V <"; tj (I ■ 



The Sargent Family 

 American, about 1800 



{Courtesy of National Gallery of Arl. IWishinglon, D.C., from the Collection oj American Primitive 

 Painting! given bv Edgar William and Bernicc Chrysler Garbisch.) 



Figure 14. — The floors in these rooms are completely covered, the principal one with a large 

 checkered pattern of brown, tan, and cream. The tan woodwork and lower portion of 

 the wall as well as the brown-and -cream striped upholstery of the armchair repeat the color 

 scheme of the floor covering. In the adjoining room, the floor covering has a diamond 

 pattern in two shades of greenish blue. 



Jefferson was furnishing the White House. In a 

 letter concerning the purchase of straw carpets, to be 

 discussed presently, Jefferson explained that he wanted 

 a floorcloth "to lay down on the floor of a dining room 

 when the table is set and be taken up when the table 

 is removed, merely to secure a very handsome floor 

 from grease and the scouring which that necessitates." 

 The purchase of a floorcloth for the Presidential Man- 

 sion, however, was delayed for the time being because 



the prices of "English painted cloth" prompted 

 Jefferson to note in the same letter that "at 3 dollars 

 a square yard the floor cloth would cost me 100 

 D[ollars], which is far beyond the worth of the object." 

 Xe\ertheless, one seouis to have been obtained be- 

 cause the previously cited inventory of the "President's 

 house" taken in 1809 lists "a canvas floor cloth, 

 painted Green" in the small dining room, .south front. 

 .Another function of tlie floorcloth appears to have 



P.APER 59: FLOOR COVERINGS IN 18TH-CENTURY AMERICA 



25 



