Ablurk's Needful Things

Calvin & Amelia’s Ewer

Up for auction is a used Water Pitcher that we bought at an estate sale.

This metal pitcher has only one marking that we can find.
On the side was engraved what appears to be a crest from a ‘ Hotel Oakland ‘
The engraving as well as the detail on the handle is extremely worn.
(see photos below)

We could only find information on one ‘Hotel Oakland’

Originally constructed between 1910 and 1912 with funds exceeding $3,000,000, the hotel became a prominent social center during
the next decade. Presidents Wilson, Coolidge, and Hoover were guests at the facility, as were other celebrities,
including Amelia Earhardt, Sarah Bernhardt, Jean Harlow, and Mary Pickford.

During the 1930′s, the hotel was forced into bankruptcy several times as the result of the depression and management difficulties.
In 1943, the U.S. Army took possession of it for use as a hospital. All furnishings were auctioned off, including irreplaceable
chandeliers of which only photographs remain. Following World War II, several unsuccessful attempts were made to
reopen the hotel for public use. The Veterans’ Administration eventually occupied the facility as a hospital until August of 1963.
For the next 15 years it stood vacant. In 1978
a Boston-based developer obtained possession and remodeled it into a housing project for the elderly. It remains in this use today.

Currently, the exterior of the building and all two-story spaces on the main floor are on the National Register of Historic Spaces.
These grand, ornately decorated rooms include the main entrance lounging room; the Corinthian-columned,
5,000-ft2 ballroom; the dining room; and the cafe, which has 30-ft-high oak-paneled walls and a finely detailed plaster ceiling.