From the H.E. Huntington’s Butler’s Pantry (San Marino Ranch, CA)

by Nancy Armitage

(Full list of Mrs. Arabella Huntington’s plate ware, silver, & crystal)

What is a Butler’s Pantry?

In the cities of San Marino & Pasadena, California, most of the houses & mansions have a Butler’s Pantry(s). A Butler’s Pantry room is a designated place just for the hostess’ entertaining accoutrements. This room houses the owners & hostess’s expensive fine bone china or porcelain plates & bowls; also porcelain serving bowls, soup tureens, & fine crystal glassware, and silver pieces. Stored in the drawers & cabinets of a Butlers Pantry would be the sterling silver pieces & silver flatware.

What I discovered on the Huntington Mansion’s blueprint (below) on the Butler’s Pantry (San Marino Ranch, CA) there was a Vault. So that changes things: The Huntington Mansion’s vault could have held many things. Like the Huntington’s silver collection: Gorham silver, Sheffield sterling silver pieces & Gorham sterling flatware, & George III silver pieces. Also, Mrs. Arabella Huntington’s mass quantities of jewelry & tiaras and/or Mr. H.E. Huntington’s extensive coin collection.

Key to the Wine Cellar & the Key to the Vault in the Butler’s Pantry:

In a large Gilded Age mansion with a servant staff, the normal keeper of the keys to the wine cellar & the Butler Pantry’s Vault would have been the Head Butler or 1st Butler. But the Huntingtons were only at the San Marino Ranch from January to May or June; it was Mr. Wm. Hertrich (Superintendent of the San Marino Ranch) who was the key keeper of the wine cellar & the vault. Maybe giving the keys to the Head Butler, when the Huntington’s arrived by train car from the East coast. Mr. H. E. Huntington would have had his own set of keys for both.

The Huntington’s Head Butler was Mr. Angus McGillivary, he was Scottish & had worked for the Huntingtons for decades. McGillivary & the 2nd butler & footmen were also “traveling servants” to each of the Huntington Mansions. When McGillivary retired about 1911, Mrs. Arabella Huntington interviewed Mr. Alfonso Gomez (an elegant Spanish man from a Cunard ship, he worked as a steward) & she hired him on the spot. Alfonso started as 2nd Butler & then became Head Butler/1st Butler to the Huntington’s. Alfonso was also Mr. Henry E. Huntington’s Gentlemen’s Valet. He was in service with the Huntingtons for 16 yrs. until 1927, when Mr. H.E. Huntington passed away.

People entertained a lot in these cities (San Marino & Pasadena, CA) & still do (2024). Whether you entertain for 6 people with a 3-5 course dinner or 35-55 people; a hostess seems to enjoy getting her pretty things out when entertaining. Some people hire a personal chef, maybe even cooking in front of the guests like a pasta dish. Some hostess’ hire a catering company, that cooks the whole meal. Depending on the season, the Butler’s Pantry items were used often in Springtime for Easter & often in Autumn, Thanksgiving, Christmas, & New Year’s Eve & New Year’s Day. Also in Winter, when the weather is colder & less in the Summertime.

A new trend in entertaining nowadays, a hostess will have guests come for cocktails & appetizers. They might serve a signature fun cocktail or special wine, bourbon, or whiskey tasting. They may have a charcuterie board, & a passed nibble on a doily-lined silver butler’s tray. Then, all the guests go out to a restaurant or private club for dinner.

Mr. & Mrs. H. E. & Arabella Huntington’s Butler’s Pantry location:

In the Huntington’s San Marino Ranch Mansion, they used their Butler’s Pantry, often. Usually the Butler’s Pantry Room is conveniently located by the Kitchen or Dining-Room, because it is the core of entertaining.

At the Huntington Mansion, the Butler’s Pantry was located just north of the Huntington’s Dining-Room (now a art gallery – on your way to “Pinkie” & “Blue Boy”) & south of the Kitchen. It had a large windows to the outdoors & a swinging door between the Butler’s Pantry & Kitchen. It housed a dumb-waiter (for bring upstairs “Breakfast Sets” to guests) also a staircase to downstairs (more storage & pantry items). It had a lot of lighting surrounding the whole room. The Butler’s Pantry had 42 cabinets that housed Mrs. Arabella Huntington’s fine bone china plates patterns, silver, & crystal ware.

