Notes
This brass scale is said to have belonged to Patrick Henry by family tradition. The scale may be listed in Henry's estate inventory, taken in 1799, as "1 brass scale."
It is likely the scale was inherited by Patrick Henry's youngest son, John (1796–1868), and was listed in John's estate inventory, taken in 1868, as "1 pr old scales". It was then sold in a sale of John's estate on February 12, 1868 to his son, Dr. Thomas Stanhope Henry (1833–1912), for $1.00.
Dr. Henry was a brother to William Wirt Henry (1831–1900) and uncle to Lucy Gray Henry Harrison (1857–1944), and may have given the scale to either of them before or shortly after his death. It appears in a photograph of the law office (2023.24.12) during the residency of Lucy Harrison.
The scale was included in the sale of Harrison's belongings after her death in 1945. Many items said to have belonged to Patrick Henry were auctioned at this estate sale.
The original accession file states that, although the scale did come from Mrs. Harrison's estate sale, it was a gift to the Patrick Henry Memorial Foundation from Margaret Henry Ottarson (1911–1981) on June 30, 1945. Ottarson was a great-great-granddaughter of Patrick Henry. Presumably Ottarson purchased the scale for the Foundation at Mrs. Harrison's estate sale.