Tea Drinking in 18th-Century America: Its Etiquette and Equipage / United States National Museum Bulletin 225, Contributions from the Museum of History and Technology Paper 14, pages 61-91, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC, 1961

The Project Gutenberg eBook, Tea Drinking in 18th-Century America: Its Etiquette and Equipage, by Rodris Roth
TRANSCRIBER’S NOTE
Contributions from
The Museum of History and Technology
Paper 14
An English Family at Tea. Detail from an oil painting attributed to Joseph Van Aken, about 1720. In collection of Victoria and Albert Museum. Crown Copyright. (Color plate courtesy of the Saturday Book .)
Tea Drinking in 18th-Century America:
Its Etiquette and Equipage—
By Rodris Roth
In 18th-century America, the pleasant practice of taking tea at home was an established social custom with a recognized code of manners and distinctive furnishings. Pride was taken in a correct and fashionable tea table whose equipage included much more than teapot, cups, and saucers.
It was usually the duty of the mistress to make and pour the tea; and it was the duty of the guests to be adept at handling a teacup and saucer and to provide social “chitchat.” Because of the expense and time involved, the tea party was limited to the upper classes; consequently, such an affair was a status symbol. The cocktail party of the 20th century has, perhaps, replaced the tea party of the 18th century as a social custom, reflecting the contrast between the relaxed atmosphere of yesterday with the hurried pace of today.
The Author: Miss Roth is assistant curator of cultural history in the United States National Museum, Smithsonian Institution.