The Snippet - Past News of the Silver Trade

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PREMO Mfg. Co.

Newark, New Jersey


The factory of the Premo Mfg. Co. has been moved to 60 Shipman St., Newark, N.J. The manufacture of sterling-silver, German-silver and bronze vanity and cigarette cases is now carried on.

Source: The Brass World and Platers' Guide - November 1913

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A SPOONMAKER'S SCISSORS

Springfield, Kentucky


Mr Ed. M. Russell has in his jewelry store a pair of scissors which have been in use for more than a hundred years. They are hand forged and Mr Russell says they are the finest he has ever seen. The scissors were at one time the property of Mr David H. Spencer who was a manufacturer of silver spoons in Springfield many years ago and were used for cutting the spoon out of the sheet silver. While they would not do to cut out a silk dress or a wedding coat they answer the purpose of cutting tin, copper, silver, and other soft metals and being made of the best steel seldom need sharpening.

Source: The Springfield Sun - 14th June 1905

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EDWARD C. KEER

Newark, New Jersey


Edward C. Keer, who was engaged in the manufacture of jewelry in Newark, N. J., for more than 15 years, died at his late home, 53 Crawford St., in that city last week. The deceased was 59 years old, was a veteran of the Civil War and was highly respected in business and private life. He is a Prussian by birth, but came to this country when a small boy.

Mr. Keer learned the jewelry manufacturing business with T. W. Adams & Co. and in 1884 began business for himself under the firm name of E. C. Keer & Co. The firm was succeeded a year later by Keer & Keitlinger, which dissolved March 15, 1887. Mr. Keer then formed a partnership with Jabez Feary and the concern again became known as E. C. Keer & Co. The next year the concern was changed to Keer & Briggs, two years later was changed to Keer, Stein & Klein, and in 1892, Stein & Klein withdrew, and Mr. Keer formed a new partnership with J. E. Kingsland, under the style of Keer & Kingsland. The latter retired in February, 1897, Chas. F. Robinson purchased his interest and the firm became known as Keer & Robinson. In 1898 Mr. Robinson withdrew from the firm and Keer continued alone until about two years ago, when he retired from active business life.

Source: The Jewelers' Circular - 11th February 1903

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A SEARCH FOR A MISSING GOLDSMITH

Canada


MISSING PERSONS

DAHLGREN, Andreas Ellingsen - Descendants of. Left Norway in 1890 and known to be deceased. Said to have gone to Alaska and Canada in search of gold. In own country was a goldsmith and owned his own jewellery business . His grand-daughter in Norway seeking his children or grand-children. It is stated that this man's skin was of a peculiar fish-like scale which was quite prominent on face.

Source: The War Cry - 10th February 1968

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ELECTRO-PLATING WITH PLATINUM

London


Platinum, says the Scientific American, has not been much used in electro-plating, notwithstanding its hard, durable and protective properties. This is perhaps chiefly owing to the practical difficulty of obtaining a good firm "reguline" deposit. A process for effecting this has, however, been brought out recently by a Mr. Bright, whose patents have been acquired by the Bright Platinum Plating Company, and are in actual operation in London at works established there. Platinum has the advantage of keeping its colour where silver, brass or copper becomes discoloured, and will, to some extent at least, replace the use of these metals in electrotyping. It will be highly useful in plating chemists' crucibles and so on. German silver, for example, plated with platinum, can be used to manipulate strong acids. By the Bright process platinum can be deposited on any surface which can be electro-plated with other metals.

Source: The Watchmaker, Jeweller and Silversmith - 1st October 1888

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GLASSWARE FOR THE SILVERWARE INDUSTRY

Birmingham


The Birmingham silversmiths and electro-platers have of late been good customers for richly cut dishes, biscuit jars, and other articles required for mounting purposes, but the goods supplied from the glassworks of the Midlands are hardly a tithe of those used by Birmingham and Sheffield firms. The great bulk of this glassware comes from abroad, much of it in what may be termed a rough state, and is cut and otherwise adorned either on the premises of the Birmingham silversmith, or by cutters having their own workshops, rented on the room and power system. The glass manufacturers of the city are all busy.

Source: The Pottery Gazette - 1st January 1913

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THE CRESCENT SILVERWARE Mfg. Co.

New York


The Crescent Silverware Mfg. Co. has authority to engage in business in this city, according to a charter of incorporation filed at Albany, N. Y., last Monday. The capital is $25,000 and the incorporators are: D. I. O'Connor, J. Castor and C. A. Nelson.

