Vintage Restaurant Ware Platter from The "haunted" Hotel Putnam

Well, I have listed many new items for Onlineauction.com 's WELCOME HOME SALE. I have lots of newly listed vintage and not-so-vintage items available-everything from Beatrix Potter items, old glassware, pottery, butter pats, Dunoon mugs, et cetera. Lots of neat things! The sale ends August 9th, so remember to bid early and often!


One of the interesting items that I have listed is a small vintage restaurant ware platter. I have found some wonderful restaurant ware pieces over the years, and it is fun to research them. How old is the piece? What does the symbol or emblem stand for, if the name is not spelled out? Is the place still in business? What is the history of the place? And so on.
So this little oval platter that I have was made for The Hotel Putnam in DeLand, Florida. Since the name is right there on the logo, there's no work to figuring out where it came from. And it is has the maker's mark on the back, and also the date: it was made by Buffalo China and dated 1926. So not much detective work needed for this piece. I did an Internet search of The Hotel Putnam anyway, to see what I could find out.


What I found out is that the first hotel in DeLand burned down in 1917, and a new hotel was built on the site, opening in 1923. It was quite a showplace in DeLand. Apparently it has fallen on hard times, and is no longer in operation. But in the many years it was open, many claimed that the hotel was haunted, heard footsteps, felt an engergy in the place, saw shadows, smelled burning odors, etc. Wow! With researching other hotel and restaurant ware china pieces over the years, I don't remember reading about a place that was haunted!
So I call this platter my "Haunted Restaurant Ware", LOL! I haven't really noticed anything strange or unearthly since I purchased it, though. If you would like to own it, click here to view this listing.

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