This desk was owned for generations by the family of the renowned
Pennsylvania doctor, J. Elmer Porter (1865-1961).  This is evidenced by documents and personal effects
found in the desk. (See below for documents.) The personal items include a brass
name plate from Bailey, Banks, and Biddle with the name “Dr. J. E.
Porter”, which was apparently formerly attached to the desk, and an ink
signature stamp belonging to the doctor’s daughter, Mary N. Porter (1911
-2009). (Click
here for her Obituary.) Also included were a miniature metal portrait of an
unkown woman in Victorian dress (perhaps Mary’s mother) and the documents shown
below.

Prior to this desk’s being owned by Dr. Porter and Mary Porter, it was
evidently the property of the doctor’s father, Samuel H. Porter
(1830-1907), whose name appears in aged chalk on the top backboard. All three
Porter generations were born in the area of Pottstown, Pennsylvania, within 35
miles of the Philadelphia City center.

A Pennsylvania desk of similar design and proportions was offered by Pook & Pook, Inc. as part of “The Collection of Paul & Rita Flack” on October 13, 2018 (see below for auction listing).

Height: 51 in.  W: 36 1/2 in. Writting height: 39 in.