught
many children the joy of fish-
ing. A generous southern gen-
tleman, he nourished his family
and many friends with love and
humor. He delighted in flying his
own plane, dining and dancing,
and attending concerts of the
Columbus Symphony and Opera
Columbus, but he would say his
best hours were spent with the
grandchildren.
After retiring from Abrasive
Technology, Lowder became
active with his church as a lay
reader. He found great joy in
feeding the homeless and in oth-
er missions of the church. As
recently as Thanksgiving 2014,
he chaired the first ever Bexley
Turkey Trot sponsored by St.
Alban’s, raising money for the
Mid-Ohio Foodbank. He was
a proud member of the Little
Sturgeon Trout Club, Cones-
toga of the Ohio History Con-
nection, Columbus Museum of
Art, Franklin Park Conservatory,
Robbins Hunter Museum, and
St. Alban’s Episcopal Church.
He was preceded in death by
his father and mother; his step-
father, Andrew Motz; his daugh-
ter Margaret Kauffman; and his
brother, William Lowder. He is
survived by his loving wife of
51 years, Ann; daughters Sarah
Lowder of Rome, Italy and Lisa
Darke (John); son-in-law, An-
drew Kauffman; and five grand-
children: Hannah, Peter, and
Parker Barends and Tessa and
Ella Darke, all of Columbus.