The carriages at Shelburne Museum

MAIL PHAETON

Dark green; cane work at back of seat. Trimmed in eggshell broadcloth.

Styles in carriages, like women’s fashions, changed continuously. Speaking of the mail phaeton, a massive, masculine pair-horse carriage, the Duke of Beaufort in 1899 said: “They are much in use by noblemen and gentlemen and frequently employed by bachelors for long posting journeys in England as well as the Continent. They have almost reached perfection in the hands of the builder, Peters.”

Just fourteen years later, Francis M. Ware wrote: “In phaetons, the cumbrous and lumbering mail phaeton is as extinct as the dodo.”

The mail phaeton took its name from the mail coach and was characterized by its wooden perch (the pole running from the rear to the front axle) and mail coach springing. In England, these vehicles were used to send out mail and parcels to the nearest point where the royal mail coach passed.

Gift of the Webb family in memory of Dr. and Mrs. W. Seward Webb

SPIDER PHAETON

Black with red; canework at back of seat. Trimmed in blue broadcloth.

In 1888, G. N. Hooper (feature writer for Driving magazine) wrote: “For some years the young men of fashion have driven a small Stanhope phaeton. They are now giving place to spider phaetons, a sort of Tilbury body on four wheels, with a neat little seat for the groom behind, supported on branched irons; most of them have a folding head over the front body.

“Those first made had a trembling and vibrating motion; but with more solid construction ... they have become not only comfortable, but with more refined designs and construction, more stylish in appearance. They carry a lady and gentleman on the front seat comfortably, and the hind seat is made of such size as to carry only one person, and the groom runs no chance of having his dignity hurt by his master or one of his friends having to sit beside him.”

This spider phaeton was built in Paris, France by Muhlbacher.

Gift of Mrs. Gambrill in memory of her husband, Mr. Richard V. N. Gambrill

CUT-UNDER PHAETON

Body painted dark green. Trimmed in tan whipcord.

A wide variety of carriages are known as phaetons, but usually the name is given to an open vehicle with four wheels which is intended for personal driving by the owner.

The name phaeton comes to us from classical mythology. Helios, the sun god, had a son called Phaet(h)on who in attempting to drive the sun chariot through the sky lost control of the horses and lest he burn up the earth, was consequently struck down by a thunderbolt of Zeus.

The cut-under construction of this phaeton gave clearance to the wheels when the vehicle turned in a small radius, or where sharp turns into driveways or alleys were required. The skeleton rumble seat in the rear was for the groom and the carriage would have been turned out with a single horse of about fifteen hands, or a cob (a small plump horse). Sometimes it might also have been horsed with a pair.

GEORGE IV PHAETON

Green body with cane work, green gear. Trimmed in tan serge.

Although there were other phaetons suitable for ladies’ driving, according to Mr. Underhill, only the Peter’s ladies’ phaeton and the George IV phaeton were considered adequate for park driving. Their graceful outline demanded the smartest possible turning out, but no vehicle was more accommodating in displaying the charming picture of a beautiful well-dressed woman driving a brilliant well-mannered and nicely rounded pair of matched horses, attended by a single groom in immaculate livery.

However, Francis Underhill in his book Driving for Pleasure warned “It may be well to state in connection with the George IV phaeton that they are very expensive carriages, and there being comparatively few persons owning stables which would admit of their use, they will be found difficult to dispose of except at a very great sacrifice.”

This George IV phaeton belonged to Mrs. W. Seward Webb and was built for her about 1882 by Brewster and Company of New York.

Gift of the Webb family in memory of Dr. and Mrs. W. Seward Webb

The Peters’ ladies’ phaeton depicted in the old photograph above is turned out à la grande daumont. This equipage took its name from the Duc d’Aumont, a French leader of fashion both before and after the French Revolution who introduced this style during the Restoration. In this country it was presented to formal society at Newport, Rhode Island by Mrs. August Belmont, wife of the Rothschild banker and mother of Newport’s noted brothers, O. H. P. and Perry Belmont.

