German immigrant Michael Shaw (1833–1923) established what is reputed to be the first jewelry story in Texas when he founded his firm in Galveston, which he claimed to have done in 1850. The Shaw family arrived in Galveston in 1845. Mary Shaw, who was Michael’s sister, married Galveston watchmaker Daniel H. Pallais, from whom Michael learned the trade. It is likely that the firm’s name was styled M. W. Shaw, Brother and Pallais from about 1866 to 1871, when Daniel Pallais died.

The Whiting Manufacturing Company of Attleboro, Massachusetts, made the ladle for retail by Shaw. By this time, most silver sold in Texas was made in major manufacturing centers, mostly on the East Coast of the United States.