Source: The Jewelers' Circular - 3rd May 1922

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KAISER DESIGNED SILVER

Germany


The Imperial Potter.—While inspecting an exhibition of wares of his own manufacture in a jeweller’s shop in Enter den Linden, Berlin, recently, the Emperor William remarked that his pottery had already sent 32,000 silver-mounted ash bowls to various parts of the world. Of the great variety of articles which he saw that morning — vases, salad dishes, jugs, biscuit boxes, and ink-pots — many have been modelled on prehistoric remnants found on the Cadinen estate, while the silver mounts in some cases were designed by the Kaiser himself.

Source: The Pottery Gazette - 1st March 1913

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JEWELLERY TRADE BOOM

Birmingham


The Birmingham jewellery trade, always regarded as a barometer of national prosperity, is busier than it has been for many years. In particular the last few months have shown a very big advance. Several firms are extending their premises, and an acute shortage of labour is reported.

The improvement is being felt in all sections of the trade, but the increased demand for better class and more expensive articles is particularly encouraging. More gold watch cases are being made, while one firm state that never before have they sold so many gold cigarette cases costing between £30 and £40 than at the present time. The increased demand for gold articles is shown by the fact that the weight of gold wares assayed and marked at the Birmingham Assay Office during the past year shows an increase of nearly 25 per cent over the figures of three years previously.

At the same time, manufacturers of the cheaper class of jewellery are also exceptionally busy, and are now competing successfully against foreign manufacturers, who, a few years ago, held an almost entire monopoly in this type of jewellery.

Source: The Morning Bulletin - 29th October 1936

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MAYFAIR THIEVES - LASHINGS ORDERED - JEWEL ROBBERY

London


London - Feb. 19 - Two young dandies of fashionable Mayfair who were yesterday convicted of a daring £14,000 diamond robbery, were sentenced to the dreaded cat-o-nine-tails, a form of punishment which has driven many desperate criminals to suicide, and gaol terms.

Two other youths—one wanted money to marry a New York girl and the other boasted of his service in the Spanish insurgent Foreign Legion—received prison sentences.

Lord Hewart, who ordered the lashings, told the quartet that they were lucky their victim a director of Cartier's jewellery firm, who was waylaid and beaten in their hotel room, had "an extraordinary thick skull" and thus saved them from charges of murder.

Dreaded Cat-o-Nine-Tails

In recent years two criminals have committed suicide in prison rather than bow under "the cat" and few men have been able to stand more than five strokes at a time without collapsing. Robert P. Harley, described by the court as the worst of the jewel robbers, was sentenced to 20 lashes, and seven years in prison.

He described himself as an American visitor, but turned out to be a Briton who served three years in the Princess Patricia's Canadian' Light Infantry.

David Wilmur, aged 24, who helped Harley pummel the jewellery firm official, Etienne Bellenger, was sentenced to 15 lashes and seven years in prison, two at hard labour.

The "cat," nine thick leather throngs a half inch wide and 18in. long with knotted ends, is laid on after a physician examines the culprit and calls out "one!" to a husky guard. The count continues until the physician decides the victim can stand no more.

Harley's 20 strokes probably will be divided into four floggings and Wilmer's into three.

Source: The Poverty Bay Herald - 8th April 1938

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J.A. BABCOCK & Co. - THE KNICKERBOCKER Mfg. Co.

New York


J. A. Babcock & Co., manufacturers of silver plated ware, 404 Broadway, have dissolved. The business is continued by Wm. Tuscano, under the style of the Knickerbocker Mfg. Co.

Source: The Jewelers' Circular and Horological Review - 7th February 1894

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MULE DEMOLISHES STORE FRONT

Paris, Kentucky


A mule hitched to a dump cart and running down Broadway at breakneck speed, crashed into the front of the jewelry store of Shire & Fithian at four o’clock yesterday afternoon, demolishing the large plate glass windows and considerably damaging the window display.

The mule, which was the property of J. S. Wilson & Bro., was hitched to a coal cart that was being unloaded at the intersection of High and Broadway. The animal took fright and dashing down the hill toward Main, was unable to check his speed before reaching the paved street, and crashed into the store front.

The damage sustained by the jewelry firm besides the destruction of the glass front, which is fully insured, will reach between two hundred and three hundred dollars. Besides a few cuts on the shoulders of the mule caused by the falling glass, he was uninjured.

Source: The Bourbon News - 1st November 1910

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HUGE TANK FALLS AND ENDANGERS MANY LIVES

Attleboro, Massachusetts


Crashes From Roof to Basement in Jewelry Factory

Attleboro, Mass., June 21 One hundred and seventy-five men and girls employed by Jewelry firms in the D. E. Makepeace Building, in this town, had a remarkable escape from death today when a tank which held 25,000 gallons of water crashed from the roof through three floors to the basement, ruining part of the building and causing a heavy loss to the delicate machinery and valuable stock used in the manufacture of jewelry. No one was Injured beyond nervous shock. The floors of the building were flooded and many of the operatives were drenched.

