Sherwin Porter Boyer (1907–1964)

Sherwin Porter Boyer was born in 1907 and spent his working life on Nantucket, Massachusetts, making the island's distinctive lightship baskets. Boyer belonged to the first generation of Nantucket basket makers working in the "purse" period, which began in the late 1940s and continued until his death in 1964, making him a contemporary of the equally celebrated maker José Formoso Reyes. This "purse" period marked a shift from the utilitarian oval and round baskets carried by 19th-century sailors and islanders toward lidded, handled basket-purses that became fashionable accessories for Nantucket's summer residents. 

Boyer made his baskets in a small shop on Federal Street, in the back of a building across from St. Mary's church. There he produced the tightly woven oak-stave baskets that carry his mark. He is regarded as one of the finest makers of this form of Nantucket basket, and his work remains highly sought after by collectors today.

Boyer's baskets are typically identified by a round maker's stamp and a printed paper label on the underside bearing a verse handed down from fellow basket maker Clinton "Mitchy" Ray: a rhyme assuring the owner the basket was sturdy and made to last, signed "by S.P. Boyer." He often paired with carver Charlie Sayle, who is credited with first suggesting that carved wooden ornaments — such as whales, gulls, and other decorative figures — be mounted to the lids of friendship baskets, a decorative tradition Boyer's purses helped popularize. 
Boyer died in 1964, but his baskets remain prized in the antiques, folk-art, and fashion accessories market. He is remembered today as part of the small circle of craftsmen — alongside José Reyes, Stanley Roop, and others — who carried the Nantucket lightship basket tradition through the mid-20th century and helped shape it into the collectible art form it is now.

Paul Madden Antiques is actively seeking baskets made by Sherwin Boyer. Please contact us for a complimentary evaluation of your basket.