Day 191: The Cincinnati Spoon

Me: I need a fun fact about this spoon.

Emma: Cincinnati has 3 I’s, 3 N’s, 2 C’s, a T, and an A.

Me: That’s just the letters in the word.

Emma: Yes, but over half the word is made up of N’s and I’s.

Me: And?

Emma: And you know what they say about N’s and I’s?

Me: *stares blankly*

Emma: Ni!

Day 190 – The President Taylor Spoon

“Old Rough and Ready” Zachary Taylor was the 12th President of the United States. On July 9, 1850, after several days of battling an unknown illness, Taylor died. His last words were: “I regret nothing, but am sorry I am about to leave my friends.”

This spoon—part of the WM Rogers Silverplate Presidential Spoon Collection—bears Taylor’s likeness at the top. Like all of the Rogers spoons, the bowl states what the president was known for during his term(s) in office. In the case of Taylor, he was the “Hero of Battle of Buena Vista.”


The official medical records state that Taylor died of “cholera morbus” but some believed (and still do) that he was murdered. 

In fact, in 1991, with the permission of his 3rd great grandson, Taylor’s body was exhumed and tested for arsenic poisoning, but the results were negative and the original cause still officially stands.

The spoon doesn’t appear to be haunted, but more tests are still needed.

Day 189 – The Tarrytown Spoon

This simple 1908 Nile pattern spoon made by R. Wallace Silversmiths of Wallingford, Connecticut has been transformed into a beautiful souvenir. 

While the handle remains untouched, the bowl has been gold-washed and engraved with the words “Tarrytown, New York.”

 

Tarrytown is the setting for the Tubman family’s summer vacation in Judy Blume’s novel “Otherwise Known As Sheila The Great,” and was mentioned in Washington Irving’s “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow,” but it’s best known as the birthplace of my husband, Dominick, who came into this world 45 years ago today.

Happy Birthday, Dom!