The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1900-01-11
SPOONS AS SOUVENIRS.
TIE TRADITIONAL HTSTORK PRE-
Nearly Every Gay I'm the Country seems
10 Have stamped spoon with
Figures Pictu,ing Local Characters

Figures Pictu,ing Local Character
or Famous HistoricnI Incidents.
The idea of souvenir spoons came
from Europe. To an unknown jewelel
in Salem belongs the credit of having
brought out the first distinctive souven-
i rspoon in this country. He knew that
his town and witchcraft were closely
linked together in Puritan days, so he
stamped a witch, broom, high hat and
all, upon the handle of his spoon, while
just below the figure of the witch We're
three crossed pins, the pins of tor
ment." He sold several hundred dozen
such spoons.
The New York souvenir spoons came
out short time after the Salem spoon.
A Union Square jeweler tells an inter
esting story of how he made his first
souvenir spoon. For several years tour
lists came into his store and bought
spoons or knives and had the word
New York engraved upon them, and
took them home as souvenirs of their
visit here This business kept growing
every year. and when the Salem man
got out his spoon the New Jork jewel
er saw his opportunity. He lay awake
one night thinking about it, and the
next morning he had the idea of de-
sign in his head. The upper end of the
spoons handle was to be little statu-
cite of Peter Stuyvesant wooden leg
and all, An old woodcut of the famous
Peter was hunted up, and when the first
spoon had been cast and finished off
it gave striking likeness
| The spoon sold well from the start,
and the jewe1er followed it with several
others. The .Knickerbocker SPOON upon
| whose handle was the stout figure of
Diedrich Knickerbocker contentedly
smoking his pipe, came next, and then
the Rip Van Wrinkle spoon with old
Rip waking from bis long sleep.
From New York the idea spread to
other towns, and the different designs
that are sold to-day would amount to
500. The amount of workmanship that
is put upon some of the spoons is posi-
lively bewildering. The New Bedford
spoon has perched on top Of the handle
a miniature whaling ship, full rigged
while on the handle itself is the outline
of a iharpoon. The interior of the bowl
is a bit of ocean, out of which a whale
is polting his head. Then there is the
Saratoga spoon, whose handle is an In
dams paddle with a culver of arrows
rising at the back. On the blade of the
paddle is a miniature figure of Uncas,
the last Of the Mohicans, drinking from
High Rock spring, which is pictured as
it was supposed to appear originally
Where the handle runs into the bowl
is seen turtle, the totem of the Mo-
hican tribe.
Many of the New England towns are
now rich in souvenir spoons upon which
some well known bit Of history is en-
blazoned There are several varieties of
the Plymouth spoon, but they all bring
in Plymouth Rock or the good ship May
flower. Then there are the Priscilla and
Miles Standieh spoons, upon whose han
dies the figures Of those interesting per-
sonagea are stamped. Newport boasts
of half dozen different spoons design |
ed In Its honor. The bowl of one con-
tains the likeness of the old stone mil, |
while in another is view of Lime |
Rock
Connecticut comes out strong in SOU
venir spoons too. The state itself has
the nutmeg" spoon, whose bowl Is the
nutmeg, while the handle Is the twig |
from which it is growing. The whole
effect is very striking. Hartford has
the Charter Oak spoon, which has q
view of the famous old tree upon the
handle
Springfield, Mass, has a epoon which
bears on its handle a likeness of Miles
Morgan, with hoe in one hand and
over his shoulder Lord
n inn TDaytpr fc o,, Ia !
handle of the Newburyport spoon. The
Lowell spoon has an excellent bust of
Benjamin r. Butler perched on the han
die
Boston is peculiarly rich in souvenr
spoons. One represents Paul Revere on
his midnight ride, and the amount of
detail brought out in small space on
he handle Is some thing remarkable.
One Boston spoon hits hard at one of
he towns peculiarites-be A not
If beans on the handle tells the whole
story. Another has view Of Faneuil
Hall in the bowl, with the Boston tea
1arty" depicted on the handle The
Bridgeport spoon has likeness of p. r. I
3arnum Oh the handle.
The Windy City is especially enter |
1rie' ing in the souvenir spoon line The :
Worlds fair city souvenir spoon" is /
he most complicated of them all. In the
,owl of this spoon a group of Indians '
re watching the approach Of Columbus ]
eet. On the handle is stamped a pic 8
ure of the Columbian tower on the Y
Worlds fair site while at the end of the /
andle Is a bas-relief figure Of Column $
us, with the western hemisphere as s
background. Another spoon upon {
Ihich Chicago has let loose its ideas is
he Phoenix" In the bowl is etched I
representation of Fort Dearborn p
rected on Chicagos site, while the top o
f the spoons handle consists of the Il
renix rising from it's ashes against e
background of the rising sun The de- n
ign of another Chicago spoon shows n
incolns home at Springfield, and gives r,
quotation from one of his speeches e'
nd a view Of Fort Deorborn besides. b.
The head of a steer upon n Kansas 81
ity spoon commentaries the dressed OF
eef industry. W
In Brooklyn spoons the BROOKLYN ii
ridge and the statue of Liberty play al
prominent part Others have like t.
asses of Henry Ward Beecher and IL
Jews of the new memorial arch. u,
Upon the Baltimore spoon n terrapin w
1rawls ana an alligator repOses UPON a,
lie handle of Florida's souvenir spoon, "
edmond has the statue Of Robert Il. Fl
90 upOn its spoon and Minnernta !, +,