Born near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Samuel Bell (1798–1882) began his employment in metalworking there at age fourteen, crafting swords for the War of 1812. In 1821 he moved south to Knoxville, Tennessee, and began a long career as a silversmith and retailer. Bell served as mayor of Knoxville for two terms (1840–41, 1844–45) before debt issues forced him to sell his business and move his family to Texas in 1851. Of his thirteen children, all born in Tennessee, five are known to have taken up their father’s trade in San Antonio. In San Antonio, the Bell firm was initially established by Bell’s sons James G. and David, becoming J. G. & D. Bell; in 1860 the partnership’s name changed to Bell & Brothers. This shift made younger sons Powhattan and James M. Bell partners with David and removed James G. Bell’s name from the firm. James G. Bell left San Antonio in 1854 on a cattle drive to California, where he joined Edward C. Bell, likely an older brother, who worked as a jeweler in Mariposa, California. The Bells produced and retailed a wide variety of wares in San Antonio. An 1855 advertisement listed the firm as “manufacturers of all articles in their line. Dentists Plates prepared and Jewelry repaired...Saddles, Bridles, and Walking Canes mounted with gold and silver in the best style.” On the same page, a separate advertisement listed articles newly arrived for retail, including pens, spectacles, French clocks with glass shades, and assorted jewelry and fancy goods. Through all of the Bells’ iterations, advertisements offered essentially these same wares and services. The best-known silver forms produced by the Bell family include knives, cups, and flatware. In the 1890s the firm failed and was sold out of the Bell family. Renamed the Bell Jewelry Company in 1895, this final phase of the Bell family’s business legacy remained in operation until 1961.

The “A. P. P.” in this cup’s inscription probably refers to Andrew Parker Porter (1835–1866). Porter was born to a prominent Pennsylvania family with military connections. His grandfather served in the Revolutionary War; his father was among the founders of Lafayette College in Easton, Pennsylvania, and served as interim Secretary of War under President John Tyler. Andrew Parker Porter graduated from West Point in 1856. His early postings were to Texas, where the Army was engaged in actions against Native Americans, especially the Comanche. In 1860 and 1861, Porter was at Fort Mason, Texas, northwest of San Antonio. In March of 1860, James T. Ward was appointed sulter for the post, a civilian with responsibility for procuring supplies for the officers and men garrisoned there. Such an assignment could be lucrative, and encouraged the sulter to be on good terms with the officers in the post who had oversight of his business. It is likely that in such a remote location, the sulter would rely on protection from troops to travel through dangerous territory. This cup may have been a gift from Ward to Porter in recognition of assistance or support for his role as sulter.