A much loved keepsake of my mother has recently found a new home in Ohio, Springfield Museum of Art. Its beginnings can be traced to the art department of Newcomb College in New Orleans and a talented potter by the name of Henrietta Bailey around 1919.
We call it the Daffodil Vase. How the vase ended up in East Tennessee is not known. However, a possible guess might be that it traveled up the Mississippi River and by rail to Charleston, a hamlet about 30 miles north of Chattanooga near the Hiawassee River. It was owned by the Henegar family.
The Henegar family home has recently been added to Tennessee's collection of sites included in the Civil War. Built in 1834 by Henry Benton Henegar and his wife Margaret Henegar, the home was used by both Union and Confederate troops as a field hospital at different times. Many years later the home was inherited by Margaret's niece and namesake, Margaret Eastland. Margaret was a former high school English teacher who owned the home with her husband, who was a small appliance dealer in town. The Eastlands were active members of the Methodist church.
When my dad was appointed new pastor at Charleston, our family was invited for dinner at the Eastland home. I well remember that evening in the fall of 1950. Never before had I ever seen such beautiful furnishings and glittering crystal gracing a table as we were treated to that evening. Margaret's cook served an awesome meal.
My mother became a good friend of Margaret, and their friendship was a close one over the four years my dad served the church. In 1954 my dad was appointed to a new pastorate near Knoxville, and we were preparing to move.
Margaret showed up one afternoon with the daffodil vase as a parting gift to our mother. Her words were, "Christine, some day this vase will be valuable."
Our family enjoyed the vase over the years. It always had a prominent spot in our living room, wherever we were.
It wasn't really until our mother's health failed and her resources were dwindling that we began thinking about the value of the vase. Upon some advice of a family friend who was knowledgeable of pottery we had it appraised and eventually placed in a gallery for sale in Columbus, Ohio. Of all things to happen, the curator of the Springfield Museum of Art, a graduate of Newcomb College, found out about the vase and was able to procure it a few months ago for their collection at the museum.
We found out that the curator had worked in the very studio where Henrietta Bailey had created the vase many years ago! We look forward to visiting the museum very soon and renewing our appreciation of the Daffodil Vase.