Fork
Wilmington, Delaware (retailer)
1851-1875
Measurements
7-1/2 in x 1 in x 1 in
Materials
Silver
Credit Line
Historic Odessa Foundation, gift of Mary Meacham
Accession Number
2011.197
Inscription
"Corbit" in script is engraved into the front of the handle; "Z. FERRIS & SON" is stamped into the underside of the handle shaft.
Provenance
The donor is the daughter of Daniel Corbit Curtis (1906-1954) and Georgia Ball. Daniel's parents were Frederick W. Curtis and Sara Clark Corbit (1871-1952). Sara was a daughter of Daniel Wheeler Corbit, son of Daniel Corbit. Daniel Corbit was a son of William Corbit, builder of the Corbit-Sharp House.
Comments
The molded four-tine fork has scrolled decoration along the edges of both sides of the handle.
The Corbit name on the fork may have been engraved for Daniel Wheeler Corbit (1843-1922), who married Mary Clark Higgins (1847-1909) in 1870, a suitable date for the fork.
The maker's mark references Ziba Ferris (1808-1875), who took his son into the business in 1851. By then, much silverware was manufactured by large companies and retailed by individual silversmiths and jewelers, who added their own names to the wares.