Description:
Receipt from Mary Balch to a Miss Hutchins for instruction and materials the latter undertook while a student at Balch's school. Mary Balch (1762-1831) was a teacher in Providence, Rhode Island. Her school was in operation from about 1785 until her death in 1831. Originally from Newport, Balch never married, instead pursuing a career as a teacher for both boys and girls. While many examples of needlework attributed to the school survive by her students, none of these works explicitly cite the school themselves. The receipt is an important documentation of the practical costs involved in educating a young woman in New England during the early 19th century. On the receipt is written: Miss Hutchins to Miss Balch-Dr/ For instructing her in embroidery/ from June 1st to 3rd and 1 qtr and 1 month/ the first month $3 per qtr $1/ the 2[nd?] at $6. sewing silk $3 chaneal $2 / Drawing and painting on picture 4/ satin $2.17 cts two skeins of gold thread anss 2 of silver at 5 [illeg.]. 5 skeins of crewel at 5 cts/ Oct 3rd, 1814/ Received payment/ Mary Balch." The receipt may detail work on an embroidered coat of arms. This may be the same Miss Hutchins who received a Reward of Merit from Balch, dated July 15, 1814, now in the collection of the Rhode Island Historical Society.
Label Text:
Extant art, needlework, and exercise lessons are often the only evidence we have of 18th- and early 19th-century children’s accomplishments in school. These items are sometimes identified with the child’s name, their age or place of residence, and the date. While informative on many levels, these sources often open up many more questions that are difficult to answer. These receipts from the Providence, Rhode Island, school of Mary Balch (1762-1831) help to shed more light on the practical aspects of children’s education in the early 19th century. In operation from about 1785 until Balch’s death in 1831, the school was well known for the high level of its students’ artistic and educational output. These more humble receipts nevertheless act as important supporting documentation to those works. They detail prices for tuition, instruction, and embroidery supplies, and also inform on payment cycles for academies in the New Republic. They also reveal that Balch’s school was co-educational, instructing boys as well as girls.
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https://museums.fivecolleges.edu/detail.php?t=objects&type=ext&id_number=HD+2016.36.1 |
