Description:
Framed certificate of merit drawn for Ashley Williams (1775-1860) and inscribed: "This Piece / Was obtained By / Ashley Williams / As a recompence For / good Behaviour in School / Diligence, Learning, &c. / Equivalent 13th June 1783 / 1783" over "Ashley Williams." Good behavior and progress with studies was often rewarded with a certificate of merit, and these drawn certificates provided the instructor with an opportunity to show off his skills in penmanship. Ashley Williams was one of 14 children of William Williams (1734-1808) of Hatfield, the son of Israel Williams (1709-1788) and Sarah Chester Williams (1707-1770) of Hatfield, and Dorothy (Dolly) Ashley (1743-1833), the daughter of the Reverend Jonathan Ashley (1712-1780) and Dorothy Williams Ashley (1713-1808) of Deerfield. William and Dolly Williams (who were first cousins since William's father, Israel, was the brother of Dorothy Williams Ashley) married in 1763, lived in Hatfield, and moved to Dalton (east of Pittsfield) before 1784 where they both died. Deacon William William was elected selectman and assessor at the first town meeting after Dalton was incorporated in April, 1784; was appointed a trustee of Williams college in 1797; and was senator in the State legislature in 1800. Ashley Williams later returned to Hadley, Mass., where he was a farmer and married three times: Anna Smith (1780-1828) of Hadley in 1812, with whom he had three children; Nancy Edwards (1783-1833) in 1831; and Mary Dorrance (1782-1866) in 1834. This example is very interesting in that its overall design resembles a New England pieced quilt created for a four-post bed.
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https://museums.fivecolleges.edu/detail.php?t=objects&type=ext&id_number=HD+2005.27.2 |
