Elizabeth Upton Haywood Eaton
by Anna Ruane
In 1883, Henry O. and Elizabeth Upton purchased the Turner-Ingersoll Mansion, becoming members of the last family to live in the home before its conversion into the museum many know and love today. In large part, it is thanks to the Uptons that this literary shrine still exists, as it was Henry who publicized the home’s fame and connection to Nathaniel Hawthorne. In addition to hosting the occasional guest, the Uptons were an artistically inclined family. Previous Collection Corners have explored some of Henry Upton’s sheet music and Ida Upton Paine’s ceramics. For this month’s Collection Corner, we are highlighting yet another Upton family artist: Elizabeth Upton Haywood Eaton!
Born in April 1907, Elizabeth Upton Haywood Eaton was the great-granddaughter of Henry and Elizabeth Upton. Her mother, Sara Lillian Upton Arey (1883-1970), spent her childhood living in the Turner-Ingersoll Mansion, alongside her mother and grandparents. Elizabeth herself grew up in Salem with a majority of her education focusing on art and design. Eventually, she took courses at the Boston Museum of Fine Arts and the Massachusetts School of Art. Her primary mediums consisted of watercolors, acrylics, and airbrushed paintings. Her start in the greeting card business came after graduation, when she began working as a greeting card letterer. While in her thirties, Elizabeth’s world had shifted, largely due to the second World War. By the 1940s, most men were actively serving in the military, freeing up job positions and granting women the ability to work in roles that were previously unavailable. For a young Elizabeth, such an event enabled her to take a position as art director at the Herman Chilton Company in Boston.
Fragment of Chilton Greetings Company logo
Unknown date. The House of the Seven Gables, Salem, MA.
Elizabeth’s focus was on creating novelty and specialty cards for the company. She even convinced her managers to create tinfoil-pressed cards. Before tinfoil printing, foils were tediously applied to cards by hand. With the introduction of metallic foil printers, elegant cards could be manufactured in larger quantities and at lower costs. Chilton sold cards for all occasions in bulk, usually with sleek, die-cut designs. The House of the Seven Gables has the pleasure of preserving numerous cards created by Elizabeth. A large portion of the cards within the collection were originally pasted onto a display board with the label “Designed by Betty Eaton for Chilton Greeting Card Co., Inc. Boston Mass. Special Exhibit Waterville Maine Public Library.” Below are other designs created by Elizabeth for the Chilton Greeting Card Company. A majority of the cards consist of designs created using die-cut illustrations made in water color, charcoal crayons, pastels, and air brushed paints, with tinfoil accents.
Eaton, Elizabeth. “For You, Merry Christmas, Happy New Year” greeting card.
Circa 1945. Published by Chilton Greeting Card Co, Boston, MA. The House of the Seven Gables, Salem, MA.
An exciting aspect of tinfoil cards is the little surprises that were often included. Rather than follow the shape of a standard folded card, these have “peek-a-boo” pieces that can be lifted to reveal full designs. This lovely card features a golden tinfoil background with three small birds, snow, and a holly cutout, creating an image from the negative space. A small bird sits atop the red mailbox and below, holding letters to be mailed out. The large, central mailbox appears to be full of letters. Adorably hidden in the card design, when the mailbox door is open, the message to the receiver is revealed among cards and holly. The letter in the back has the text “Merry Christmas.” Two small brown birds are also perched inside the mailbox. The bird on the left holds a card in its beak with the words “For You,” and the one on the right says “Happy New Year.”
Eaton, Elizabeth. “For you: The Happiest Christmas Ever” greeting card.
Circa 1945. Published by Chilton Greeting Card Co, Boston. The House of the Seven Gables, Salem, MA.
This golden tinfoil card has negative space cut out as the decorative border. In the center sits a present, beautifully wrapped in holly bough print paper. The tag is addressed “For You.” An enticing red bow sits atop the present, with holly leaves and berries holding the form. When the bow is pulled, the box opens to reveal a cheery Santa jack-in-the-box donning a fluffy hat and red gloves. Between the jack-in-the-box springs is pink text reading “The Happiest Christmas Ever!”
Eaton, Elizabeth. “Hello, Merry Christmas, Happy New Year to You All Good Wishes” greeting card.
Circa 1945. published by Chilton Greeting Card Co, Boston. The House of the Seven Gables, Salem, MA.
Here’s another adorable card! This one features a brown fluffy puppy sitting in a blue tinfoil box. The dog has a large red bow around its collar and is holding a letter in its mouth. The exterior of the letter says “Hello!” When it is opened, the text reads “Merry Christmas, Happy New Year to You, All Good Wishes.”
