Concealed shoes (early 1800s) recovered from the Parsonage chimney 2013

2013.252.1979

Concealed shoes (early 1800s) recovered from the Parsonage chimney 2013

Shoes. A collection of four shoes and four wooden trinkets recovered from the Great Cranberry Congregational Church parsonage house during remodeling in 2013.The shoes and wooden trinkets had been intentionally concealed between the stud wall and the brick of the fireplace on the first floor ca. 1840. From colonial times through the 19th century, shoes were hidden in walls around, fireplaces, windows, and doors as part of a folk ritual to bring good luck, ward off evil, or to be remembered. Four well-worn, single shoes (one adult male, one adult female, two different child-sized shoes); one small carved wooden toy boat hull; one small wooden pulley wheel; one wood tube; and a wooden semi-circle with hole in center (half of a container lid). These items were found under the demolition rubble inside the stud wall that had surrounded the fireplace on the first floor when the chimney was being removed. All of the shoes are all well-worn and the adult male's shoe has been repaired. These four shoes date stylistically to 1820-1830s. These shoes were likely concealed in the wall by Enoch Spurling's family when the house was constructed ca. 1840. The four shoes and four wooden trinkets were repatriated to a ledge in the new decorative chimney in October 2013 along with three other modern items in a plastic 'File 'n Go' carry case with latching lid. The three modern items are: one pink-and-white flip-flop sandal with “2013” written on it; one church roster; one church bulletin; and the initial report from the GCIHS about finding the concealed shoes and trinkets. (See also: 2013.252.2002 - Trinkets or toys; 2013.252.1980 - remnants of shoes from the kitchen crawlspace; 2013.252.2000 - metal implements; 2013.252.2001 - wooden implements; and the 2014 report of investigation of the ensuing Cape house study submitted to the Maine Historic Preservation Commission 2015.304.2062.)

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