Silver-plated napkin ring, a souvenir of SS 'Minnehaha'.

The ring is waisted, with an embossed shield on one side with an enamelled house flag consisting of three red, white and blue horizontal stripes, each with twelve five-pointed silver stars arranged in two staggered rows. Embossed above the shield is 'SOUVENIR OF VOYAGE BY' and below is: 'ATLANTIC TRANSPORT LINE'. Below that is inscribed S.S. MINNEHAHA'. The inside is stamped: ‘QUADRUPLE PLATE'.

SS 'Minnehaha' was built in 1900 by Harland & Wolff of Belfast. She had a length of 600 feet and gross tonnage of 13,443, and carried 250 First Class passengers. Her maiden voyage was London to New York in August 1900, and in 1910 she was stranded on rocks in the Scilly Isles, but refloated undamaged after a month. On 7 September 1917, during her period as a troopship, she was torpedoed and sunk by German submarine U-48, 12 miles off the Fastnet Rock whilst on a voyage from London to New York with general cargo, 43 lives were lost.

William Winter Potter, father of the donor, served on several Atlantic Transport Line ships before and during World War I, running the ships' barber shops, and also doing ladies hairdressing. Although he came under the purser's department, he was self-employed. The napkin rings were sold on board the various vessels run by the company (sister ships were 'Minneapolis' and 'Minnetonka'). Potter was on board when the 'Minnehaha' was torpedoed, but was picked up by one of the boats, and rescued by a British destroyer. After World War I, he left the sea and went into business in the City of London.