24 Pc Antique Yourex Panama Silverplate Table Knives & Dinner Forks

Description

Early 20th century set of 24 Yourex table knives and dinner forks in the Panama pattern by the Associated Silver Company. Design features rounded ends, bell shaped drooping flowers and ribbon swags. Service for 12.

"George E. Herring was born in Kansas in 1872 and spent most of his early years in the town of Atchison, northwest of Kansas City. He married Frances Brandier in 1897, and the pair moved to Wichita, from which George started into work as a western salesman for the Curtin & Clark Cutlery Company of St. Joseph, MO. By 1902, Herring had become a sought-after hired gun in the West, representing several cutlery firms of the East, including the Rochester Cutlery Company and the International Silver Company of Connecticut. In 1904, despite not having a ton of connections in Chicago, he went into business for himself for the first time, establishing the Associated Silver Company in a storefront at 174-176 E. Lake Street (later 152-158 Lake St.). The upstart wholesale firm employed 15 salesmen right out of the gate, and the majority of its merchandise seemed to be supplied by the aforementioned International Silver Company. “Solid Yourex Silver” quickly became the Associated Silver Company’s calling card in the Midwest, representing an exclusive breakthrough, supposedly, in rust-resistant tableware. Yourex was Associated Silver’s original line of low-cost, easy-to-clean flatware, marketed as the “only satisfactory substitute for sterling silver.” The same name was also attached to various products the company developed for protecting silverware from rust and discoloration. Heavy promotion and an aggressive traveling sales team helped get the word out, and Associated Silver soon opened offices in San Francisco and Atlanta, with advertisements warning customers to “look out for imitations or similar names.” By 1920, Herring abandoned his downtown plant to establish a new factory and offices on the North Side, offering easy access to the L train, along with lots of natural light and far less bustle than Lake Street. Among those high salaried men employed there were a few recent additions to George Herring’s executive board, including treasurer Frank E. Dean from the Anaconda Copper Mining Co., vice president Thomas B. Lashar—a plate silver specialist formerly with the International Silver Co.—and T. Holmes Lashar (son of Thomas B.), a mechanical engineer fresh out of Yale. Both the elder and younger Lashar shared Herring’s obsession with combating silver tarnish, and much of the creative work done at the Ravenswood plant in the ‘20s was dedicated to that endeavor. More than a dozen patents were ultimately collected related to the design, manufacture, and protection of silverware, including variations on all sorts of “tarnish-proof containers.” Yourex Silver Saver appears to have been the basic consumer model—essentially little more than a cardboard tube with a treated fleece roll inside for wrapping up your cutlery. Unfortunately, Silver Saver never really caught on with the public and wasn’t on the market for long. Most mentions of the product seem to disappear by 1930, although the executives at Associated Silver did continue to develop similar tarnish preventatives up until the company’s demise in 1941. In any case, Herring and his team shifted focus more to commercial products, making filters for jeweler’s showcases that would help keep out the moisture and sulphur dioxide associated with tarnish. Before the stock market crash, the Herrings would take guests to lavish lunches at the Edgewater Beach Hotel, wining and dining old friends from their humbler days. During the Depression, however, their profile—and that of the Associated Silver Co.—began to diminish, like the luster on fine silver. George was able to keep the business going through the 1930s, and retained ownership of the Ravenswood building, renting out much of the complex to the Scott Radio Labs. The entire Yourex brand virtually vanished from the consumer market during the decade, though, and George’s longtime secretary, Edith Vrooman, became his primary business partner, stepping into a more prominent role after the deaths of Thomas Lashar (1930) and Frank Dean (1933). By 1941, George was nearly 70 and ready to enjoy his retirement with his wife at their new home in Evanston. He announced the liquidation of the Associated Silver Co. that year, and finally sold the Ravenswood building to another silverware maker, Steelco Stainless Steel, Inc., in 1947. Frances Herring died two years later, and George followed in 1955, at the age of 83. He was buried in the Memorial Park mausoleum in Skokie." (Made in Chicago Museum)

Condition

Good Overall - Gentle wear

Dimensions

Knife - 9" x 0.875" / Fork - 7.25" x 0.875" (Length x Width)