Captain John Swan heirloom

The Silver Tankard of Captain John Swan

What was one of your most beloved gifts you have ever received? Do you remember when and who gave it to you? Do you remember giving a gift someone else appreciated? Most of the gifts I received as a child, and gave, are gone now. Vanished into only memories. I hand made a headband for my dad as a gift for when he would bake bread. He loved and cherished it. But now I don’t think we would cherish old well-used, sweaty headband, but the memories of the weekends when Dad would bake bread to sell, those memories remain and have left a lasting impression.
There are times when we may find an old gift when we rummage through of box of old things. Or perhaps it may be something we use all the time and only remember the value of it years later. I still have a plate that I ate from when I was a child, but I scarcely think on it. But sometimes, I look at it and remember family meals from my childhood. I remember the pile of beets that would sit on that plate and stare me for hours waiting for me to yield and eat them. In contrast, Mom’s mashed potatoes and gravy only lasted a few minutes on that same plate.
Now and again there are those precious gifts not give to us directly but have been passed down from ancestors. My wife’s grandfather was a famous painter who used his left hand to paint  because his right hand was withered. We have some of his original artwork. I treasure this legacy of my wife’s heritage.
My daughter has in her room a secretary (desk) which belonged to her great-grandmother, my grandmother. Some might have tossed out such an old piece of furniture, but it is a great reminder of her. And for me it was a reminder of visiting my grandparents home. Their library with all their books, the small electric organ in the living room, my grandfather’s workshop in the basement, the rest of downstairs where we would play, and many other sights, sounds, and smells of their home.
Recently I discovered one of those gifts which has surfaced recently as I was researching more about Susanna Swan. John Swan was given a silver tankard at the time of his father’s death, Captain John Swan. He was the husband of the Susanna Eastman Swan (whom I wrote about). The date on it was 1743, over 275 years ago. What a wonderful treasure! What kind of wonderful stories while family were gathered around where this tankard sat. Alas, The whole history of this tankard is somewhat of a mystery.
Here is what I have learned that is not in the histories about Captain John Swan and his wife Susanna Eastman Swan. This silver tankard was made by a famous silversmith of the time, John Burt. It appears to be gift to the son, John Swan at the time of Captain John Swan’s death, since it has his death date and age on it. Three years ago, it was sold at the time of an antique collector’s death. He has acquired it from the Danielson estate in Danielson, CT when it was found along with other items and documents.

Read about it here.  There is more information about it (here and here) 

It was later sold on ebay: Silver tankard

The latest place it was sold was here at this site:

auction site

I am still investigating the details about this heirloom. 

If you have any information, please contact or comment below.

Here are some pictures of the silver tankard: