
This 5.865" sterling teaspoon has a lot of interesting detail

At the very tip of the finial we have some 4 leaf clovers which are to
represent luck.
Then there is a 3/4 right facing portrait of Mrs. Murdock in a downward
pointing horseshoe. The horseshoe surrounding her head is also a symbol
for luck and the
downward shape is for 'luck' to pour onto the person shown. Also around
the horseshoe you can see the horse shoe nails pictured. Surrounding
the swastika is a chicken (or turkey) wish bone as a symbol of good
fortune. (The wishbone tradition dates to the
ancient Etruscans who believed that fowl could foretell the future. The
custom was adopted by the Romans and it is still with us today)
Below it says "founder G.I.A." and below that "B. of L.E."
I was quickly able to determine that this stood for the Grand
International Auxiliary for the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers.
Below is a background of more four leaf clovers and a swastika.
The swastika was first use in the neolithic era weaving and is a common
element
for luck found in the cultures of Asia, Europe, and the USA including
American Indians.
This spoon was made in 1907 and it significantly predates the use
of the swastika by Hitler and the Nazi's during
World War II. This spoon has nothing to do with the Nazi
atrocities.
The four leaf clover is also a symbol for luck. Most clovers have only
three leaves and less than 1 in 100 is a four leaf.

The stem indicates that the G.I.A. was formed in 1887 and was
celebrating it's 20th anniversary in 1907.
After considerable research I was able to discover that the G.I.A.
celebrated their anniversary at the famous
Palmer House in Chicago on October 21 and October 22, 1907
During my research I found several examples in the history of the
Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers where Mrs. Murdock was given
souvenir spoons for various occasions. So we know that she was a spoon
collector. But I could not find any reference to this particular spoon
in the chronologies that I was able to access.

The bowl has an embossed picture of a crescent with a star inside. On
the left are the letters "GIA". In the middle of the star is a large
"E" with the letter "B" on the upper line of the "E" and the letter "L"
on the lower line of the "E". We of course now know that this stands
for the "Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers". Below the design the
word "Chicago" is engraved in the bowl and we know that is the location
for the ceremony.
Today we associate the crescent and star with the world of Islam. But
that again has not aways been the case.
This symbol is very ancient and can be traced to the early Greek
civilization. It is commonly found throughout Europe as well as the
Arab world. The Islamic Arabs seem to have adopted it sometime
after the mid 1400's
from Turkey. It was not an original symbol for Islam and was not
originally use on the flags of Islamic countries. However, today it is
frequently found on the flag of most Islamic nations.
The symbol is also found in many variations within fraternal
organizations
in the USA and Europe. It was particularly used extensively in the
railroad community and even today many railroad locomotive names and
railroad routes are called "star' ( with variations) and "crescent"
(with
variations).
There are also letters at each point of the star. Becky
Schneider, past president of the BLET Auxiliary, contacted me to fill
in the missing part of my research. The five letters in the star,
F,L,C,H,P stand for
Faith, Love, Charity, Harmony and Protection.
Apparently there was a secret ritual (which was very common among
fraternal organizations during this era) and these were part of the
'grand honors' for the officers.

The back of the handle features a continuation of the pattern from the
front with 4 leaf clovers and berries and a swastika. In addition there
is a little dragon fly in
the design which was a symbol of luck if it lands on you.
Some species of berries were also considered to be good luck and were
included in the design.

The back says "J.S.T. sterling pat applied for"
After considerable research, I was able to track down the patent on
this spoon:
On Sept. 9, 1907, (application #38897), Eustace Crees and Charles S.
Court of Providence, Rhode Island (assignors of J.S. Townsend of
Chicago, Illinois) filed for a patent featuring this spoon (the
drawing exactly matches the picture above). On November 26, 1907
patent #392073 was awarded.
(note: the patent procedure was a lot faster in those days)
Crees and Court had a long term relationship. Several years later they
worked for Watson and Newell and designed several flatware
patterns including the famous "Lily" by Watson, "Olympia by
Watson" and the Fruit Series by Watson (popular spoon collector items).
I had been unsuccessful in tracking down the "J.S.T" mark on the back
of the spoon. However, with this new knowledge I quickly located the
maker:
J.
S. TOWNSEND,
Wholesale and Retail Watchmaker and Jeweler,
1554 WABASH AVE., CHICAGO.
I was able to find this old advertisement for the firm.
![[graphic]](http://books.google.com/books?id=3IhKAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA797&img=1&zoom=3&hl=en&q=%22j.s.+Townsend%22+chicago&sig=ACfU3U0I8h-6XcMTUHUk2LHnXUMwGf-3Lg&edge=0&edge=stretch&w=329&h=213&ci=80,532,819,529)
BACKGROUND HISTORY
The
Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers was created in 1864 and was one of
the four largest railroad related fraternal unions (It is now part of
the Teamsters Union). The B of LE has a long history of advocating
better working conditions for all Americans and was a primary promoter
of the 8 hour working day. Their archives have a pen which was used to
sign this legislation into law.
The fraternal brotherhood was formed because of abuses by the railroad
industry. The locomotive engineers were forced to work under extremely
hard conditions which involved 16+ hours of daily physical work
which jeopardized their safety and the safety of their passengers and
cargoes. There were even reports where the engineers were not allowed
to sleep for up to seven continuous days. In addition there were a
number of unfair labor practices such as stranding employees in distant
locales and of course extremely low wages.
The B of LE was also one of the first fraternal unions to set up an
insurance policy for their members.
The G.I.A. was set up in 1887 by Mrs. Murdock as a ladies auxiliary to
the union.
"The Order was founded solely for one purpose, to promote
fraternal love and sociability between the families of the B. of L. E.
men and to render aid and assistance in times of trouble. How far we
have lived up to this purpose is shown by the increasing growth of the
Order that now numbers 566 Divisions, with a membership of about
28,000."
About five years after this spoon was created, the G.I.A. also set up
an insurance fund for its members.
Within the last few years, the auxiliary has changed its name to the
BLET (Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers & Trainmen).
On October 16, 2010 it will celebrate 123 years of service to its
members.
The secret rituals were abandoned years ago.
As an interesting side note. I found a notice in the historical records
which announced this 20th anniversary and they listed hotels which
members could use in the vicinity of the Palmer House.
note these prices.
"Hotel rates for rooms, European plan, are as follows:
Palmer House, $1.50 per day and up; 2 in one room, $ 1.00 each and up.
Great Northern, $1.50 per day and up.
Grand Pacific, $1.50 per day and up; 2 in one room, $1.00 each and up.
Sherman House, $1.50 per day and up; 2 in one room, $1.25. each and up.
Briggs House, $1.00 per day and up; 2 in one room, $1.00 each and up.
McCoy Hotel, $1.50 per day and up; 2 in one room, $1.25 each and up."
"Mrs. W. A. Murdock, the founder, builded {sic} better than she knew,
and was our leader for 32 years.
On April 17, 1919, she was summoned by the Death Angel and left the
work she so dearly loved, but the foundation was so well laid that the
structure remains firm and solid and at the present time the G. I. A.
is marching on to even greater achievements and is an honor and credit
to the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers, the Order that we feel we
owe everything to.
Mary E. Cassell, Grand Pres." (successor to Mrs. Murdock)
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