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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Look at my treasure!

Judy Porter brought home a barrel full of treasures.

When she walked into a jewelry store in Tacoma several years ago, Porter noticed a couple of place settings of old brown and white transferware displayed on a table.

Porter lives on a dairy farm in Deer Park and the idyllic scenes of hay wagons and farmhouses on the dishes reminded her of her home.

Porter returned to Deer Park, but she continued to think about the pretty dishes. Finally, unable to remember the name of the shop where she had seen them, Porter called another antique shop that she remembered being nearby.

As luck would have it she had called the right person. It turned out that the dishes belonged to him and had only been displayed in the jewelry store.

When she inquired about a price for the dishes, the dealer told her that there were more. A whole lot more.

He had purchased an old-fashioned shipping barrel full of china from an estate and had never unpacked it all. When he did, at Porter’s request, he brought out piece after piece. The barrel contained service for 16 with many of the larger serving pieces, including a tureen and cake plate. They settled on a price for the lot, and Porter got the barrel full of china. A shipping label on the barrel indicates it was shipped from England in 1938.

The Spode transferware, made in the late 1880s, now graces Porter’s table for holiday meals and special occasions.

“I never get tired of looking at it,” Porter says. “It reminds me of my home.”