Bidspirit auction | Schwaab Milwaukee 1909 Hudson-Fulton Celebration

Schwaab Milwaukee 1909 Hudson-Fulton Celebration Souvenir Medal Pin - A gilded metal souvenir medal and pin-back header produced for the 1909 Hudson-Fulton Celebration in New York. The two-part commemorative item features a shaped header depicting two historical vessels: the Halve Maen (Half Moon) used by Henry Hudson in 1609 and the Clermont used by Robert Fulton in 1807. A rectangular bar below the ships is embossed with the word SOUVENIR. The header is connected by two metal jump rings to a circular medal. The obverse of the medal features profile portraits of Henry Hudson and Robert Fulton surrounded by the text HUDSON-FULTON CELEBRATION, NEW YORK 1909, and the dates SEP. 25 and OCT. 9. The reverse of the medal displays the New York State coat of arms with two figures flanking a shield and a banner at the bottom reading EXCELSIOR. On the reverse of the header, the top edge features an impressed mark reading SCHWAAB MILWAUKEE. Total length: 2.5 inches Medal diameter: 1.25 inches. This antique souvenir pin shows significant signs of age and handling consistent with its period. The gold-tone plating is heavily worn and pitted across the surfaces of both the header and the medal, revealing the darker base metal beneath (photos 1 and 4). There is visible green verdigris oxidation concentrated around the suspension loops on both the obverse and reverse (photos 3 and 4). The reverse of the ship header shows a dark, irregular area of solder residue where the original pin mechanism was attached and is now missing or broken (photo 4).