Armchair (one of a pair)

Famed Annapolis cabinetmaker John Shaw received the commission from the state of Maryland in 1797 to make 24 armchairs for the “accommodation of the Senate.” The chairs were used in the Annapolis State House probably until the 1820s when they were dispersed when the state government acquired new furniture. It is believed that Charles Carnan Ridgely, who had been governor of Maryland for three terms in 1816-1818, acquired a pair of chairs from the Senate Chamber set at that time.