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HANNAH "REBECCA" BURGESS DINING ROOM c. 1880

The HANNAH "REBECCA" BURGESS DINING ROOM c. 1880 is the Sandwich Glass Museum's newest exhibit. It is an important addition to the Museum in that it offers a rare glimpse into the life of a charismatic person and elaborates on the importance of glass objects manufactured by the Boston & Sandwich Glass Co.

The Dining Room displays many glass objects made here in Sandwich and shows the public how these objects were used in daily life during the Victorian Era. Museum visitors are invited to share a few moments with "Rebecca" and learn about the glass objects used at that time. Through the use of technology the glass objects come to life through special lighting.

Some of the unusual pieces of glass made at the Boston & Sandwich Glass Co. and used in Victorian Dining were: finger bowls, celery vases, epergnes, individual butter dishes, knife holders and individual salts to name but a few.

"Rebecca" and "Capt. Burgess," who was an extreme clipper ship captain, are realistically projected at the head of the table and come to life through the use of holograms and engage the public in conversation. The effect is so realistic that you can almost imagine that you are dining at the table! Even the cat breathes

Who is Hannah Rebecca Burgess? In 1852, Rebecca, eighteen married a sea captain by the name of William Howes Burgess, twenty-three. In 1856, her husband died at sea. Rebecca navigated a full-rigged clipper ship in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of South America. Until she was nineteen, she had never ventured more than a few miles from her Cape Cod home, except for occasional visits to Boston. Three years later, she was on a voyage around the world, and the entire crew was depending on her to bring the ship safely to the port of Valparaiso, Chile.