“Old Rough and Ready” Zachary Taylor was the 12th President of the United States. On July 9, 1850, after several days of battling an unknown illness, Taylor died. His last words were: “I regret nothing, but am sorry I am about to leave my friends.”
This spoon—part of the WM Rogers Silverplate Presidential Spoon Collection—bears Taylor’s likeness at the top. Like all of the Rogers spoons, the bowl states what the president was known for during his term(s) in office. In the case of Taylor, he was the “Hero of Battle of Buena Vista.”
The official medical records state that Taylor died of “cholera morbus” but some believed (and still do) that he was murdered.
In fact, in 1991, with the permission of his 3rd great grandson, Taylor’s body was exhumed and tested for arsenic poisoning, but the results were negative and the original cause still officially stands.
The spoon doesn’t appear to be haunted, but more tests are still needed.