A Butler’s Pantry room is usually filled from floor to ceiling cabinets. With glass-front cabinets (on the top) to make viewing of entertaining vessels (soup tureen or cake plate) easier. Often, the Butler’s Pantry is a rectangular room & includes a “Butler’s sink” which is a copper sink with a rubber mat (to prevent glassware from breaking). Sometimes, lights are installed in the cabinets to see the pretty crystal glassware & serving pieces, better. Often, their is a mirror or moire fabric on the back of the cabinets.

Also, under the counters are more closed cabinets for fine bone china plates & large entertaining items like warming trays, large silver trays, etc. Also, under the counters are long velvet-lined drawers, where sterling silver flatware & silver-plated flatware are located. Also, the large drawers housed special silver serving pieces like silver spatulas, tomato servers, asparagus tongs, cheese scoops, or cake knives are kept. Often, these drawers are velvet-lined (to keep the sterling silver flatware from scratching). Also, seasonal cloth damask napkins & cloth damask tablecloths could be stored.

Counters or a Large Table in the Butler’s Pantry

Some Butler’s Pantry’s have a 1 or 2 counters, perfect for caterers or the hostess & her staff to use to get organized for entertaining. The Huntington’s Head Cook, the Head/1st Butler, & the Hostess, could review all the details of the “Entertainment” or Party / Tea with the Hostess. To find out what the Hostess wants to use (from the Butler’s Pantry) for her seasonal evening dinner feast from course to course. If the cabinets don’t have counters, a wide & long table would be useful in the middle of the room, probably installed with felt fabric on top to protect the porcelain & crystal glasses from breaking.

Make your own Butler’s Pantry

If a house in San Marino doesn’t have a Butler’s Pantry, but they entertain a lot they improvised. I’ve seen where people have created their own Butler’s Pantry by furniture alone. People install several dining-room “Display cabinets” or “breakfronts” (above) with windows on the top, with large drawers & closed cabinets on the bottom.

My parent’s house in San Marino, had a Dining-Room that served all the purposes of a Butler’s Pantry, because my mother entertained a lot. She had 3 major cabinets in the Dining-Room (1 was built-in) to house all her entertaining supplies. On one side of her Dining-Room, she had a built-in fine bone china cabinet with diamond shaped stained-glass windows on top & closed cabinet on the bottom. On the counter of the built-in : she had her pink and white and gold Havilland tea set: it included tea pot, sugar, creamer, with tea cups & saucers on a silver tray. In the middle of the room, she had a long mahogany buffet (with a gilded mirror on the top) with 2 small locked cabinets & 5 long drawers. The (2) square locked cabinets for larger pieces of sterling silver (round silver trays & such), 2 velvet-lined long drawers for silver flatware & large silver serving spoons & silver napkin rings, 3 long & wide drawers for large silver trays & numerous white damask tablecloths & damask napkins & lace tablecloths. On the other side of the Dining Room, she also had large mahogany china cabinet with stained glass, and 4 shelves. That handsome piece fit all her fine crystal & fine bone china teacups, saucers & fine bone china flower & crystal vases for her roses.

The Huntington’s Entertainments; Menu (s) to be posted: Daily/Weekly

The Huntington’s dinner or luncheon menu would have probably been posted in the Huntington Mansion’s Kitchen or Butler’s Pantry or both. A smart Head Housekeeper might even have a whole week worth of menus posted for the cook & the staff. The Huntington’s might have used the White House Cookbook (which HEH has in his HEH cookbook collection ) that listed 365 detailed menus & recipes for every day of the year: Breakfast, Luncheon, Tea, & Dinner. That would have been very helpful to the Hostess (Mrs. H.E. Huntington) & the Cook when choosing menus for entertaining or for the Huntington family and their house guests and party guests.

To post the menu(s ) so all the hostess’s staff were fully aware of items that they were suppose to pull out, clean & use. Especially the Head Butler, 2nd Butler, & the footmen who served all the meals. During the meal, the cook or Head Housekeeper would plate the hot food; the butlers & footmen would serve the hot food to the Huntingtons & their guests.

