USS Texas (1892) Silver Service Presentation [Cabinet Card]
Name/Title
USS Texas (1892) Silver Service Presentation [Cabinet Card]Description
Cabinet card of the pagoda at the Beach Hotel in Galveston, Texas "where N.E.A delegates presentation of silver service to U.S. warship Texas." The speakers' podium is flanked with a picture of Stephen F. Austin on the left and Sam Houston on the right.Context
In February 1897, the USS Texas (nicknamed Old Hoodoo), the first commissioned battleship of the United States Navy, visited Galveston. Thousands flocked to the island to tour the vessel and attend a variety of festivities. Governor Charles Allen Culberson presented USS Texas with a 14-piece, $5,000 silver service, adorned with various Texas motifs, as a gift from the state's citizens. The most imposing piece was a punchbowl featuring a hand-painted enamel inset depicting the Alamo. Living up to her cursed reputation, the vessel ran aground on a mud bank while in Galveston and had to be pulled out with a tug before leaving the port.Category
Texas Silver
Early Texas Furniture and Decorative Arts