posted 02-07-2010 08:52 PM            

The Missouri Historical Review has an interesting article in their January issue on Jenny Lind’s trip to Missouri in 1851. This article was written by Harlan Jennings an associate professor of voice at Michigan State University. P.T. Barnum was Jenny Lind's promoter and while in St. Louis her shows, in three days, took in $23, 482.47 the modern equivalent of approximately $500,000. She apparently was equally successful in all other concerts that she gave in the United States. Professor Jennings notes that this success “demonstrated unequivocally that a market for major European artists existed in the American interior.”

Her success also spawned the use of a celebrity’s name for selling a product – one product of course was the Jenny Lind flatware pattern by Albert Cole. One of Albert Cole’s forks in the Jenny Lind pattern is shown on the cover of the Missouri Historical Review cover. Noel Turner, in his book on American Silver Flatware 1837-1910, notes that in addition to Albert Cole’s use of Jenny Lind’s name, M. Morgan, George Shiebler and the Whiting Mfg. Co all had patterns carrying her name.
Turner states that the Jenny Lind pattern by Cole started in 1850 so that by the time Jenny Lind arrived in St. Louis in March of 1851 she must have already been a well established celebrity. I wonder if Jenny Lind received any royalties from the use of her name.

Jenny Lind by Cole is one of the patterns that we look for as it is attractive and plentiful. Or maybe it is just the connection with the mythical Jenny Lind.