| The small room off the entrance hall to the
northwest was, according to tradition, Shirley's library, and it was used
for this purpose by the Eustises. The fireplace surround dates to Shirley's
time and is one of the only two in the house that were not replaced in the
Federal period. The painted floor duplicates remnants of the original, which
was discovered under many coats of paint when the house was restored in
the 1980's. In deliberate contrast to the French furnishings in the rest
of the house, and in commemoration of William Sumner Appleton (1874 - 1947)
and the other early preservationists who saved the Shirley-Eustis House,
the furnishings in this room were selected to represent the colonial revival
style, which formerly dominated period-room installations. The windsor chair
was made in New England, 1775 - 1785. The mahogany and pine slant-front
desk is from Massachusetts, 1770-1790. On it are a mahogany shelf clock
made by Aaron Willard (1757-1844) in Boston, c. 1800; a pair of bell metal
candlesticks, English, 1770-1800; an English brass taper stick, c. 1800;
and a silver inkstand, also English, 1780-1800. |
