The George Washington dipper from the spring near Valley Forge, Pennsylvanis. Brass, fitted coconut shell, with long wooden handle to be auctioned off at Christy's, only bids taken of over $5,000.00. Value estimated upwards of over $10,000.00. Written authentication along with brassmaker's name, and the year 1771. In family of the farm owners since the Revolution and proof of General Washington's use of the ladel. Call for picture 804-361-9166.
This is very interesting as members of a fur trade list we think of gourd's and their uses, but remember the French used coconut shells in the same way when serving in this country; water containers, dipper (like the one above), storage containers, etc.
Anyone have any reference to coconut uses in the fur trade like those uses in the F&I War and Rev. War just mentioned ??? Have read of coconut in the east and on the west coast being used, was a big trade item on the coastal areas of North America.
Later.
Buck Conner
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Date: 8 Aug 00 22:12:16 EDT
From: Concho Smith <conchosmith@netscape.net>
Subject: Re: [MtMan-List: Coconut used in the New world.]
Hey Buck,
I remember reading about coconut canteens, and day food containers that t=
he
French used in the North and in the colonies, forgot all about that. I'll=
go
to the library after work and see what we have in this Ma & Pa library he=
Get your own FREE, personal Netscape WebMail account today at http://webm=
ail.netscape.com.
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Date: Tue, 8 Aug 2000 21:09:59 -0500
From: "Ratcliff" <rat@htcomp.net>
Subject: Re: MtMan-List: Fire victims OFF TOPIC
John Funk wrote:
"Friends,
As you are aware, there are some outrageous fires which are out of =
control
in many parts of the country. One fire in particular looms deadly in =
the
Bitterroot Valley of Montana. They're are many friends of the Hist List =
and
"brothers" to some of you, who reside in the valley.
Talked with Bob Schmidt and Rick (Hawk) Hurst last night regarding their
circumstances. Bob is not immediately threatened, apparently, as he =
lives
on the opposite side of the valley. He states he can see "many" fires =
which
are out of control along the mountain ridges west of the valley. Rick =
is
not as lucky. He and his family are preparing to evacuate. I had the
privilege of staying with Rick and Tammi for a short while last year in
their log home. They are on the west side of the Hamilton valley and =
reside
up a heavily wooded canyon. Things are not good for them right now.
Keep them in your prayers.
John Funk"
John
Keep us updated on the fires and how they effect Rick, Grandpa and the =
others in the area and if there is anything we can do....besides pray. =20
Lanney Ratcliff
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Date: Tue, 8 Aug 2000 21:22:18 -0600
From: Todd Glover <tetontodd@juno.com>
Subject: Re: MtMan-List: I. Wilson knives
Well, he got everyone all stirred up , then sorta forgot the whole thing
cause he needed around $250.00 to get started. He had enough commitments
to recoup his money, but just got cold feet.
"Teton" Todd D. Glover
Poison River Party
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Date: Tue, 8 Aug 2000 23:22:43 EDT
From: Casapy123@aol.com
Subject: Re: MtMan-List: mad hatters and use of mercury
In order to use lesser quality or cheaper grades of fur to make hats, the
mercury "carrot" was introduced in the eighteenth century. The surface of
hair consists of a hard , keratin substance, similar to that of a finger nail
but much finer. Before furs could be turned into felt, the keratin surface
had to be destroyed. To do this, hair was soaked in a solution of salts of
mercury, diluted in nitric acis. The development of this process allowed
domestic sources of fur to become a fairly close substitute for beaver fur.
(MuzzleBlasts, Jan. 1999. "From Pelt to Felt." p. 61)
Jim Hardee, AMM#1676
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Date: 9 Aug 2000 05:02:20 -0700
From: buck.conner@uswestmail.net
Subject: Re: [MtMan-List: Coconut used in the New world.]
Talked to Goose Bay Workshops, Peter Goebel last night, he called the phone number on this sale of Washington's dipper, turns out the owner is selling many items as he gets ready to enter a rest home, family members aren't into history whether it's family or otherwise.
The location of the dipper is only a few hours away from GBW, so Peter has made an appointment to go see the dipper, handle it, photo, and it may be in next years catalog (a cousin per say - for sale).
