09/10/2026
Rescued this collection of old wooden ladders from the burn pile at the historic Plymouth Friends Meetinghouse in Pennsylvania, established in 1708. These oak ladders 🪜 are 10’ tall!
How old are they? Honestly, I have no idea. They’ve clearly been repaired and re-hardwared over the years, which makes them pretty difficult to date. Quaker-made? Possibly. Handcrafted by Benjamin Franklin himself? According to absolutely no historical evidence whatsoever, but who knows, maybe he attended a meeting! 😄 The history of this location is quite extensive tho, and worth reading about. Their future plans include turning the school grounds into an arboretum which will be amazing for the community to see over time.
What I DO know is there was no way I was letting all that beautifully worn wood become firewood. So after decades—possibly generations—of climbing duty, they’ve come back to Maryland with me for a considerably cushier retirement as store displays.
I can’t wait to show them to you again in use at the Buckeystown location, but in the meantime, enjoy me almost falling over trying to get a selfie with a 10-foot ladder. 😅
Long live vintage. 🤎
