Scarce Hardie Patent Mess Set / SOLD

Scarce Hardie Patent Mess Set - Inventory Number: CAM 566 / SOLD

This is a very scarce Civil War 1861 patented knife and fork that were constructed out of sheet steel, with handles that, “nearly enclose all sides… for the purpose of closely packing together and for readily cleaning….” This has a stamped “Patent applied for” which pre-dates the “Hardie’s Pat. Nov. 12 / 1861 / Cast-Steel” stamp found on later examples.

Both pieces are very good, like most implements of the period, they seem to have been tinned. At first sight, this looks like it is missing a spoon, but the patent was for the knife and fork only.

You must hand it to J.W. Hardie. He was determined to make money somehow out of the war. He also patented an “improved army trunk,” that promised it would transform into a bed, chair, desk, and who knows what else. In this case, it was left to A.S. Hayward to suggest that he might want to add a spoon to his fork and knife set, a combination they patented together in January 1862.

This is a chance to acquire an example of his earliest effort. As is common, he made sure to include the quality guarantee that it was made of, “cast-steel.”

Inventory Number: CAM 566 / SOLD