Silver Tilting Water Pitcher and Goblet Set
Date1905
Credit LineGift of the Estate of Marjorie Orraine Nichol, London, Ontario, 1996
Object number1996.020.001
Label TextGeorge Vaughn and Lillian Elizabeth Smith received this silverplated tilting ice water pitcher and goblet set as a gift upon the occasion of their wedding on January 18, 1905. Baltimore’s James Stimpson patented different versions of tilting ice water pitchers between 1854 and 1859. Other manufacturers received patents for further refinements. With their double, triple, and even quadruple walls, all of them worked to prevent ice from melting as long as possible. When ice was hard to come by, its preservation was paramount. Many companies produced the sets, and they ranged in price from about $8 to $150. While they added to the décor of the middle-class dining room, these sets did even more. They communicated messages about their owners’ sobriety and good hygiene practices. Both temperance and health advocates trumpeted the benefits of ice water. Ice water, they argued was better for both moral and physical good health. With the growth of the ice industry and then the introduction of refrigeration in the home, devices like the tilting ice pitcher disappeared from the market.
NameSet, Beverage
