Susan reports:Last month, I posted here about an 18th c. children's pull-carriage that Loretta and I had seen in Colonial Williamsburg. The carriage is a reproduction, made several years ago by CW craftsmen, and is a favorite with visiting children.
Several of our readers asked if it was an exact replica of an original, and offered 18th-19th c. illustrations as possibilities. (My favorite was this one by Gillray, and thanks again to Michael Robinson for the link.) I didn't know; as much as I scribble in my little pocket notebook, it doesn't have all the answers.
But on my most recent visit to CW, I did remember to ask the experts in the stables. Their reply: this splendid yellow children's pull-carriage is a composite of several original 18th c. sources, a design very much in the spirit of existing models, if not an exact copy, and made with 18th c.-style tools and materials. And yes, I still believe that any child, whether living right now or two hundred years ago, would be absolutely thrilled to have one.
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