Steamship Souvenir

 

Q: This dish has been in my family since 1900. It's marked "M.H. & Co." in a shield on the bottom. The inside is decorated with an emblem of an eagle between two flags–an American flag and a flag with the British Union Jack in an upper corner. The words "State Line" are underneath the emblem. Can you give us any information about the dish?

A. The "M.H. & Co." mark was used by Martin Hall & Co., founded by Richard Martin and Joshua Hall in Sheffield, England, in 1845. It became Martin Hall & Co., Ltd., in 1866 and went out of business in the 1930s. The company made sterling silver, silver plate, and "Martinoid," an inexpensive white metal. The British flag inscribed inside the dish was used by the British Royal Navy and the British Merchant Navy beginning in the 17th century. It is still used by merchant ships and other non-military ships. State Line was a steamship line that operated between Great Britain and New Orleans beginning in 1872. Service to New York was added in 1873. It was authorized to transport immigrants to the ports of New Orleans and New York until 1891, when the company was sold. Your dish is a compote that may have been used on the ship between 1872 and 1891.