Organizing Plateware, Silverware & Serving Pieces to Entertain

On one of the Butler’s Pantry counters/ or large table, all serving pieces could have been laid out – Course by Course, the serving trays & bowls with large serving spoons, etc. The organized hostess always would have a paper (placed in these serving vessels), stating information which vessel used for which course. On the other Butler’s Pantry counter/table, all the fine bone china plates/soup bowls, entrée plates, etc. (for each course would be laid out from course to course.) A piece of paper with information on which plates go with which course (soup, entrée, dessert, etc.). All these silver pieces & silver flatware would be polished (by the butler or footmen) to a high shine for the Huntington “entertainment”.

Laying the Dining Table (Luncheon or Dinner)

Now the crystal glasses would be different in this entertaining orchestration. Glassware would be laid on the Dining-Room Table before the dinner/luncheon guests would arrive. Including all the crystal glassware. silver flatware, salt cellars, & 13″ charger plate would already be laid out on the table. Also, bread & butter plates with butter knife. As follows: The velvet cloth under the tablecloth to protect the Dining-Room table 1st, then the damask or lace tablecloth, the pressed napkins (with a formal fold) at each place setting. Then the table flower arrangement or Silver French Epergne in the middle of the table; including the candles & (Gorham or George III ) silver candelabra, or candlesticks & matches to light the candles.

Glassware at a Huntington Dinner Party:

Often, at a Huntington dinner meal, they might have multiple crystal glassware. Shown here for the Huntington Royal Dinner in 1926, Mr. H.E. Huntington served as beverages: sherry, white wine, champagne & water. (below): Sherry glass with oysters, white wine “Hock” glass (fish or chicken), champagne glasses (entrée or game course) sometimes (2 different champagnes), & a water glass. Sometimes, they would have a red wine glass, also. Often, the coffee cups & saucers with dessert plates & serving pieces – cake plate, etc. were set aside on a side board or buffet to be cut later (pie or birthday cake) & then served to the guests.

Huntington Mansion Dining-Room Table Flower Arrangement:

Usually the Huntington’s flower arrangements were huge 200-250 flower stems in a large vessels throughout the house (like the foyer of a fine hotel). On the Huntington’s Dining-Room Table, the flower arrangements for the “Royal Dinner” flowers are quite scaled down. The photo (above) shows us they had much smaller flower arrangements; so guests could see each other & have a conversation across the dining room table.

Using several smaller flower arrangements (4 -6), placed down the middle of the Dining-Room table. They used delicate summer flowers: fresh from Mrs. Huntington’s flower cutting garden (which is now the Huntington Library Herb Garden). Flowers like stock, blue larkspur, foxglove, blue delphinium, gladiolas, ferns, & lovely fragrant roses. All flowers were from the Huntington’s flower & rose gardens. It looks like they used large French Sevres or Havilland porcelain champagne holders as the footed vases.

In the middle of the Dining-Room table, there are 2 huge 10-candle silver George III or Georgian candelabras with Damask candle shade covers. It looks like 4-6 summer small multi-flower arrangements using French Sevres/Havilland porcelain champagne buckets, along the middle of the table. Each guest had large “dinner” damask napkins, properly folded over. A napkin-lined basket was filled with colorful summer ranch fruit & strawberries & maybe a bread basket with dinner rolls or warm buttermilk biscuits served with butter.

Magic number 12 for luncheon or dinner guests:

In my Huntington Family timeline, Edwards (HEH) & Belle Huntington entertained often for luncheons & dinners. It was always in a elegant fashion, but small & intimate. Often, the Huntington’s hosted 6-12 luncheon or dinner guests, but mostly 12 guests. Mrs. Huntington liked the number 12, probably for great conversations. They had a large servant staff (16-24 depending on the year) to make it all happen). Mr. Alfonso Gomez (the Head/ 2nd Butler & Mr. Huntington’s gentlemen’s valet) tells us in his interviews that the Huntington staff got along really well together. Always willing to pitch in when help was needed, for “entertainments” -in the kitchen or flower arrangements, etc.