Eaton, Elizabeth. “S’NO TIME like Christmas to wish you GOOD CHEER!” greeting card.
Circa 1945. Published by Chilton Greeting Card Co, Boston, MA. The House of the Seven Gables, Salem, MA.
If you look closely at the background of this card, a doorway becomes visible, with most of the detailing covered by cut-out trees and snow. In the foreground are two snowmen in front of a gate. As they open the gate to allow their guests inside, the card message becomes visible, stating “S’NO TIME like Christmas to wish you GOOD CHEER!”
Eaton, Elizabeth. Draft Card Design.
Circa 1945. The House of the Seven Gables, Salem, MA.
One common Christmas motif is poinsettias, introduced to the United States from Mexico in 1828. In this original watercolor card design draft, vibrant poinsettias are on the front with the text “Greetings.” The interior has a small poinsettia in the upper left-hand corner. The following page contains the outlined text “Season’s Greetings are the best of wishes for the new year.” There is a note from Elizabeth on the back stating “lettering roughed in original watercolor.”
Eaton, Elizabeth. “The Best of Good Wishes For Christmas” greeting card.
Circa 1945. Published by Chilton Greeting Card Co, Boston, MA. The House of the Seven Gables, Salem, MA
In the final, printed edition, we can see that a few changes were made. The front of the card still contains a stunning image of two poinsettia flowers with the text “Greetings” in cursive in the lower left-hand corner. The flowers are surrounded by a tri-colored frame; the exterior color is red, with a thinner white middle band. The last band is a thin line of green foil. The interior of the card is entirely red with the text “The Best of Good Wishes For Christmas and the New Year.”
Pendexter, Faunce, “Mrs. Arthur T. Eaton, Waterville, Designs Artistic Christmas Cards” newspaper article
Published in the Lewiston Journal Magazine Section, Page 12-A, December 19, 1953. The House of the Seven Gables, Salem, MA.
Elizabeth’s remarkable career was featured in the Lewiston Journal Magazine! Growing up in Salem, she spent time at the House of the Seven Gables—her mother’s childhood home—where her artistic passion first took root. After college and numerous art classes, Elizabeth pursued her dream of illustration, starting in greeting card lettering before rising to designer at Chilton. Her work required incredible attention to detail: predicting consumer trends, creating eye-catching designs, and ensuring each card stands out in multicard bundles. She produced an impressive 50-75 cards annually for the company. The article showcases several of her beautiful designs, including pieces featuring the historic Gables houses.
Eaton, Elizabeth. “Jesus” greeting card.
Circa 1945. Published by Chilton Greeting Card Co., Boston, MA. The House of the Seven Gables, Salem, MA.
Eaton designed a wide variety of greeting cards, like this one with a religious theme. This airbrush image features Jesus wearing brown robes with white undergarments. He has long brown hair and a styled beard. The background is a pale blue which contrasts to the red border of the card.
Eaton, Elizabeth. “The Seasons Greetings” greeting card.
Circa 1945. Published by Chilton Greeting Card Co., Boston, MA. The House of the Seven Gables, Salem, MA.
This card captures a gorgeous snowscape; homes and a church coated in snow fill the background. In the foreground, a group of carolers gather by a street lamp to read their music. The lower righthand corner has the cursive text “The Season’s Greetings.” On the interior, the snowscape continues. A horsedrawn carriage makes its way down the street, pulling along more carolers. The text inside states “Good Cheer to You and Yours at Christmas and throughout the New Year!” Since Chilton’s Greeting Cards were sent in bulk, purchasers had the opportunity to add their own signature to be included after the greeting. This card contains the printed signature of a couple.
Eaton, Elizabeth. “Choir Boys Singing A Joyous Christmas to You” greeting card.
Circa 1945. Published by Chilton Greeting Card Co., Boston. The House of the Seven Gables, Salem, MA.
The Lewiston Journal Magazine article also featured one of Elizabeth’s tinfoil designs. This card has pressed tin church windows in green with three young choir boys in the center. The two boys to the left can be pulled to the side to reveal the text “A Joyous Christmas to You” in cursive.
On August 22, 1944, Elizabeth married Arthur Eaton in Tacoma, Washington. In 1949, Elizabeth gave birth to a son, William. Elizabeth would eventually leave the Chilton Greeting Card Company to focus on her family and work as a freelance artist, continuing to create greeting cards and paintings. Additionally, Elizabeth gave talks on the history of the development and manufacturing of greeting cards. Elizabeth and her husband would both go on to retire to Marietta, Georgia where Elizabeth resided until passing in July 2003. The Gables is lucky to have a wonderful sampling of her cards as well as a number of her paintings in our collection.
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