Thomas Constantine: cabinetmaker and mahogany merchant in early nineteenth-century
Date
2004
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Publisher
University of Delaware
Abstract
Despite the heavy concentration of scholarship on the early nineteenth-century decorative arts of New York City, historians continue to strive for a sense of the diversity that defined this time period. A cabinetmaker, entrepreneur, wood merchant, mahogany inspector, and mill owner, Thomas Constantine exemplified the almost schizophrenic nature of craftsmen as they struggled to achieve economic security and personal satisfaction. By comparing his story to contemporary giants such as Duncan Phyfe and Charles Honore-Lannuier and forgotten peers such as William Mandeville and Abraham Egerton, a framework for evaluating the field can be developed. ☐ This thesis systematically analyzes Constantine’s career, which in many facets can be considered atypical, through an investigation of surviving objects and documents. After just three years of serving as a journeyman at the shop in which he apprenticed, the cabinetmaker opened his own establishment. Just four years later, Constantine would gross $20,000 by filling the two most notable public commissions of the early 1800s on behalf of the United States House of Representatives and Senate. Along with his work on other civic contracts, Constantine helped to illustrate the manner in which aesthetically pleasing objects defined the built environment of the young United States. His extant furniture also reflects the stylistic interests of customers of various socioeconomic levels. ☐ What makes this artisan notable is the quick abandonment of a trade in which he had achieved such notoriety at an early date. After pursuing new markets through patent furniture and heavy advertising, Constantine left the field at the age of thirty-four. Those lucky enough to establish themselves in a profitable manner could hope to spend their career in a single occupation and at the same address, but Constantine continued to change jobs and location throughout the rest of his life. However, he stayed within the network that connected the producers, venders, and consumers of valuable hard woods and established a family dynasty around the retailing of high quality cabinetmaking materials.