Tea Set:  The six miscellaneous pieces of this tea service (Coffee Pot not on display) were made sometime around 1835 by Samuel Kirk of Baltimore, but the six objects may not have been part of the same set.  The marks “SK” appear on the coffeepot, cream pitcher, and small teapot while “S Kirk” appears on the sugar bowl, waste bowl, and large teapot.  The initials on select pieces are those of Harriet McPherson, one of the Harwood sisters’ first cousins and the great grandmother of the 1971 donor.  As a young girl, the donor’s mother often visited the Harwood sisters living at 19 Maryland Avenue, affectionately referring to them as “Cousin Lou” (Lucy) and “Cousin Essie” (Hester Ann).   Fond of their cousin, Hester and Lucy gave Harriet McPherson a fine tureen and lid (S 49) and a whimsical butter dish (S 50) also on display in Case II. 

Silversmith:  Born in 1793, Samuel Kirk came to Baltimore from Philadelphia in 1815.   Setting up his shop on Market Street in the early nineteenth century, Kirk would establish the longest-lived silver company in the United States.  Early on, Kirk partnered with John Smith, hallmarks from the period bearing the name "Kirk & Smith" or "K & S."   This  union lasted until 1823, and in 1846, Kirk's son Henry Child Kirk joined his father in the family business.  Thereafter, Kirk's company would be known as Samuel Kirk & Son or Samuel Kirk & Sons as more of Kirk's boys entered and/or left their father's trade.  Kirk's hallmarks from the 19th century vary greatly, recording the seemingly endless addition and subtraction of sons and partners.  Long after Samuel Kirk's death in 1872, his business was purchased by the Stieff Company which in turn became a subsidiary of the Lenox Corporation.  Today, Kirk is credited with introducing "repousse" work or the raised relief style of decoration to American silver.