Mackinac Isle Michigan offers Vintage Sterling Spoon (Whiting & Davis Co.)

Here we have for you a vintage sterling silver spoon crafted by Whiting & Davis Co. The subject matter is Mackinac Isle (Island) in Michigan. This is a hard one to find, so if it's calling out to you, grab it! The stem is a twisted design. The finial is a really lovely likeness of a typical touring carriage that would be found on Mackinac Island. The bowl of the spoon is embossed 'MACKINAC ISLE' and the reverse of the bowl is stamped 'STERLING SILVER WHITING & DAVIS CO.'

In 1876, William H. Wade, Edward P. Davis and Louis Heckman founded Wade Davis & Company. Souvenir spoons, jewelry, sterling silver stick pins, bar pins, earrings and bracelets were among the items they made. In 1896, Charles Whiting, hired in 1880 at the age of just 10 to be an errand boy at 9 cents an hour and rising through the ranks over the years, joined forces with Davis to raise the capital needed to purchase Wade Davis & Company, and it was renamed The Whiting & Davis Company.

An interesting note...
Mackinac is the French spelling of an Indian word and is pronounced mack-in-awe. Mackinac Island got its name thousands of years ago when aboriginal natives stood on the mainland shore, looked across the straits between two newly formed great lakes and saw an island with unusually high bluffs. They called it mish-la-mack-in-naw ("big turtle" in English) because that's what it looked like from where they stood. The British shortened it some time later to Mackinac. The island was an Odawa settlement and home to other indigenous cultures prior to that before European colonization began in the 17th century. Fort Mackinac was built on the island by the British during the American Revolutionary War. Two battles took place here during the War of 1812, after which the US gained Mackinac Island offers as part of its territory. Because of its historic significance, the entire island is listed as a National Historic Landmark.

The spoon is in nice vintage condition with some light signs of age, as seen in the photos, and measures just a hair over 4" in length. Please refer to each photo we have provided as they represent a very important part of our listings and serve as our best effort to accurately and honestly communicate the item's description and condition.

If you have any questions, send us a message and we will help you! We entertain reasonable offers and are happy to combine two or more items in the same package to save you money when you buy more than one item. Thank you for visiting our shop today. Take a peek at our other finds while you're here! And check back often. We are regularly adding recently found vintage items in categories such as souvenir spoons, hotel silver, hand tools, collectible plates, classic records, interesting books and more!