Looking For Birks Sterling Silver ? Then This is Where You Want to Be
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 HUGE BIRKS ART DECO STERLING CIGAR BOX HUMIDOR 1688 GRAMS 1920S  US $2,495.00
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 scrap STERLING SILVER BIRKS NUT MINT DISH US $45.00
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 BIRKS STERLING BEAD DEMI SPOON X 5 MONO R US $80.00
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 STERLING SILVER SERVING FORK BIRKS US $78.87
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 Birks powder compactsterling 9676 grams US $36.89
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 Antique Sterling Silver Tea Strainer Henry Birks 55 10 US $95.00
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 5 1 8 Sterling Silver Queens Birks 5 OClockTeaspoon US $46.00
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 Carl Poul Petersen Sterling Silver Mint Nut Dishes Set US $395.00
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 Birks Sterling Silver Wooden Pompadour Salad Utensils US $139.99
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 Vintage BRANDON MANITOBA Canada Sterling Silver Spoon US $39.99
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 Set of Birks Sterling Silver KnivesGREAT CONDITION US $30.00
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 Birks Sterling Silver Spoon The Halifax Curling Club US $9.99
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 Vintage BIRKS Sterling Silver Vanity Dresser Jar Bead US $89.99
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 Vintage BIRKS Sterling Silver Vanity Dresser Jar US $79.99
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 Birks FRANCIS I Sterling Silver Luncheon Knife Modern US $49.99
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 ANTIQUE ART NOUVEAU BIRKS SILVER PIERCED ENGRAVED BREAD BASKET TRAY W HANDLE US $49.99
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 Set of 6 Birks Sterling Silver Tea Spoons US $150.76
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 Birks TUDOR PLAIN STERLING SUGAR TONGS US $50.00 |
 4 Birks Regency Plate 5 3 4 Forks Louis De France US $60.30
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 4 Birks Regency 4 Demitasse Spoons Louis De France US $50.25
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 4 Birks Regency Plate 5 5 8th Spoons Louis De France US $50.25
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 4 Birks Regency Plate 9 1 2 Knives Louis De France US $80.40
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 4 Birks Regency Plate 7 Forks Louis De France US $80.40
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 Birks Regency Plate Pickle Fork Louis De France US $20.09
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 Birks Regency Plate Sugar Jelly Spoon Louis De France US $15.07
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 Birks Regency Plate Butter Knife Louis De France US $20.09
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 Birks Regency Plate 7 Spoon Louis De France US $20.09
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 Vintage VICTORIA British Columbia Sterling Silver Spoon US $19.99
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 BIRKS STERLING ENGRAVED SUGAR CASTOR MUFFINEER Free Shipping US $295.00 |
 Birks Sterling Saxon Pattern Ladle No Mono US $65.00
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 BIRKS STERLING SILVER CAVIAR DISH BOWL US $299.00
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 BIRKS STERLING SILVER FRUIT DESERT BOWL US $399.00
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 Antique Birks Louis XV Sterling Silver Spoon Ring91g US $35.00
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 1910 BIRKS RYRIE STERLING GEORGIAN PIE SERVER MONO US $85.00
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 BIRKS GEORGE II STERLING SILVER SOUP SPOONS US $95.00
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 BIRKS GEORGE II STERLING DINNER KNIFE W PISTOL GRIP US $85.00
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Could luxury items--such as a 70+ Piece Set of Birks sterling flatware--be purchased during WWII?
Could someone please explain how my (American) grandmama was able to purchase from Birks-Dingwall in Winnipeg, Canada (via mail) a 70+ piece set of Birks George II sterling flatware just a few weeks after our soldiers hit the beaches of Normady? In the US and UK citizens were turning in their non-essential metals to melt into bullets, guns, planes, and tanks. Wouldn't sterling silver have been: (1) wanted by the Canadian Govt for the war effort, (2) a rationed item, or (3) such a scarce item it would have been "kept back" for a Canadian and not sold to a common American housewife in Idaho? Apparently R.G. Morrow of Birks-Dingwell, Winnipeg took her cheque for $249.53--I have receipt--wrote a nice note and sent it and a heavy chest of Canadian sterling flatware to her in Sandpoint, Idaho. Grandaddy--Winnipeg-born, US-naturalized, yet forever a Canadian--insisted any silver bought MUST be bought at Birks. Yet the question...How'd she buy a precious metal luxury item during WWII?
Grandmama's silver may have been prewar stock. Merchants did not have to melt down their existing inventories. My parents married in 1943. My mother found an obscure rural hardware store full of prewar merchandise. She was able to purchase aluminum pans and Christmas lights (copper wire). I don't think a non-essential luxury item would have been rationed. If you could find sterling silver and afford it, you could buy it.
Since it happened, cross border sales must have been allowed. It would not surprise me if Birks-Digwell for patriotic reasons chose to not sell to non-Canadians. Grandaddy's roots may have circumvented that. On an unpatriotic note, international sales may not have been subject to any price controls.
Birks acquired Gorham's Canadian operations around 1907. There are patterns that are identical but have distinct Birks and Gorham pattern names. The question is, who actually manufactured the flatware? I don't know. Flatware sold in Canada but actually made in the US could be sold back there with no problem?
I agree, one would not expect sterling flatware to have been manufactured during WWII. The raw materials, craftsmen and machinery would have been too important to the war effort. Last week I found a tid-bit that contradicts this. Westmorland Sterling produced flatware during WWII with the V for victory in Morse code. Following the word sterling, 3 dots and a dash was on the bottom of pieces. You may be able to find some pictures showing this at the source below.
I think I raised more questions than I answered.