"Don't Be So Pushy!" Special Exhibit

Discover a wonderful private collection of turn of the century baby food pushers. Often presented to the proud parents to mark the occasion of a new born, and possibly engraved with the baby’s name or monogram, these utensils were used to maneuver the baby’s first solid foods on their plate. The lump of food would then be pushed onto the baby’s spoon for feeding. The pushers were also designed to be raised from the plate to allow for easy grasping by the young eaters. Numerous patterns were created by the silverware manufacturers to match the parent’s flatware. Designs were modest to ornate and could be made in sets from sterling, plate, stainless, to pewter. This collection is on loan from the daughter of Martha Shirley Harrison Shotts. Other baby items will be included in the exhibit to offer some context to the baby food pushers.