Scottish Rite Masonic Museum & Library

President McKinley oval glass plate "IT IS GODS WAY"
1901
Maker not marked
USA
Glass
overall: 10-1/2"h x 8"w x 1-1/8"d
Mr. and Mrs. Gregory L. McKinley
2019.006.3

Clear pressed glass oval platter with scalloped edge. Leafy laurel wreath along the edge. Lettering on the side reads, "It Is God's Way / His Will Be Done." The bottom of the platter shows a full-length portrait of a man wearing an overcoat and holding a scroll (William McKinley (1843-1901)). Lettering at the sides of the portrait reads, "Born 1843 / Died 1901."

Commemorative posters, photographs, buttons—and even glassware—were created after McKinley’s death. His reported last words, “It is God’s way. His will, not ours, be done,” were printed on memorial items, like this one, and sold across the country.