Images(4)

Knife, Dinner

Object number2020.21.16

Manufacturer World Tableware Inc.

MediumMetal

Credit LineGift of The Twentieth Century Club

DescriptionShiny silver metal dinner knife. Flat blade has serrated edge along cutting edge and rounded tip. Both sides of handle have raised lines around the perimeter. Handle tapers outward from bolster to end of handle before narrowing to a decorative dull point. DimensionsLength x Width x Depth: 9.25 x 0.813 x 0.313 in. (23.5 x 2.1 x 0.8 cm)
InscriptionsEngraved text on the proper left side of the handle end: "CTC"; the "T" is slightly taller than the two "C's".
MarksEngraved text on the proper right side of the blade near the base: "WORLD"; "WO" are only partial.
Historical NotesKnife from the Twentieth Century Club. The Twentieth Century Club was founded in 1894 with the aim to “create an organization for women’s work, though and activity, advancing her interested, promoting art, science and literature.” Women’s clubs were part of a greater social movement in the late 1800s that grew out of the idea that women had a moral duty and responsibility to transform society and public policy. This was a progressive era movement with links to suffrage and temperance, although not all members of women’s clubs adhered to either movement. The Pittsburgh club first met at the Thompson mansion at 408 Penn Avenue. They sponsored lectures and classes on language, literature, travel, history and science and were a member of the State Federation of Women’s Clubs. In 1910, they opened a club at their present location in Oakland, and in 1930 the clubhouse was redesigned by Benno Janssen. Many of these clubs saw a decline in the 1960s.

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