USS Maryland Silver Service
(48 pieces)In 1904, Maryland Governor Edwin Warfield commissioned the creation of a custom silver service to be placed on the new armored cruiser Maryland. Soon after the creation of the Maryland Cruiser Fund Commission, the contract to design and fabricate the silver was awarded to the Baltimore firm of Samuel Kirk and Sons.
Soon after the commissioning of the service, the members of the Cruiser Fund Commission began to identify the images to be depicted on the pieces, and undertook a massive site-wide fundraising effort to raise $5,000 to create the service. This fundraising effort appealed to patriotism and civic specifically targeted children, women, and “rich and poor,” and was well-chronicled in local newspapers. In May 1906, a total of $5,000 had been raised by citizens and schoolchildren of Maryland to purchase this silver service.
The set depicts 167 scenes from the history of Maryland's 23 counties and Baltimore City. The USS Maryland silver service is unique. Not only do its pieces portray the houses, churches, and events of state history, but their decorative borders symbolize the economy and culture of Maryland. Festooned tobacco leaves and oyster shell borders symbolize the importance of both land and water. Rope borders on each piece evoke the nautical origin of the service and the names of 12 noteworthy Maryland naval officers are engraved on the 12 punch cups.
On July 21, 1921, the U.S. Navy commissioned the battleship Maryland to replace the original cruiser, and the silver service was transferred to the new ship. After 26 years of service, including duty during World War II, the Maryland, known as “Fighting Mary”, was decommissioned on April 3, 1947. The silver service, which had been in storage during the war, was returned to Baltimore. The silver was displayed in the main gallery of the Maryland Historical Society until 1962 when the silver was placed on permanent loan to the state of Maryland and exhibited in the State House.
The entire service was displayed in the State House until 1992 when the USS. Maryland (SSBN 738) submarine was commissioned and four pieces of the set [sugar bowl, creamer and a pair of candlesticks] were brought onboard the ship for display.
The remaining 44 pieces of the service are on public display in the Caucus Room.
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