1920 Huntington Luncheon Menu:

At luncheon, the Huntington’s probably had a 3-4 course meal, something like this 1. Fruit Cocktail or Crab/Shrimp Cocktail 2. Soup (Mushroom or Asparagus) or Salad (Waldorf or California Salad with orange slices, 3. Hot Entrée Chicken or Capon with Mushroom Sauce, Rice or Potatoes & Fresh Ranch Vegetable (Corn, Okra, or French Green Beans) 4. Dessert like Fancy French Cake or Apple Charlotte or Royal Pudding or Homemade Vanilla Bean Ice Cream. If they had a 3-course luncheon it might have been Soup or Salad, Entrée with Vegetable with Rice/ Potato, & Dessert. What was needed in the Butler’s Pantry: was glassware, silverware, & plates for each guest. First, 13″ charger plate for each table settings or “covers”. The charger would be underneath all other plates/courses. Sometimes, the charger plate stays on the table, sometimes the servers remove it. For the Crab/Shrimp Cocktail they would need the special silver cocktail stand bowls (with crushed ice underneath to keep cold) for the fruit or seafood cocktail. Soup bowls with lids (to keep soup hot) & plates underneath, Entrée plates, bread & butter plates, & dessert plates with coffee or tea cups & saucers & a coffee or tea pot with sugar & creamer on a silver tray. Luncheons were so much more simple then formal dinners.

Organizing a Entertainment:

So what accoutrements would the Huntington’s want on their luncheon table? The Head Butler or Head Cook’s 1st question to ask Mrs. Arabella Huntington: How many quests are coming to luncheon? How many plates are needed? How many courses would Mrs. Huntington like for the meal? What fine bone china or porcelain plates would Mrs. Huntington like to use? What theme does Mrs. Huntington want at her table? What colors does Mrs. Huntington want in her flower arrangements? What vases does Mrs. Huntington want to use for the flower arrangement? What color or kind of tablecloth and napkins (lace or damask) would Mrs. Huntington want to use for her entertainment? If these few questions were answered by Mrs. Huntington, the execution of a luncheon or dinner entertainment would go quite smoothly. Then the Huntington staff could get out all the fine china plates and accouterments, Find the flowers vases, cut the roses & flowers in the garden and lay the table out like Mrs. Huntington would like.

Invitations to a Huntington Entertainment:

Mrs. Arabella Huntington or her social secretary. Miss Caroline M. Campbell would have handled the guest list & all the invites to a Huntington “Entertainment” or tea. But Mrs. Huntington’s servant staff would have had to handle the rest. Like flowers, tablecloth & napkins, plates & silver flatware & the food.

Invitations or Mrs. Huntington’s calling card,

Number of guests & name Guests, Theme, or reason for the Entertainment

What Event? Tea in the afternoon or Picnic in the garden, or lecture

Where? San Marino Ranch, CA

Date: June 16, 1922

Time 4 -7 pm

Did Mrs. Arabella Huntington have a “Entertainment Book”?

I think the answer is yes. I sadly did not find a entertainment in my Huntington research. Probably Mrs. Arabella Huntington owned a Entertainment Book for each mansion that she owned. She probably recorded all of her many entertainments, the dinner & luncheon menus & recipes she used, also the guests she invited, the flowers & color palette she used.

Even the simplest of Huntington entertaining with 6 people, there were a lot of questions that had to be answered by Mrs. Arabella Huntington or later Mr. H. E. Huntington. Stationary Stores like Vroman’s Book Store in Pasadena CA carried Entertainment Books. Sometimes, they come as Party Planning pad of paper with Entertainment questions (below). All the etiquette books & large entertaining cookbooks have lists & ideas like below. It would have been very helpful for organization & keeping the Huntington’s staff informed. Maybe, a sheet (s) that Miss Caroline M. Campbell (Mrs. Huntington’s social secretary) created herself, would have been useful to organize party planning or “Entertainments” – Mrs. Huntington liked to call them. If Mrs. Huntington had a entertainment book of sorts, this is what it might have looked like.

Entertainment Book /a pad of paper that was engraved: “Huntington Entertainment”

Circle: (Breakfast, Brunch, Luncheon, Tea, Dinner, or Sundays at the Ranch):

Guests: How many guests ? & Names of guests (for Place Cards)

Invites: circle Calling cards? Phone invite? Formal invitation?

