What makes this plate special is that it was given out as a commemorative souvenir from an historic event that took place on February 25th, 1902.
Kaiser Wilhelm II of Germany was a maritime enthusiast and an avid yachtsman who was influential in the creation of several prestigious yacht clubs and international regattas.
The year prior in 1901, he had commissioned his schooner yacht to be built by the Townsend & Downey Shipbuilding Co. in New York.
Wilhelm chose the American shipyard to build his yacht because of their reputation and ability to build fast ships. A second reason was that it helped restore relations between Germany and America after prior years of competition for economic and naval dominance.
Townsend & Downey was located on Shooters Island, which is just north of Staten Island and on the southern tip of New Jersey....If you look on a map, the NY/NJ border literally cuts through Shooters Island....Today, it's abandoned.
The "Meteor" was Wilhelm's third yacht. His first two were also named the "Meteor"....Hence, this one also being known as the "Meteor III". He would go on to have two more "Meteor"- named yachts after this one.
The launch of the "Meteor" was a major event which President Teddy Roosevelt and his oldest daughter, Alice, attended. Alice, who was 18 at the time, broke the bottle and christened the yacht.
Hundreds of other guests were in attendance, including Prince Heinrich (Henry) of Prussia, who was the younger brother of Kaiser Wilhelm. Attendance to the launch was by invite only.
There was a luncheon held after the ceremony. This very plate you see here was from that luncheon. These were not used for dining, however. These were commemorative plates manufactured and provided by the Onandaga Pottery Co. of Syracuse, NY. that were given out as souvenirs to the guests....That makes this plate a rare item.
And because this plate represents a significant historical event, it has been listed in the Smithsonian as well.
So, what ever happened to the "Meteor" afterwards?....
Well, unfortunately, the Meteor's racing record was less than impressive, and by 1909 she was sold to someone else. She would go on to change hands MANY more times until 1940, when the U.S. Navy requisitioned her....Sadly, the Navy scrapped her shortly after WWII.
After changing hands with so many owners, her final name was Aldebaran.
One last interesting fact about the launch of the "Meteor" is that this ceremony was featured in a short film produced by Thomas Edison's Edison Manufacturing Co....There are several videos on YouTube, if you're interested in watching it.
The film is titled "Christening and Launching Kaiser Wilhelm's Yacht 'Meteor'".
This film is historically significant, not just because it shows President Teddy Roosevelt and Kaiser Wilhelm, but because it is one of the first films that captures a real-life event taking place, also known as an "actuality" in the filmmaking industry.
There was controversy with this film, however, as Edison had claimed that German filmmaker, Siegmund Lubin, was selling duplicated copies of his film....There's a whole bunch of legalese with that case, and that's just a segue I don't want to get in to....So, if you're interested in reading about that case, there are several articles online that cover it.
| Form | Platte | Material | Porzellan |
| Hersteller | other | Modell | - |
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