laura's silver

I polished some of the silver today and came across the sugar spoon and salt spoon I have in Laura Ingalls Wilder's pattern. The silver isn't mentioned in These Happy Golden Years, but in The First Four Years, when Laura is describing the pantry in the house on the tree claim and the contents of the drawers, she wrote: "And one [drawer] for Manly's wedding present of silver knives and forks and spoons. Laura was so proud of them."

Laura's silver (it's not sterling; it's actually silverplate) is Rogers' Crown, patented in 1885, the year Laura and Almanzo were married. You can find it today with different markings on the back - Rogers & Brothers, 1847 Rogers Brothers, Wm. Rogers Manufacturing Company, or Rogers Smith & Company. It sometimes has A1 on the back of each piece.

I've heard that there were no knives made in this pattern, but I've seen butter knives and serving knives in Crown, so I wonder if the place-knife handles were hollow (they usually are) and most simply didn't survive wear and tear of 100-plus years of use? I haven't researched this, so I don't know for sure.

I only have the sugar spoon and salt spoon in Laura's pattern. I also have a really nice bracelet made from the handles of two forks, which I love. Yes, I go through periods where I watch for it on ebay and think about collecting a few place settings. It's not that I wouldn't like to have some; it's just that I already have silver flatware (Gorham's Buttercup), and I recently learned that my mother was giving me a set of silverplate (Wm Rogers & Sons Mayfair) that belonged to my grandmother. So I'll leave the Crown collecting to others, and hope that if I ever visit one of you, you'll get it out and use it. Dainty lunch, anyone?
- posted by pioneergirl at 12:49 AM