1877 New Crown Breadbox ( Coffin Top ) Foot-Powered Treadle Sewing Machine Cover

Description

My husband and I have owned and restored over 1000 antique and vintage Singer sewing machines, and along the way other brands of machines and their parts have also come our way.
This wooden “breadbox” originally covered a New Crown treadle (foot-powered) sewing machine manufactured in the 1870s or 80s, based on its patent date (photo five). Sewing machines just sat out in the open in those days; the mechanism that allowed them to swing down into their cabinets hadn’t been invented. But it wouldn’t be proper to leave a sewing machine uncovered in one’s parlor when company came to call, so ornate wooden covers like this one were used.
The cover shows wear and dings and dents but is in excellent condition for its age. Although this breadbox was made by New Crown it will work equally well on cabinets made by other manufacturers. I have seen quite a few of these where felt pads were glued in the corners underneath, making it “one-size-fits-all.” You just need to measure your machine to see if it will fit. These are the approximate dimensions of the opening inside the cover
:
Length
:
seventeen inches
Width
:
eight-and-one-half inches
Depth
:
ten-and-one-quarter inches
Outside, it measures about nineteen inches long by ten-and-one-quarter inches wide by ten-and-three-quarters inches tall.
Please take a close look at the right side of photo four. When this thing was new there were two small metal “hooks” installed in the slots (you can still see the screw holes). The hooks engaged two metal “catches” set into the top of the sewing machine’s cabinet and held the breadbox in place. The two hooks are missing. Also, we do not have a key for the lock shown in photo five, but they are very simple to fabricate. If you're interested in making a key for this breadbox, write and I will tell you how to do it.
This breadbox may be just what you’ve been looking for to cover a treasured antique sewing machine, but even if you don’t own a sewing machine it’s an interesting piece of Americana that would be a sure conversation starter in your home. Or it could be “re-purposed” into something useful and beautiful, and Pinterest can give you ideas if you don’t already have something in mind.
Important note:
Properly padded and packaged, this thing weighs only eleven pounds but the package is bulky, and bulky is expensive to ship. You are welcome to pick it up in person or have a friend or family stop by to get it if they live in West Central Florida.
Please feel free to ask questions! We are happy to help you.
We invite you to take a look at our other eBay listings. We are selling many interesting and useful things.
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