A new treasure

Look at what I found 

at a flea market last weekend.

This old cast iron plaque was sitting on a table 

outside next to two other similar plaques.

I don't know why, but the

rusty old tree appealed to me. (It's about 12" tall.)

The dealer told me it was an old fire mark plaque. 

(Which meant absolutely nothing to me!)

An old one from London, dated c. 1700.

 He told me that starting in the 1700's,  

home and business owners 

would pay their local firehouse

for fire insurance, and in return 

they would receive a fire mark plaque 

to hang on the outside of their building. 

If their building were to catch on fire, 

they could be assured that they would receive help 

to put out the flames. It was also a form of advertising for

the fire company, but you did not have to have a plaque

to receive assistance should you have a fire.

(This was not the case in England!)

 William Penn Fire mark from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, c. 1851.

This practice started in London in 1680 

and had caught on in the U.S. in the early 1700's.

By the late 1780's, the fire mark had run its course.

However, today in Maryland, the Baltimore Equitable Society still keeps the tradition alive.

Late eighteenth-century fire mark of the Philadelphia Contributionship. 

Dated 1684 this is the oldest American fire mark from Charleston, SC.

This green tree design was made for 

the Mutual Assurance Company of Philadelphia 

and dates back to the mid to late 1700's.

There are several versions of the tree fire mark , 

and the one I found appears to be made around 1805.

He told me it was not a reproduction,

and I tend to believe him based 

on the finish and the rusty patina. 

I could be wrong! 

This is the back side of the marker.

(There are two reproductions  shown below

and you can see the difference.)

A reproduction, very pretty but not old. (thedecoratedtree,blogspot.com)

This an iron reproduction, it has a flat filled-in back. Etsy.com

 The original name of the farm that we live on 

was called Evergrove Farm. The tree image works

with the name, don't you think?

cabinetmagazine.org

 I almost didn't buy it, 

but my dear friend who was with me 

(pondering the purchase for 30 minutes or so) 

was my voice of reason. 

She said, "is this one of those things 

that you are going to kick yourself later for not buying?"  

(I nodded and smiled.)

She and I have been antiquing together for years 

and she knows I have many regrets! 

So glad I went back and it was still there waiting.

My sweet hubby just hung it so I could put it on the blog, he said. :)

Tell me......is there something 

you look back on 

from a sale, auction, or flea market 

that you didn't buy 

and still to this day regret???? 

Tell me about it! 

I would love to hear.