Iced Water Pitcher (c.1850-55). This pitcher by Hyde Goodrich is made of coin silver, raised, cast and répoussé. New Orleans Museum of Art

ost of the 18th century silver that was produced in New Orleans or imported from France, England, and Spain was lost in the fires of 1788 and 1794, or it was melted for other uses or to raise money for various causes. Most of the existing silver in Louisiana dates from the 19th century and is German, English, or American. A number of French silversmiths came to work in New Orleans at the beginning of the 19th century. Some imported great quantities of finished goods from France.

Presentation Chalice for the Louisiana Fuseliers (1853-4) by Adolphe Himmel and produced by Hyde and Goodrich. Louisiana State Museum

Toward the mid 19th century and beyond, a group of German silversmiths came to New Orleans. Georges Richard Elkington had invented the process of electroplating silver in 1840. Some electroplated pieces of the period still remain in New Orleans, such as a centerpiece candelabrum and plate by Mason and Co. from the estate of Duncan Farrar Kenner, in the collection of the New Orleans Museum of Art. Americans who came to the city as entrepreneurs after the Louisiana Purchase usually sold pieces in the more conservative East Coast styles. After the Civil War, many entrepreneurs employed German silversmiths to produce objects for local consumption. The last coins minted in New Orleans date from 1910.