Although craftspeople who reproduce colonial silver designs are few and far between, individual silversmiths working in a more contemporary style abound, and silversmithing remains one of America's most vibrant craft traditions. The country's most reputable individual silversmiths today form the Society of American Silversmiths, with many of the best artisans still clustered in New England and the Mid-Atlantic states.

If you want to learn more about traditional American silver, you should start by perusing the collections of the Paul Revere House and the Museum of Fine Arts, both in Boston; or Winterthur, in Delaware. You can watch silversmiths demonstrating colonial techniques at several excellent living history museums on the East coast, including Historic Deerfield in Massachusetts and Colonial Williamsburg in Virginia.

When you're ready to buy, the biggest decision is whether to choose an antique or contemporary piece. Prices for antiques range widely, with some small pieces starting below a hundred dollars, but particularly valuable collectibles—classic examples of tea services, tankards, and other characteristic colonial designs—may fetch hundreds of thousands of dollars at auction. If possible, stick to a dealer or auction house specializing in American silver. With antiques, the values are often closely related to the maker's mark stamped on the bottom of the piece. These maker's marks are complicated, and a good handbook of silver hallmarks or an appraiser certified by the American Society of Appraisers or the International Society of Appraisers can help you interpret values.

A smart alternative is to commission a living silversmith to create a custom design. Most artisan silversmiths are accustomed to working on commission and can design a one-of-a-kind piece of Americana that your family will cherish and hand down for generations.