Gorham Manufacturing Co.

American silverware firm formed in 1831 by Jabez Gorham (b Providence, RI, 18 Feb 1792; d Providence, 24 March 1869). When he was fourteen Gorham began a seven-year apprenticeship with Nehemiah Dodge ( fl 1794-1807), a Providence silversmith. He completed his training in 1813 and in the same year opened a jewellery business known as 'The Firm', which lasted until 1818, when economic hardships led to its dissolution. Jabez continued in business in Providence throughout the 1820s, and in 1831 he expanded his production to include the manufacture of coin-silver spoons with Henry Webster (1808-65). In 1837 William G. Price (d 1839) also became a partner in what became known as Gorham, Webster & Price, and in 1841 Gorham brought his son, John Gorham (1820-98), into the business under the name J. Gorham & Son. They expanded their line of flatware to include forks, tongs, thimbles, nursing tubes, toiletries and other small articles, sold mainly through the shop and a network of travelling peddlers. By 1847 John Gorham's ambitious plans for the company included the acquisition of larger working space and steam-powered machinery. Jabez Gorham retired in 1848. In 1850 John Gorham made his cousin, Gorham Thurber (1825-88), partner, and the company became known as Gorham & Thurber, producing hollowware and flatware using machines and new technology. In 1865 the firm was incorporated as the Gorham Manufacturing Co., and in the same year electroplating was introduced. In 1868 the English silversmith Thomas Joseph Pairpoint ( fl 1860-80) joined the company and designed wares in a High Victorian style (e.g. Furber Service, 1873; Providence, RI, Gorham Col.). Gorham went bankrupt in 1877 and was forced to resign, but the company continued to produce wares in revival styles. During the 1890s Art Nouveau wares were produced and the Martelé (hammered) line of silverware and jewellery was introduced. In 1925 the Danish designer Erik Magnussen (1884-1961) became the company director and introduced Art Deco style wares. During World War II production was reduced, but normal production was resumed in the 1950s. In 1967 the firm was merged with the Textron Corporation of Providence. In 1974-5 a table service in the King Charles pattern was made for the White House, Washington, DC. (Source: GERALD W. R. WARD, "Gorham," The Grove Dictionary of Art Online (Oxford University Press: Accessed March 18, 2004) http://www.groveart.com)