This is one of the most unusual treadle cabinets I've ever run across. It belongs to my friend Sammie, who found it in the attic of the New England house that her husband grew up in. She theorizes that it belonged originally a member of the Goss family, who built the house.
The irons are the typical Willcox & Gibbs type, with the ornate "butterfly" treadle.
The machine is an early W&G, 1864 according to the serial number, one of the glass-tension models.
But what's most interesting about this machine is the black-walnut cabinet. The left side slides on a track and has a drawer built in, and the right side slides out and then hinges up to reveal some drawers and shelves.
The medallion on the cabinet reads: Patented May 22, 1866, AJ Thompson, AB Lincoln, #499, Boston Mass. So theoretically there are at least 498 more of these out there somewhere....
