The Colonial Dames of America

09/07/2026

A MEMBER OF CDA CHAPTER XXIII-VA IS HONORED IN OHIO
~~~Congrats!!!! ❤️

09/06/2026

Two labels in the bottom drawer of this circa 1820 miniature New York Federal mahogany chest attest that the maker was Amasa Holden. It descended in the Holden family and then through Cottone Auctions to G.K.S. Bush to Sumpter Priddy, who sold it to Elbert “Bert” Parsons Jr in 2005 for $14,300. The 15¾" x 15¾" x 9½" chest in bird’s-eye maple veneer sold to the phones for $16,250 (est. $3000/5000) at Brunk Auctions

https://www.maineantiquedigest.com/stories/parsons-collection-sold/10625

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Published monthly, Maine Antique Digest covers the marketplace for Americana and art. Each issue features antiques news, auctions, and shows across the U.S.

09/06/2026

6th September 1620 – The Pilgrims sail from Plymouth, England on the Mayflower to settle in North America.

09/06/2026

Gilbert du Motier came home to Paris in February 1779 not knowing if the king would forgive him.

Two years earlier the nineteen-year-old had defied a direct royal order and slipped out of France on a chartered ship bound for America.

He had fought under Washington, bled at Brandywine, and returned home a general without ever asking Louis XVI's leave.

The court could not simply pretend it hadn't happened, so a punishment was arranged.

Lafayette was confined to his father-in-law's grand townhouse for eight days, guarded by nobody in particular.

Paris understood the arrest for what it was, a formality dressed up to save royal face.

Crowds cheered him in the streets even while he was technically a prisoner.

Within days the king who had supposedly punished him sent an invitation to come hunting at his side.

Not long after, a magnificent sword arrived from the Continental Congress, its hilt and scabbard crusted in gold, a gift for the young Frenchman who had gambled everything on American independence.

Benjamin Franklin was too ill to present it himself, so his grandson delivered the sword instead.

Eight days under house arrest and a royal hunting trip in the same season told Lafayette exactly where he stood, a rebel to the letter of the law and a hero to everyone who mattered.

09/03/2026

3rd September 1783 – The American Revolutionary War ends with the signing of the Treaty of Paris by the United States and the Kingdom of Great Britain.

09/02/2026

A VIRGINIA “STIREWALT” CHEST

This Stirewalt box achieved high lot of the sale honors, selling for $43,240 at Laughlin Auctions, Inc.

The “Stirewalt group” or the “Stirewalt family” of painted boxes date from the first half of the 19th century. The name is derived from a lone inscription indicating the maker of one box as a “Mr. Stirewalt…” of Shenandoah County in Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley. The boxes seem to be concentrated in the New Market area.

The 7¼" x 10½" x 6" box is constructed of yellow pine and displays an overall gray-blue surface. The dovetailed case displays a unique construction feature; there is an interior partition dividing the cavity in half. That feature is original to the piece, rabbeted into the front and rear panels. The lid is decorated with concentric dotted rectangles with arched devices in the corners and applied edge molding. The front panel displays a large incurvate hexagon with black and mustard quarter-starburst elements in the corners. The end panels feature eight-point stars within a dotted perimeter. The overhanging bottom board is double chamfered to form a faux-molding feature. This is one of the telltale features of Stirewalt casework. The box is raised on peg-style black-painted legs with ring turning. The back is neither painted nor decorated, and the leather strap hinges are replacements.

https://www.maineantiquedigest.com/stories/laughlin-sells-two-stirewalt-boxes/10637

Love art and antiques? Subscribe to MAD

Published monthly, Maine Antique Digest covers the marketplace for Americana and art. Each issue features antiques news, auctions, and shows across the U.S.

09/02/2026

This year marks the 350th anniversary of Bacon's Rebellion, the most significant threat to the Crown before the American Revolution. By September 1676, Nathaniel Bacon's rebels were spread across the region and had occupied the capital city for several weeks, while the governor, Sir William Berkeley, took refuge across the Chesapeake Bay. September would end with Jamestown in ashes. Over the next couple weeks, we'll be highlighting the events leading up to the Burning of Jamestown - in real time, as they happened in September 1676. Follow along!

08/27/2026

With all the tributes and accolades being shared for Dolly Parton today, Alamance Battleground would like to recognize a fascinating connection to North Carolina history: Dolly Parton is probably a descendant of Captain Robert Messer, one of the Regulators executed in Hillsborough on June 19, 1771.

This connection links one of America’s most beloved entertainers to the history of the Regulator movement and the events that shaped our state over 255 years ago.

08/25/2026

CHAPTER XXIII-VA MEMBER JANE ARMFIELD
~~~Travels to Ireland with her eldest son, Claiborne, who is a book publisher. They are touring abbeys, castles and pubs! Pictured at Sean’s the oldest pub in Ireland.

08/24/2026

A meal that feels unrushed is a rare thing these days. When lunch comes with a side of history, even better.

This old tavern brings you right back to another century, with low beams, worn wood, and a dining room that feels lived in rather than staged. The kind of place where you can almost hear the clatter of plates and conversation carrying through the room. And that all-you-can-eat Southern spread has a way of making you linger a little longer than planned.

I always appreciate places that keep a little grit and character instead of polishing everything to death. You leave full, but you also leave thinking about how much life these old buildings have seen.

🔗 https://dailywise.com/state/virginia/this-historic-virginia-tavern-serves-all-you-can-eat-southern-classics/?utm_source=virginia&utm_medium=dw&utm_campaign=fb&utm_content=641284219057842