The lady’s driving phaeton (below) is harnessed in the simpler à la demi daumont. The two carriages here illustrated are not in the museum collection, but depict the alternate method of harnessing when the postillion rides the near horse, or if four, the near leader and wheeler.

BASKET PHAETON

Black with basket weave seat. Trimmed in blue broadcloth.

The pony basket phaeton was deservedly popular—especially with women—as it required little skill to keep the body in order, was light in weight and of small initial cost.

Prices and weights for the best make phaetons showed a wide variety, depending upon which type was purchased. The schedule below was published by James A. Garland about 1900 (The Private Stable):

Light and airy in appearance, this basket phaeton was used by its owner as a summertime vehicle. It was built by the Hume Carriage Company of Amesbury, Massachusetts.

Gift of Mr. Arthur Brown, Tilton, New Hampshire.

MINIATURE PHAETON

Canework body painted black; wheels black with red striping. Trimmed in black leather.

This little phaeton was made especially in a miniature size for Tom Thumb of Bridgeport, Connecticut. P. T. Barnum first heard of the perfectly-formed twenty-four inch sixteen pound child in 1842. He secured his services for $3 per week and exhibited him at his New York Museum. The child was exceptionally bright and Barnum undertook his education, hiring a tutor and a French professor for him. Tom Thumb with his parents, Barnum and the complete entourage sailed in 1844 for Europe and the first of a number of prosperous tours. He became the favorite of Continental royalty, as well as a pet at Buckingham Palace.

In 1862 Barnum contracted for the services of the perfectly formed dwarf girl, Lavinia Warren, of Massachusetts, and the love marriage of these two tiny people captured the romantic attention of every American. Tom Thumb died when he was 45 years old—still tiny in height, but by then a portly 70 pounds in weight.

CURRICLE

Body painted dark green; gear green. Trimmed in tan broadcloth.

James W. Burgess in 1881 in his treatise on Coach-Building pointed out that in the last years of the 17th and in the early years of the 18th century “a vehicle much in fashion was the curricle, which had been in use for some time in Italy where it was suspended from leather braces. Springs were added by the French ... the English altered the shape, giving the back a graceful ogee curve, improved the hood and added a spring bar across the horses’ backs. It was a vehicle of easy draught, and could be driven at great speed. Unfortunately it was rather dangerous if the horses shied or stumbled, and this tended to reduce the demand for it, although Charles Dickens used one as soon as he could afford it, and Count D’Orsay had one made as late as 1836.”

This curricle, an extremely rare type of carriage, was built by Brewster and Company of New York just before the turn of the 20th century.

CHAISE

Body painted black. Trimming: black leather top and cushions (restored in 1953).

The chaise has been defined as a two-wheeled carriage for two persons with a calash (folding) top and the body hung on leather straps or thorough-braces.

This chaise was purchased from the descendants of Gen. John Stark of Dunbarton, New Hampshire where the family homestead is located. Tradition has it that Gen. Stark met the Marquis de Lafayette in Concord, New Hampshire and drove him to the Stark home in this chaise where Lafayette visited with Stark during his 1784 visit to America.

John Stark was one of the most colorful heroes of the Revolutionary War and a special hero of Vermont, for it was at the Battle of Bennington that Stark overwhelmingly defeated the British forces on August 16, 1777. “Bennington Battle Day” is Still celebrated every year in Vermont, and is a state holiday.

DOCTOR’S GIG

Body painted black. Trimmed in black leather.

The gig was an exceedingly light vehicle and in reality was only a chair fixed on shafts. Well adapted for traveling purposes, it was a favorite of doctors and businessmen.

Of particular note is the method of springing used in this gig. Two sloping members are bolted through the shafts to which are attached the suspension leather braces. This ingenious form of suspension is typically American and one which substituted for the heavier and costlier methods of springing.

This gig belonged to Dr. Zacheus Bass of Middlebury, Vermont, who practiced in Addison County from 1815 to 1881. He accompanied Vermont troops to Plattsburgh, and during 1814 assisted in caring for the wounded on Commodore MacDonough’s ship.

