Souvenir spoon: Old Flag / Niagara
Toronto, Canada
c. 1897
Maker
J.E. Ellis & Co. (1877-1901)
Measurements
4-3/8 in x 1 in x 5/8 in
Materials
Silver and enamel
Credit Line
Historic Odessa Foundation, The David Wilson Mansion, Inc.
Accession Number
1971.1111
Inscription
“THE / OLD / FLAG” in enamel is in the bowl. “STERLING” and “J.E. ELLIS” are stamped into the back of the handle.
Provenance
Ex coll. Mrs. E. Tatnall (Mary Corbit) Warner
Comments
The spoon has a Union Jack painted inside the bowl. It seems to be the upper corner of a red banner, but it is not a fair rendition of the so-called Red Ensign. The tip of the handle shows a Native American in a feathered headress paddling a canoe, seen from its bow. The very detailed image on the back of the spoon appears to be the Whirlpool Rapids Bridge, completed in 1897, that connects Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada, with Niagara Falls, New York. A steam engine is visible crossing the bridge, and the Niagara Falls appear below the bridge.
Unlike many other souvenir spoons, this one does not carry a clear, unambiguous legend of what it represents.