Business of the factory will be suspended probably for a week owing to the damage to the boiler which supplies the machines with power. The boiler was crushed by the heavy tank. The breaking of a rusty strap supporting the reservoir is believed to have caused the accident. The building la owned by the D. E. Makepeace Company, gold and silver plate manufacturer, which occupies the first floor. The C. H. Allen Company, Allen & Merney and George L. Brown, all jewelers, occupied the remaining floors. The financial loss will run Into the thousands.

Source: The Morning Astorian - 25th June 1905

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WHITE CITY ROBBERY

London


PLUNDER OF THIEVES VALUED AT £2,300

The British Horological Institute informs a press agency that upon investigation the recent robbery at the Japan-British Exhibition proves to be more serious than at first thought. The goods stolen are valued at £ 2,300, and consist of fifty-four gold and silver watches and twenty-five pieces of expensive jewellery, the property of Mr. G. Dimmer, of Cheltenham, Liverpool, and Southsea, and several London firms.

Source: Evening Express and Evening Mail - 1st September 1910

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PARISIAN SILVERWARE COMPANY

Montreal


Uncle Sam is convinced that the Parisian Silverware company of Montreal, Can., is engaged in conducting a scheme of obtaining money through the malls by means of false pretenses, and Postmaster McEwen has received instructions that any mail matter addressed to that concern at this office shall be rejected. The government department states that the case is covered by the statutes relative to lotteries.

Letters to this company are to he stamped "Fraudulent; mail to this address returned to sender by order of postmaster general."

Source: Duluth Herald - 28th April 1915

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PROHIBITING THE USE OF COPPER

Sheffield


The use of copper for other than munition purposes having been prohibited, it is probable that many of the cutlery and electro-plated businesses in Sheffield will have to close their doors as soon as the present stocks are exhausted. Copper is largely used in the manufacture of nickel silver, of which so many spoons and forks are made, and the authorities are to be asked to modify the order.

Source: Herald of Wales - 16th December 1916

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LIGHTNING STRIKES WATCH FACTORY

Jersey City, New Jersey


The 60 foot flag pole on the top of the New York Standard Watch Co.’s factory, in Van Horne St , Jersey City, N. J., was struck by lightning last Saturday afternoon and splintered down to within about 20 feet of the roof. The splintered wood fell down from the roof into the yard. Thirty girls who are employed on the top floor were panic-stricken for a few minutes, and they made a rush for the stairs, but on the assurance of the foreman that there was no danger, they returned to work.

Source: The Jewelers' Circular and Horological Review - 19th September 1894

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AUDACIOUS ROBBERY - JEWELLERY FIRM VICTIMISED

London


London: June 3. Yesterday evening Freeman and Co., jewel merchants, deposited in the cloakroom of the King's Cross railway station, a heavily-ironed box containing property to the value of £4,000, their intention being to despatch it by train this morning. During the evening a person, representing himself to be a district messenger, called at the railway station and, receiving the box removed it from the cloakroom. He then re-entered it in the cloakroom and received a ticket for it.

At 5 o'clock this morning a cab drove up to the station and a man presented the ticket the alleged district messenger had obtained yesterday evening. The box was thereupon handed over and taken away, the station porters assisting to lift it into the cab. When one of Freeman and Co.'s employees called for the box later on he discovered it had been stolen. A reward of £500 has been offered for information leading to the recovery of the box and its contents.

Source: The West Australian - 5th June 1913

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HARRODS JEWELLERY ROBBERY

London


London, Thursday. - Harrod's great departmental store in Knightsbridge has been the scene of one of London's most audacious robberies. Ten thousand pounds' worth of jewellery was removed from the showcases, unprecedented in the big stores which are elaborately equipped with systems of patrols, watchmen, and alarms. It was believed that they were burglar-proof. The first indication was at 5 o'clock this morning, when a policeman saw an unlighted taxi cab drive rapidly from the back store. It is believed that four men were concerned in the theft, and that they secreted themselves in the furniture department, and were not noticed by the locking-up staff. They broke through seven iron fireproof doors to reach the showcases. Holes were drilled therein and the locks removed in order that there should be no noise of breaking glass. They escaped through an unused padlocked side door, the existence, whereof was known to only a few of the staff, and which was concealed by large bales of cretonne.

Source: The Advocate - 1st January 1927

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THE LARGEST SAPPHIRE IN THE WORLD

Ceylon


The magnificent blue sapphire which was recently found in Ceylon, and is stated to be the largest in the world, has been purchased by the well-known jewellery firm of Macau Markar. The weight of the gem, after being cut and polished, is 466 carats.

Source: Evening Express and Evening Mail - 26th August 1907

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