A plate from the original White House dishes purchased by Mary Lincoln and used in the Lincoln Administration recently sold at Cowan's Auctions in Cincinnati for $14,100. The Hartford Courant reports (February 20, 2009) the plate brought in a handsome price even though it was chipped. Authentic White House plates usually
bring $4,000 to $6,000.
The pattern was from E.V. Haughwout and Company, modified by Mary, who
changed the border from blue to the fashion rage of the period: a
purple-red color called "solferino."
The
same pattern was ordered several times in later years when new dishes
were needed. The Hartford Courant says this is why some of the dishes are unmarked, some
are marked "Fabrique par Haviland & Co. pour J.W. Boteler &
Bro., Washington," and some are marked "Theo Haviland, Limoges, France,
J.W. Boteler & Son, Washington, D. C."
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