Thursday, April 3, 2008

Our Tiny Teapot








Today I am going to join Kelli in Show and Tell Friday. I have found reading and viewing other show and tell items very interesting.






This is an item that we have had in our home for some time. It is a tiny teapot made from a penny. The story that we have heard about it's beginnings have been passed on to us so I am not absolutely certain of the validity in it.









My husband's grandfather was a Swedish immigrant arriving at Ellis Island. After all of the health inspections, he managed to make his way to Stillwater, Minnesota. He eventually secured a job at the state prison located along the banks of the St. Croix river. Apparently the inmates were quite creative and this is a product of someone's talents. I had always heard that they made license plates but this metal work is really quite spectacular.








As you can see, the lid is removable and the handle swings both ways.










The imprint on the bottom of it tells us that it is constructed from an old penny. The "one" and "cent" are faintly visible.




I hope that you enjoy the pictures of our tiny teapot. I am sure that it would probably not hold enough tea for something larger than an ant but it is a treasure to us.




33 comments:

  1. This is so charming! And I love the history that goes along with it.

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  2. OMGoodness....this is one awesome show n tell. Absolutely amazing.

    Hope you can stop by and pay me a visit sometime soon. I'd love to have you!!!

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  3. I think this is quite a treasure. i would love having something like that. i would of course hang on to it for sure. Thanks for showing us. Sandy

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  4. I love miniatures. Imagine what work went into making such a darling little teapot!

    Have a lovely day!

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  5. This is adorable. I have never seen anything like it. Thank you so much for sharing it!

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  6. Whoa, that is so cool! Amazing in fact. Thanks for showing.
    -Karoline

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  7. What a neat story. Isn't it amazing what talented people can do with such limited tools and supplies.

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  8. What a fascinating treasure! Thank you for sharing!

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  9. What a lovely keepsake. I have a small (in quantity not size) teapot collection and found this very interesting. This person was quite the artist. Terry

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  10. What fine work and how interesting. A very special S&T indeed.
    Susan

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  11. That is just too cute! What an awesome item to have.

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  12. What an amazing little teapot! Thanks for sharing the story behind it. Very cool.

    Thanks so much for your lovely comments on my blog. You're right, I do get excited when I go treasure hunting (I mean thrifting).

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  13. Thank you for showing us your tiny teapot.Being a tea lover,I was quite impressed!
    Thanks for visiting my blog and I love getting your comments!

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  14. Wow--that is so unique what a story too!

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  15. Amazing. I like your little pot. The lid coming off was cute too. Thanks for sharing.

    Blessings,
    ~Martie

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  16. What a fun item to have! What a great story! Thanks for sharing!

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  17. I love your tiny tea pot and the history of it! Kathy@Mimi's Garden

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  18. That is such a neat story and what a sweet little treasure, I love it!
    ~Kelli

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  19. WOW~ I love that and the story behind it even more :) Thank you for stopping by my blog..
    As for the story of Making Up with Mr. Dog, I havent ever read it yet.. I was afraid to because of how old the book is to ruin it somehow. But maybe I will have to read it nightly to my kids!

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  20. How cool and unusual. That certainly took some real talent to do all that in such a little item. Thanks for sharing the history behind it. Glad to see that you visited my S&T this week.

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  21. That is amazing!!!! I can't imagine making something that tiny!! Great Show and Tell!

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  22. That's so cute! I love it! Thanks for sharing!

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  23. That is an adorable little teapot! I originated in Minnesota, so know about Stillwater and the prison.

    Thanks for praying for Ruth. She has been through so many back surgeries, and now this.

    I know what you mean about having a special feeling for different pairs of shoes - Ruth literally hugged me breathless the first time I wore the purple shoes, then the silver ones, because they were so special to her.

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  24. Good evening, I am new to your place via Sandy's place..You worked in L&d and I worked with the babies in the nursery.I love your cute little teapot..a treasure for sure with great meaning behind it.Thanks for sharing it with us. Baba

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  25. Thank you for sharing this very interesting piece.
    Nancy

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  26. What a tiny treasure! How wonderful.

    For your daily dose of vintage goodness & a bit of silliness, stop by Confessions of an Apron Queen, the home of Vintage Thingies Thursdays.

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  27. Love reading the history of this miniature teapot! What a great keepsake!
    xo

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  28. That is just the cutest little tea pot ever!! My kitties would take one whack at it and I would never see it again. Laurie

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  29. That is so adorable! What an interesting story as well, thanks for sharing.

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  30. that is a really precious teapot.Such patience and skill.
    Did you see my post on Ellis Island?

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  31. I love your little tea pot it so cute!! I look for things like this all the time for fairy houses that I make..they are like doll houses but made mostly from nature and I use doll house items such as your tea pot for the fixings in the house!!

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  32. I can't say whether your teapot came from Stillwater or not, but my family lore says there was an association of coppersmiths who delighted in such miniatures. My great-grandfather was among them. He immigrated from Germany in 1864 and had a coppersmithing business on the north side of Chicago until he was burned out in the great fire of 1871. I don't have any of his penny teapots, but my mother says she saw a couple of them.

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  33. We have one too. My father was told it was created by an inmate that was actually on death row.
    It is very well made and it also shows one cent on the bottom. The lid removes and the handle does too.
    It has been a family treasure for over 100 years.

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