6 Beakers in the set; 4 5/8" high, 38ozs.
Tapered cylindrical form with averted rims and molded base bands; marked “E.B” twice on each base and engraved with the contemporary presentation inscriptions as follows:

One Beaker reads:

“The GIFT of Martha Welch to the SECOND Church of Milford 1794”

The other five Beakers read:

“The GIFT of the Sisters to the SECOND Church of Milford 1794”

Note: Martha Welch (b.1735) was the daughter of Thomas and Mary (Platt) Clark of Milford and granddaughter of the Elder George Clark who had presented a Tankard to The Second Church of Christ in Milford in 1762 (see Sotheby’s Catalog NO7752, Lot 460). Martha married Fitch Welch (1735-1787) on February 16, 1762. He was the son of Thomas and Sarah (Whitman) Welch of Milford. In 1795, Martha Welch married Moses Jennings of Fairfield.
The “Sisters” were presumably an organization of the women of the Church.

PROVENANCE

Plymouth (Second) Congregational Church, Milford, 1794-1926
First Congregational Church, Milford, 1926-2001

LITERATURE

E. Alfred Jones, The Old Silver of American Churches, Letchworth (England): Arden Press, 1913, p.288-89 Hartford: Morgan Memorial. The Early Plate of Connecticut Churches, 1919 (listed in the catalogue but not exhibited)

EXHIBITED

New Haven: Yale University Art Gallery. Long-term loan, 1930-1972