My copy of Customs and Fashions of Old New England is the 1909 reissue by Charles Scribner's Sons. It was once the property of Laura E. Bayless, per the cursive signature on the first page. That's possibly this Laura E. Bayless, but there's little way to know for sure.
I've had a bookmark sticking out of this book for years, because I keep meaning to share this passage about spoons. So, without further ado, here it is:
"The greater number number of spoons owned by colonists were of pewter or of alchymy — or alcamyne, ocamy, ocany, orkanie, alcamy, or occonie — a metal composed of pan-brass and arsenicum. The reference in inventories, enrolments, and wills, to spoons of these materials are so frequent, so ever-present, as to make citation superfluous. An evil reputation of poisonous unhealthfulness hung around the vari-spelled alchymy (perhaps it is only a gross libel of succeeding generations); but, harmful of harmless, alchymy, no matter how spelt, disappears from use before Revolutionary times. Wooden spoons also are named. Silver spoons were not very plentiful. John Oxenbridge bequeathed thirteen spoons in 1673, and 'one sweetmeat spoon,' and '1 childs spoon which was mine in my infancy.' Other pap-spoons, and candle-spoons are named in wills; marrow-spoons, also, long and slender of bowl. The value of a dozen silver spoons was given in 1869 as £5 13s. 6d. In succeeding years each genteel family owned silver spoons, frequently in large number; while one Boston physician, Dr. Cutter, had, 1761, half a dozen gold teaspoons."
There’s a surprising amount packed into that little passage for spoon historians, etymologists, early American social historians, food historians and even archaeometallurgists to chew on. And it’s just one paragraph out of a 387-page treasure trove that we can thank Alice Morse Earle for compiling. If you ever come across a copy of Customs and Fashions of Old New England in your favorite used books store, I highly recommend it.
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