Stationary Store to print invites:

Theme or Event? (Seasonal, Birthday, Tea in the Garden, Luncheon in the Lath House, Royal Dinner, Car Ride/Picnic in Limousine, etc. )

Colors? Gold and white, Red, white and blue American theme, red and gold, Green Pink and gold (French color palette),

Food theme? (French, Southern, American BBQ, Japanese, Spanish or Mexican, etc.)

How many courses & sauces ? Lunch 3 or 4 Formal Dinner 6 or 8

How many hors’ d’oeuves passed? & which ones (Cheese Puff, Meatballs, Roquefort canape?) Which silver Butler’s tray/doilies?

What Fine Bone China/Porcelain pattern plates & bowls to use?

What Crystal glasses?

What silver serving pieces or porcelain vessels (soup tureen)

Full Menu written out: By ? Miss Carrie Campbell or staff

Food from the Ranch? (food in season -summer sweet corn or berries in summer, sliced San Marino Ranch oranges, mushrooms, artichokes, asparagus, fresh herbs, etc.)

Special Food from the Huntington’s Food Pantry? (Caviar, Brandied peaches, Orange Marmalade, Pickled okra)

Wines or Champagne? (From the Huntington’s extensive Wine Cellar, Hock, Burgundy, French Champagne, Port, Sherry)

Roman Punch or Sorbet (Mrs. Huntington’s Champagne Punch recipe needed)

Flower Arrangement? what flowers are in season?

Colors & Flowers used? Roses, Stock, Iris, Fragrant “Mystery” gardenia

Color Tablecloth ? Gold, Sage or celadon green, white

Color Napkins?

Candles or Candelabra? George III, Griffin, Georgian, Gorham

Mirrors or votive candles or tea lights

Relish dishes (Olives, celery, carrots) , Nut dishes (in the Large Library)(Toasted slivered almonds or Virginia Peanuts), or BonBon dishes in footed silver bonbons dishes?

Which uniform should the Butler’s & Footman to wear? black tails & white tie or livery colors or ceremonial livery?

Huntington Formal Dinner (5-6 courses) Huntington Mansion (San Marino Ranch)

At the Huntington formal dinner, the H. E. & Arabella Huntington probably served a 5-6 or more course meal 1.(Oysters on the Half shell or Caviar to start, 2. Soup course Light soup: Cold Beef Consommé with lemon wedge or Cream soups (Mushroom or Artichoke Soup) , 3. a Fish course or appetizer (Crab Croquette or Chicken Pate in Aspic, 4. Entrée (Lamb or Poultry) or Game (Pheasant or duck) with Petit Pois (Green Peas & Potatoes, 5. Salad (French style), 6. Dessert (Fancy Cakes, Pies, or assorted French cheeses (French style),) with Bon-Bons & After- dinner drinks served in the Large Drawing-Room with Entertainment (Violinist or Celloist or 3- piece trio) or Bridge.

So to organize, this Huntington San Marino Ranch 6-course dinner, the Huntington’s Head Butler, Mrs. Arabella Huntington, &/or the Head Housekeeper: Nora Larsen & Head Cook Mrs. James, would have to meet. They would need to choose & pull items out of the Huntington’s large Vault inside the large Butler’s Pantry.

What the Butler would need from the Butler’s Pantry – if Mrs. Arabella Huntington was hosting a Dinner for 10 guests:

Let’s review, say the Huntingtons were Entertaining 10 Dinner guests: they would need 10 charger plates 13″, 10 bread & butter plates with 10 butter knives, 4 glassware for each guest (water, wine, sherry & champagne) also with all silver flatware needed for the Entertainment – (set on table before guests arrive). A tablecloth with 10 ironed damask napkins, 1 large flower arrangement or several small flower or rose arrangements, & 2 large candelabras (like below in photograph).

