From Europe

April 15

Carl Robert Keyes Daily Advert Update , , , , , ,

What was advertised in a colonial American newspaper 250 years ago today?

Maryland Gazette (April 15, 1773).

“For Neatness and Elegance … they are able to excel any of the Business ever arrived in Annapolis.”

When John Finlater and Company set up shop in Annapolis in the spring of 1773, they placed an advertisement that ran for six weeks in the Maryland Gazette.  Newcomers to the town, the wheelwrights explained that they were “Late fromEurope” and “propose carrying on the various Branches of the Business.”  They crafted “Wheels of all kinds” for a variety of carriages, including “Coaches, Berlins, Post-Chariots, Curricles, Sulkies, and single Horse Chaises.”  In addition, they made wheels for “Waggons, Carts, Ploughs, and Harrows,” promising “the neatest Construction” for all their work.  As an ancillary service, Finlater and Company also painted and varnished carriages and wheels “in the best Manner.”

Unlike other artisans who extolled their training and experience when they settled in the colonies after migrating across the Atlantic, Finlater and Company did not provide details about the work they had undertaken in Europe.  They did, however, extend some of the usual promises to prospective clients.  “Those who please to honour them with their Commands,” the wheelwrights declared, “may be assured, that a speedy Execution of their Work and Attention to Business will entitle them to their Favours.”  In turn, Finalter and Company intended that the quality of their work with their initial customers would help in cultivating a good reputation and “in some Measure recommend them to the Encouragement of the Publick.”  In other words, they hoped that satisfied customers would spread the word so others would seek out their services.

The wheelwrights concluded with a bold claim.  When it came to “Neatness and Elegance” of the wheels they constructed and the carriages they painted and maintained, Finlater and Company proclaimed that “they are able to excel any of the Business ever arrived in Annapolis.”  They were better wheelwrights than any who had previously labored in the town.  In making that claim, they challenged prospective customers to test that assertion for themselves.  As newcomers without an established reputation, Finlater and Company resorted to other means of attracting attention to their business and distinguishing themselves from the competition.

March 12

Carl Robert Keyes Daily Advert Update , , , , ,

What was advertised in a colonial American newspaper 250 years ago today?

New-Hampshire Gazette (March 12, 1773).

“He will teach Dancing in the politest Manner.”

Monsieur de Viart had competition for pupils at his dancing academy in Portsmouth.  The week after Viart commenced a new round of advertising in the New-Hampshire Gazette, Edward Hacket placed his own notice “to acquaint the GENTLEMEN and LADIES” that he would “open a Dancing-School, At the New ASSEMBLY HOUSE” in April.  Although dated February 11, that was likely a mistake.  Hacket’s advertisement did not appear in the New-Hampshire Gazette until March 12.  By then, Viart had taken the lead in advertising for the upcoming quarter in the public prints.

That did not deter Hacket from attempting to convince adults to take lessons from him and parents to enroll their children in his school.  For background, he described himself as “From EUROPE,” but did not go into greater detail.  He apparently hoped that his origins on the other side of the Atlantic gave him some cachet compared to dancing masters from the colonies … and made him competitive with his French rival, Monsieur de Viart.  Hacket did not believe that Viart was entitled to corner the market in Portsmouth.  According to his advertisement, neither did “many of the principal Inhabitants of the Town” who requested that he establish his own school even though Viart already operated a dancing academy there.  To further burnish his credentials, Hacket declared that he “has taught Dancing in many of the principal Towns in England, Ireland, and America.”  That being the case, he taught students how to dance “in the politest manner” and could assist them in learning “perfectly in a short Time,” preparing his pupils “for any Assembly or Company whatsoever.”

Just as participation in the consumer revolution was not restricted to the gentry in the largest colonial cities, neither was adopting the manners and skills associated with gentility.  As spring approached in 1773, two dancing masters offered their services in Portsmouth, Hampshire.  Each operated schools in that town and also offered private instruction in the homes of their pupils.  Hacket indicated that he also gave lessons in Exeter, New Hampshire, and Haverhill and Newbury, Massachusetts.  Prospective pupils in town and country alike, the dancing masters suggested, should consider how learning to dance well would secure and enhance their status.