White House China of the Lincoln Administration in the Museum of History and TechnologyKlapthor, Margaret Brown
History
White House China of the Lincoln Administration in the Museum of History and Technology
Klapthor, Margaret Brown
Dinners and dining -- Washington (D.C.); Porcelain -- Washington (D.C.); Washington (D.C.) -- Social life and customs
Even with this second order, which almost equalled the original in size
and cost, the purple set did not last; early in the administration of
President Grant not enough of it was left to set the table in the State
Dining Room satisfactorily. Those who handled the Lincoln set grew weary,
it is said, of the constant breakage and became convinced that not
careless handling but "bad luck in the china itself" was destroying both
the dishes and the patience of those who were responsible for them.[15]
The story of the china associated with the Lincoln administration must
also include a service used by the Lincolns at the summer White House
which they maintained on the grounds of the Soldiers' Home in Washington,
D.C. Recently, the Quartermaster Corps of the Army turned over to the
White House for the china collection some pieces of Royal Worcester china
used in the house at the time of President Lincoln's occupancy. It has a
wide border of tiny gray and yellow flowers in a diaper design, with a
multicolored floral wreath in the center of the plate. This use of English
china and the informal design of the set is noteworthy, as almost every
set of official china up to this time had been French, and French china
continued to be used at the White House until almost the end of the 19th
century.
It is appropriate in this discussion of the Lincoln china to mention the
number of commemorative reproductions which were made for sale to the
general public as souvenirs in the last quarter of the 19th century. The
earliest of these reproduction pieces seem to be some which are marked on
the back "Fabriqué par Haviland & Co./Pour/J. W. Boteler &
Bro./Washington." The firm of J. W. Boteler and Brother is first listed in
the Washington City Directory in 1867 and it was in existence until 1881
when the name of the firm was changed to J. W. Boteler & Son. The dates of
Boteler & Brother encompasses the period of the celebration of the
Centennial of the United States in 1876. This celebration created intense
interest in the Presidency and objects which symbolized the office,
providing a ready market for copies of the Lincoln china. Indeed several
different pieces of White House china have been brought to our attention
with family legends that they were purchased at the "World's Fair." In
each case it has been clear that the "Fair" meant the Centennial
Exposition in Philadelphia in 1876. Two reproduction plates have been
brought to the Smithsonian Institution for examination. On both of these
the words "Administration/Abraham Lincoln" were stamped on the back in
red. It is well for collectors of White House china to remember that the
original pieces of the Lincoln service did not bear any mark on the
reverse.
[Illustration: Figure 12.--DRAWING OF THE MARK found, in red, on the two
plates submitted to the Museum for identification.]
[Illustration: Figure 13.--OBVERSE OF LINCOLN PLATE bearing the mark of J.
W. Boteler and Bro. (Smithsonian photo 44120.)]
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