The Huntington’s Head Butler (Mr. Alfonzo Gomez) would organized (clean & polish) all the items needed from the Butler’s pantry. On the table or counters he would then place in order of each course: 10 oyster plates (with 10 special oyster “‘mother of pearl” forks), a Soup Tureen with lid, with spoon ladle, 10 soup fine bone china bowls with lids & 10 plates for underneath soup bowls, 10 (8″) fish plates or appetizer plates, 10 Entrée or Dinner plates (10″ or 10 1/2″,) 1 silver or fine bone china potato serving dish with serving spoon & 1 silver vegetable serving dish or fine bone china serving dish & serving spoon, 10 Salad plates (8-10″), 10 dessert plates or cheese plates or both, 1 cheese tray/cheese fork & knife for butler/footman to pass the cheeses, 1 silver/fine bone china coffeepot, 10 coffee or teacups & 10 saucers, bon-bon silver trays (small) & nut silver dishes, after-dinner cordial glasses.

Menu Cards & Place Cards:

Mrs. Arabella Huntington would also insist on “Menu Cards” (listing all the food courses at the entertainment) & Place Cards. A menu card might read like this with a little watercolor on top. Such as MENU: Oysters on the half shell – Mignonette sauce, California Artichoke Soup, Crab Croquette – Dill Sauce, Capons of Chicken -Mushroom Marsala Sauce, French Mesclun Salad – Mandarin Oranges & toasted Almonds – Champagne Vinaigrette, Cheese course of French cheeses (Roquefort, Brie & camembert with grapes & water crackers), Dessert: Apple Charlotte with Handmade Vanilla Bean Ice Cream.

The Menu cards are for each individual Dinner guest with the dinner menu written out in scrip-writing. Sometimes, the formal menus were in French, sometimes they were in English. By the end of the 1920’s, slowly but surely the menu were in English. Mrs. Huntington would buy dozen of menu cards & place cards & paper round doilies at a time. The menu card is usually placed above the charger plate at each person “cover” or place setting. Often, Mrs. Huntington would pay Tiffany & Co. NYC to illustrate her menu cards with a fun theme & write out beautiful calligraphy for each of the courses for her. Also, Mrs. Huntington’s social secretary, Miss Carrie M. Campbell also wrote out menu cards for the Huntington’s entertainments. The Place Cards, were a fold-over card that had each guest’s name printed on it, so the guests would know where to sit at the Huntington’s Dining-Room table.

Dining Partners:

Often, Mrs. Arabella Huntington invited 12 guests for luncheon & dinner entertaining. I have found many a Huntington entertainments, that they had with 12 guests. Per the Gilded Age etiquette, she was very proper & had to have even number of guests at her dining table. If a guest got sick & couldn’t come to the meal: the Huntingtons would ask Miss Carrie M. Campbell (ADH’s social secretary or Mr. George Hapgood (HEH’s social secretary) to join them for dinner to “fill in”. The even number was so everyone would have a “Dining Partner” (someone to chat with & make interesting conversation). In the Gilded Age, they actually had a rule when dining, that before the Roman Punch or Sorbet (in the middle of the meal), the woman was to talk to the man on her left. After the Roman Punch/Sorbet, the woman was to talk to the man on her right.

Huntington Handwritten Dinner Menu (Formal)

Mrs. Huntington’s Fine Bone China/Porcelain Plateware (Service Sets) Complete List

In the Huntington Mansion’s Plateware Collection at the San Marino Ranch list – Inventory book:

Mrs. Arabella Huntington was addicted to collecting pretty plate ware. She loved French, English, & America. She also collected Chinese, Japanese, Dutch, Italian (Naples) & Russian plate ware. She had more plate ware from France then all the rest. There were full multi-course fine bone china & porcelain sets with 100-200 pieces to each set. Sometimes, she bought just a “Roast Beef Set” or “Dessert Set” but usually the entire set was purchased. Mrs. Arabella Huntington’s teaware & dinnerware collections were enormous. There were salad plates, oyster plates, entrée, soup bowls & bouillon bowls, dessert, fish plates, oyster plates, dessert or salad plates & small butter plates, & bread or roll plates, too.  

