Text of report for the 530 Pitcher by Samuel Hough, derived from Gorham's Costing Records in the Gorham Archives:
The Gorham 530 Pitcher
The 530 Pitcher is entered in the sterling hollowware costing book (vol. 1, p. 84) for 3 November 1864.
The Pitcher contained 43 oz. of silver valued at $55.90.
It was not spun, although there is a seventy-five-cent charge for turning and ten cents for stamping.
Casting is recorded at six hours for $1.75. Chasing the casting took probably ten hours and cost $3.00. (In a parallel column, eight and a half hours of chasing cost $2.50.)
Making the pitcher- the silversmith's cost-was $16.20.
Polishing stages were stone & bobbing, $1.25; green rouging, thirty-five cents; and burnishing, $1.25.
Direct silver and labor costs were $80.55. Overhead is 15%, $12.08, and profit of 25% was $23.16.
The net factory price was $115.79. Here the price of the silver ($55.90) was deducted to derive the making cost, $59.89, to be added to the fluctuating silver price for future production.
Image from the original photograph in the Gorham Archives:
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