On loan from the Sheldon Museum, Middlebury, Vermont

DOG CART

Olive green, picked out with yellow. Trimming: tan tweed.

The dog cart, when setters and pointers were used for pheasant and partridge shooting, was a useful vehicle to transport the dogs to distant shoots, but outlived its usefulness for this originally conceived purpose. Over the years it changed its shape, with the high wheels and lofty driver’s seat giving way to a low, rakish line. The profile of the body varied also, sometimes sloping side lines were the fashion; other years the upright line was in favor.

In 1883 a lever permitting the whole body of the vehicle to be moved backwards or forwards was patented. This simple device, located directly below the driver’s seat, allowed the driver to change the center of gravity of his dog cart, depending upon whether two or three persons were riding as passengers, thereby easing the load on the pony or cob drawing the cart.

This dog cart was built by Fred F. French, carriage maker of Boston, Massachusetts.

Gift of Mr. Arthur Brown, Tilton, New Hampshire.

TANDEM CART

Black body, yellow gear striped with black. Trimmed in tan cord.

Tandem driving (two horses, one behind the other) originated with sportsmen in hunting countries who took their hunter to cover in harness as the leader of two horses. He was expected to simply jog along comfortably with the wheeler, or second horse, pulling the cart. This custom of driving became popular and more or less of a sport in itself.

Some authorities depreciated tandem driving, but Frederic Ashenden who wrote the notes on tandem and four-in-hand driving for The Private Stable differed. He pointed out that it had always been his custom to give a tandem pupil half a dozen lessons in four-in-hand driving first before attempting tandem, for he felt the reins were more easily handled with four. Francis W. Ware, author of Driving agreed, for as he said, a four would keep each other straight, but any bungling with the reins would surely be communicated to the tandem team and upset their work.

Gift of the Webb family in memory of Dr. and Mrs. Seward Webb

TANDEM DRIVING

“Let anyone while he is young and has strong and steady nerves, a quick eye and patience to learn his business thoroughly, try it, and perhaps he will not repent. Let him begin by learning the uses, places and combination of the harness to the last buckle. Then if he can find a good professor, let him sit beside him, watch, listen and learn.... Then he may go far and certainly might fare worse.” Major-General Sir C. Teesdale.

These two photos showing Mr. J. Watson Webb driving the homemade tandem practice cart were taken about 1903 in Shelburne, Vermont. The two horses are Mary (leader) and Auburn Maid (wheeler).

“GOING-TO-COVER” CART

Black and white with red gear. Trimmed in eggshell corduroy.

This dog cart was one of the types approved for tandem driving by the Tandem Club of New York. In design it was copied from a dog cart shown in the print by C. C. Henderson entitled Going-to-Cover, which has been described by authorities as a truly ideal sporting picture of the tandem team. Originally the dogs would have been taken to cover in the capacious boot which was ventilated on either side with louvered spaces.

Tandem driving was practiced by the ladies as well as by gentlemen, and in fact Lady Georgiana Curzon wrote the tandem chapter in Driving, the volume on that sport written for the Badminton Library of Sports and Pastimes, published in 1889.

This cart was built by Brewster and Company of New York.

Gift of Mrs. Gambrill in memory of her husband, Mr. Richard V. N. Gambrill

SHOOTING CART

Body painted black; wheels and gear yellow. Trimmed in tan printed pinwale corduroy, black pattern.

This type of vehicle is also known as a Slat-side Phaeton and is described by Francis C. Underhill (Driving for Pleasure) as a modification of a vehicle used on the other side of the water in a lighter construction. It is intended for private use in the country with a team or a pair and would have been found among the vehicles in the coach barn of a connoisseur of carriages. The body work on the shooting cart is similar to that found on the four-wheel dog cart.

This cart was built in 1894 for Dr. Webb by Brewster and Company of New York.

Gift of the Webb family in memory of Dr. and Mrs. W. Seward Webb