At the Huntington Mansion at the San Marino Ranch, Mrs. Huntington owned at least 40 sets of plateware in total of mostly French, English & American plate ware :

There was French plateware: Sevres, Haviland, Elite Haviland & Limoges (gold & white) & old Paris pattern plateware, too. Elite Limoges (gold & white), Sevres (3 sets: pink & white & gold, landscapes with pink & gold, with angels). Mrs. Arabella Huntington really loved Haviland plateware she had about 20 sets of Haviland plates patterns ; I keep finding sets that she had. There was “Marquis” by Haviland (gold band on a white plate), Schleiger 341 by Haviland (green, white & gold), Schleiger 87 by Haviland (gold, white, & sprays of pink roses all over the plate), & Haviland “Nappy” pattern to name a few, Art Nouveau plateware (1914) with California poppy on it, look below for more details.

She had English Plateware: Minton made for Tiffany & Co., English Coalport (Blue, Gold, & White), English Copeland & Garrett “Best” (fancy gold lattice work on the rim & white set), Whieldenware “Pheasant” or Pink Pheasant” pattern tea plates , & “Royal D.” (could be Royal Doulton or Royal Derby), Crown Royal Derby, Staffordshire: blue, & white Transferware & she had red Chelsea & Blue Chelsea porcelains, too. She had 100’s of colorful Chelsea pieces of porcelain plateware.

I found out recently Mrs. Arabella Huntington owned 11 more sets of plate ware. I found LA Time a article about a auction in 1949 in Pasadena, CA. Mrs. Huntington had a multi-cultural collection: English Crown Derby, a Russian Royal Collection set of plates, Italian Capodimonte plates (From Naples), Chinese Red Lacquer Breakfast set, Rockingham English plate ware, Dutch Blue & white Delftware, Meissen plate ware, Royal Vienna plate ware, Crossett Family Chamberlains (English) Worcester Dinner of 120 pieces (Imari taste), 4 sets of Dresden plate ware: the patterns were “Empress”, “Chateau” & “Marie Antoinette” & another set (From Rudolph Kann Collection 1907 ADH), & English Coalport yellow & white. She also owned numerous sets of American-made Homer Laughlin “Angelus” (gold & white with pink roses) check below. She had Chinese “Mason ware” (Blue & Green) & Pink Chinese Medallion plate ware & Chinese Red Lacquer Breakfast set.

English “Best” Copeland (Copeland & Garrett) ornate gold lattice work & white porcelain plate ware with gold edges.

French Havilland (1914) Pattern “Nappy” pattern white background & roses (Illustration below)

French Havilland (gold & white) plate ware – possibly pattern “Marquis”(1914)

French Havilland (1914) -2 Art Nouveau patterns “Poppy”

Old Wedgewood set of plate ware: in NYC 1884 – 174 pieces service set (bought in NYC, the year that Arabella Worsham & Collis P. Huntington got married.) Pattern: ? It could have been blue transferware, pure white with a ridge of lines on the rim, rim of swags of pink roses & leaves with turquoise circle in the middle, gold & white with filigree, vessels & swags, & gold rim.

Royal D. (could be Royal Doulton or Royal Derby or Royal Crown Derby)

English Whieldonware – Pattern: “Pheasant” (Oriental looking hand-colored pheasant blue, tan & red, roses of pink, reds & green with a gold edge or “Pink Pheasant” (with a hot pink rim around it plate – maybe a tea plate)

English Minton (made by Tiffany & Co. ) fine porcelain plate ware

English Coalport fine bone china plate ware (Colors: white, gold & blue); soup bowls had 2 handles of gold

English Coalport plate ware [could be yellow & white “Batwing” or navy blue & white “Batwing”} or a solid navy blue rim with gold work & beads & gold on the edge of plates

French Limoges porcelain plate ware (white & gold)

French Sevres fine porcelain (3 sets of tea or dessert plates), hot pink, white & gold, some tea plates with landscapes & pink rim, some with angels, Cafe au lait cup & saucers & tea plates, 2 wine or champagne decanters

Old Paris plateware: pattern unknown

4 different sets of German Dresden plate ware (by Royal Schumann -Bavaria – Germany) fine bone porcelain plateware: colorful “Empress” (swags of flowers in pink, orange & purple on white background, ornate Dresden “Chateau” (gold & lattice & scroll like edges with colorful flowers in the center), the colorful “Marie Antoinette” MA & 2 other sets (Mrs. Arabella D. Huntington partial purchase of Kann Collection, Paris France & some Dresden at the Chateau Beauregard in Paris.)

