Hello:

I am currently researching a beer stein that, according to the donor, was
brought to the U.S. from Europe in 1869.  But, the stein is marked on the
bottom with the word "Germany."  Now, this struck me as funny because
Germany wasn't unified until 1871, so something produced before then would
say "Bavaria" or "Prussia," if anything at all.  I remember from the candy
box discussion last week that the McKinley Tarrif Act of 1890 required
that the country of origin be printed on any goods imported into the U.S.,
and in 1921 the law was altered to require the words "made in" to be
included, and for the information to be written in English.  So, would a
product from post-1871 Germany be stamped with the word "Germany" before
1890?  If so, why would it be in English unless it was to be sent to an
English-speaking country?   Did the large amount of goods imported by the
U.S. make it simpler to just stamp everything, even though a particular
batch might be headed to somewhere besides the U.S.? Right now I'm
thinking that the piece must have been manufactured between 1890 and 1921,
and the information provided by the family is just incorrect.  Any input
or opinions from anyone out there?

Thanks,
Amanda Thompson Dyer
Curator, Bell County Museum

=========================================================
Important Subscriber Information:

The Museum-L FAQ file is located at http://www.finalchapter.com/museum-l-faq/ . You may obtain detailed information about the listserv commands by sending a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "help" (without the quotes).

If you decide to leave Museum-L, please send a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "Signoff Museum-L" (without the quotes).