on August 29, 1865, at which time it was endorsed 

 "Received from B B French C. P. Bgs the above 

 anint of Two thousand three hundred & thirty two 

 dollars in full of this accoimt." (The difference 

 between this amoimt and that given above is 

 accounted for by the fact that the original order 

 included 4 dozen goblets and 28 dozen wineglasses 

 of various sizes, costing a total of $632.50.) The 

 second bill was paid on February 10, 1866. 



The inventory made when Mrs. Lincoln turned over 

 the White House to President Johnson lists under 

 china and glassware "One full set China," which 

 was certainly this buff and gold ser\'ice, and "3 

 small remnants of china sets nearly all broken up," 

 which must have included the remaining pieces of 

 the royal-purple service.'-' 



Evidently, the Johnsons decided to use the purple 

 china, because we find that in less than a year they 

 ordered replacement pieces for it. A bill from E. V. 

 Haughwout, dated January 17, 1866 '* lists — 



To the following articles of rich China Ware with Anns 

 & Crests of the U.S. to replace the pieces broken & lost 

 of the Solferino sett viz 



1 salad dish, 4 pirkles, 36 custard cups, 



24 egg cups, 18 dishes — 4/10-. 6/1 1-, 

 6/13-, 1/15-, i/18-inch 



6 comports 3/high, 2/lo\v, & i /shell 



2 dessert sugars, 2 round baskets 

 2 butter dishes, 31 dinner plates 



57 dessert plates, 48 tea plates 



25 soup " , 26 preserve " 

 36 breakfast coflees, 36 black coffees 

 36 teas, I Cake plate, 4 pitchers 



I Ice bowl 2061 25 



Even with this second order, which almost eqtiallcd 

 the original in size and cost, the purple set did not last; 

 early in the administration of President Grant not 

 enough of it was left to set the taljle in the State 

 Dining Room satisfactorily. Those who handled the 

 Lincoln set grew weary, it is said, of the constant 

 breakage and became conxinced that not careless 

 handling but "bad luck in the china itself was 

 destroying both the dishes and the patience of those 

 who were responsible for them.'' 



The storN- of the china associated with the Lincoln 



" National Archives, records of Commissioner of Public 

 Buildings and Grounds, inventory of the Lincoln Administra- 

 tion. 1865. 



" Op. cit. (footnote 9), voucher 18. 



'' THFODORr R. Davis. "Presidential Porcelainof a Century," 

 7 lie Ladies' Hnme Journal (May 18891, p. 4. 



administration must also inchide a service used by 

 the Lincolns at the sunuiier While House which they 

 maintained on the grounds of the .Soldiers' Home 

 in Washington, I).C;. Recently, the Quartermaster 

 Corps of the Army turned over to the White House 

 for the china collection some pieces of Royal 

 Worcester china used in the house at the time of 

 President Lincoln's occupancy. It has a wide border 

 of tiny gray and yellow flowers in a diaper design, 

 with a multicolored floral wreath in the center of the 

 plate. This use of English china and the informal 

 design of the set is noteworthy, as almost every set 

 of official china up to this time had been French, 

 and French china continued to be used at the White 

 House imtil almost the end of the 19th century. 



It is appropriate in this discussion of the Lincoln 

 china to mention the number of commemorative 

 reproductions which were made for sale to the general 

 public as souvenirs in the last quarter of the 19th 

 century. The earliest of these reproduction pieces 

 seem to be some which are marked on the back 

 'Tabriquc par Haviland & Co. /Pour J. W. Boteler & 

 Bro. /Washington." The firm of J. W. Boteler and 

 Brother is first listed in the Washington City Director)' 

 in 1867 and it was in existence imtil 1881 when the 

 name of the firm was changed to J. W. Boteler & .Son. 

 The dates of Boteler & Brother encompasses the 

 period of the celebration of the Centennial of the 

 United States in 1876. This celebration created 

 intense interest in the Presidency and objects which 

 symbolized the office, providing a ready market for 

 copies of the Lincoln china. Indeed several different 

 pieces of White House china have been brouE;ht to 

 our attention with family legends that they were 

 purchased at the "World's Fair." In each case it 

 has been clear that the "Fair" meant the C'entennial 

 E.xposition in Philadelphia in 1876. Two reproduc- 

 tion plates ha\c been brought to the Smithsonian 

 Institution for examination. ( )n i)oth of these 

 the words "Administration .\braham Lincoln" were 

 stamped on the back in red. It is well for collectors 



"ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 



Figure 12. — Dr.\wing of the m.ark found, in red, on 

 the two plates submitted to the Museum for 



idcntilicalion. 



P.\PER 62: WHITE HOUSE CHINA OF THE LINCOLN ADMINISTRATION 



119 