Italian “Capo di Monte” (made in Naples) plate ware: (like Della Robbia wreath colorful with gold work with people dancing and singing around the rim of plates the rim is sculptural with people in Roman robes.

England Worcester Dinner Service set of 120 pieces (Crossett Family Chamberlains in the Imari taste (Japanese)

Royal Collection in Russia, a pair of Black Hawthorn Imperial Temple Jars of the K’ang Hsi Period

English Crown Derby (also called Royal Crown Derby) is quite elegant with fancy gold filigree around the rim with scallops & scroll work, dots, swags of gold; also with a detailed landscape painting in the middle of the plate. It can also be a scalloped white porcelain plate with a sprinkling of flowers with roses, tulips & daffodils with a posy of flowers in the middle of the plate.

Chinese Red Lacquer Breakfast Set (Teapot & Accountments, red & gold)

Place Plates [could be Place setting “charger plates” 13″ across for entertaining at sit-down formal dinners)

Dessert Services (smaller 8″ plates)

A collection of 50 decorated & ornate teacups & saucers

Dutch Delftware Plate ware (Blue & white – with scenes of people & landscapes in the middle of plate)

Blue Transferware (Mrs. Huntington had 100’s of pieces of Blue transferware),

Green transferware Copeland & Garrett “the Lily” found at the Huntington Mansion property on Nob Hill in San Francisco, CA

Red transferware (found at Huntington’s Camp Pine Knot on Racquette Lake, Adirondack Mountains, upper state New York)

Germany Meissen Plate ware (could be colorful Chelsea or Dresden like plates with bright colorful flowers or Blue & white transferware called “Onion Skin” with white background & leaves in cobalt blue or hand-painted Green floral design & swags on rim on scalloped plate with gold edge.

Rockingham English (Spode) plate ware with fancy flower plates like Meissen with hot pink rim & Chelsea flowers with white background or Blue transferware (like below)

Royal Vienna (Austria) hand-painted plate ware (very ornate fancy plates with red or green rim & lots of gold filigree work & a scene of people in the middle of the plates or a Fragonard Courting plate with 13 section of illustrated couple.

American Homer Laughlin Plate ware- Pattern : “Angelus” white & gold with pink roses & gold edge. Jan.-Feb. 1914 the Huntington’s bought 3000 pieces of Homer Laughlin & Havilland-Limoges plate ware.

Document: HEH Collection HEH MS 38/6 uncat [Huntington mansion Inventory brown book 1927]; Duveen & Harper Letters, HEH Collection MS Box 200 uncat (SF lists); HEH Coll MS Box 200 (HEH & ADH personal papers – 1884 Old Wedgewood plate ware list 174 pieces or plate ware; 1949 LA Times article stating Curtis Taylor Gallery of Pasadena, CA was having a large auction with Mrs. Arabella D. Huntington plate ware, teacups & saucers, silverware, & paintings by Gainsborough, Hoppner, Copley, Reynolds, & etching by Zorn with Louis XV tables & desks.

H.E. & Arabella Huntington Silver Collection

Gorham Silver (like the US President’s residence White House, Washington DC) all Sterling flatware & Silver plated flatware (List above)

Sheffield Silver (candelabras & platters) (above list in full)

George III or Georgian silver collection (10-candle candelabras used for the Royal Dinner in 1926)

Griffin (Candelabra with 2 branches)

Huntington Crystal Collection

Tiffany gold-edged glassware

Baccarat crystal Glassware (bought by HEH and used for the Royal Dinner in July 1926), Pattern: Baccarat Etched Line 4 dz. (48) finger bowl Baccarat crystal, 2 dz. (24) Water goblets 3 dz (36) Champagne goblets, 3 dz. (36) Wine goblets, 3 dz. (36) Sherry goblets, 6 dz. (72) water tumblers Document: HEH Col. MS 11852 (HEH Correspondence invoice Box 174)

Gold “Gilt” decorated glassware

Salvarti Venetian glassware

Document: HEH Coll MS 38/6 [Huntington mansion inventory brown book 1927], Duveen & Harper letters, HEH Coll. MS Box 200 uncat (SF lists), Old Wedgewood-174 pieces HEH Coll. MS Box 200