Northshore magazine showcases the best that the North Shore of Boston, MA has to offer.
Issue link: https://read.uberflip.com/i/380056
but its customary post. New England Weathervane & Lantern Co., E. G. Washburne & Co., and Golden Eagle Coppersmiths—the three stores now comprising NEWS—each bring their own unique history to the new endeavor. In Middleton in the 1950s, spouses Rebecca and Max Webber, founder and owner of the world-renowned antiques dealership Max Webber, Inc., opened the New England Weathervane & Lan- tern Co. Webber and his assistant, Ralph Raynard, took their "Smuggler Horse" weather vane from their five-story barn, still in operation today, to MIT's metal- lurgy department. There, in the school's foundry, they made a mold using reverse engineering. The Smuggler Horse was one of four molds created in that foundry for Raynard and Webber, the other three be- ing a 27-inch eagle, a 21-inch rooster, and a 28-inch cow. In 1956, Raynard, who eventually be- came an operating partner with Webber, signed on to purchase all of the assets of E. G. Washburne & Co., along with two partners, Marie Kessler and Mildred Doty. Raynard and his wife, Teresa, who was a talented gold leaf artist, together replaced the New Hampshire State House Eagle— a structure measuring over six feet high and almost five feet wide (the original had been created in 1818 out of carved wood). They also created the Seagull Vane for the Seabrook Town Hall. When the company was sold in 1984, they allowed the new owners to keep their molds, patterns, and tools. However, starting in 1991 the tools remained un- used until 2011, when Jonathan Webber— the grandson of Max Webber—purchased everything weather vane-related, moved to Seabrook, New Hampshire, and started NEWS with his wife, Lee. Craftsmanship ne 40 nshoremag.com October 2014 The final puzzle piece: Golden Eagle Coppersmiths, Inc., where NEWS's David Fairbanks spent most of his career. In 1963, a former employee of Raynard's, Bud Tinkman, and his family moved to Hampton Falls, New Hampshire, where they started Golden Eagle. The business grew with Tinkman's daughter gold leaf- ing and his son making weather vanes. The siblings went on to become president and vice president of the company. This creative family business continued for 48 years, until the Tinkmans retired in 2011. Despite the unique nature of each company, Webber says, "Melding them has been easy." They were all linked at some point in history, making it a natural transition for the three to come together—using the best molds from each—to create the business it is today. newenglandweathervaneshop.com Tools of the Trade Making weather vanes is a multistep process requiring patience and a skilled hand.