This is a Pre-Civil war era 'Charles Raymond' Sewing machine,

manufactured in Brattleboro, VT, in 1861.

The small 'New England' style sewing machines were originally manufactured by Nettleton & Raymond in Vermont, from 1858-1861, after which Charles Raymond moved his operations to Canada - to escape the patent wars.

Dating: The sewing plate is stamped "Patent July 30, 1861", which dates it pretty much to that year - 1861, since it's also stamped Brattleboro, VT - which closed shop in 1861.

(Just as a time reference: ... the Civil War ends (1861-1865) , & Lincoln Dies in 1865.)

We can also date this one as one of the earliest versions, because it has the walking foot (which moves the fabric from on top), instead of feed dogs coming up from below. Later models switched to feed dogs from below.

Details: This Sewing Machine is a wonderful example of the earliest models of the New England style machines.

The flat base, the walking foot, & straight-grooved gears were all signs of their earliest production runs.

This machine came to me rusty, frozen in place, & with some missing pieces. After disassembly, I removed all rust & flaking paint, sanded then re-painted those parts that were originally painted, applied decorations, then applied a clear coat, to protect the decorations. Finished off with a good quality car wax, to further protect & seal all painted parts.

Unpainted parts were de-rusted, cleaned, & polished to as high a shine as they are able to take. (Most are not chromed, so some pitting is inevitable in any machine of this age.)

Often, I must replace a long-lost tensioner, spool pin, grub screw, or nut, but overall, she's pretty much in tact & original, underneath her new paint job. In this case she was missing her spool pin, which has been replaced with a brass screw & end cap, which acts as well as the original, & matches the colors of the original, as well.

* No cracks or repairs in the machine

* All Gears turn, Needle travels as intended, & the Walking Foot feeds fabric as intended.

* She has her Looper & a new Needle (which may or may not be the right one).

* Very Easy & Smooth operation, with no jams, but Stitching is hit & miss. (I'm no mechanic, & she does miss some. Could be the needle, thread, or fabric. These old machines can be fussy about all 3.)

* Colors: In case your monitor shows colors badly (as mine does), the paint is black, with gold decals. The colored portion of the decorations were hand painted, in 3 colors: Medium Pink flowers with Deep Purple at the core - for depth, & Green leaves.

*** Any item of this age is going to show nicks & dings, as well as some pitting, which can be seen in the photos.

Measurements (approximate):

* 9.5" Wide Base (Includes the hand crank knob).

* 5" Deep (Wheel is widest part)

* 8" Tall (Including the needle bar & Thread spool pin).

* Hand crank wheel is 5" across.

I think this one is gorgeous, & I love the floral decorations.

I hope you feel the same. : )

Sold on Ebay in January, 2020.