Jeremiah Burpee was born in Boscowan, New Hampshire in 1781 and died in the same town in 1862. Burpee was an accomplished potter who began manufacturing redware near the turn of the nineteenth-century and for many years thereafter.
The town of Boscowan is known today for its history of a strong pottery tradition. To begin, there were Osborn Family ties within Boscowan, which could be traced back to South Danvers, Massachusetts - and this area I refer to and describe as the Post Revolutionary War pottery center of New England. I won't discuss it at this time, but many of New England potters were either influenced or trained in both direct and indirect ways by the tradition created in this Essex County town. The Osborn Family and their business was at the center of South Danvers' pottery culture. This is only the first example of Boscowan ceramics importance and the role the town played in the history of American redware. Burpee's role in Boscowan was the most important within a historical context.
Boscowan was located within a strong region of New Hampshire, that by today's standards, is known for producing quality redware. Concord, Plymouth, Loudin, Gonic and Lyndeborough are all included within this region and each, can tell individual stories of its potters and their importance to the history of American ceramics. Peter Clark for example, is an eighteenth-century potter who began in Braintree, Massachusetts before traveling north and finishing his career in Lyndeborough. The Osborn Family worked all over New England and among these locations was Gonic, where quality colorful wares were produced. Concord can tell stories of Daniel and John Farmer Clark, both of whom are relatives of Peter Clark.
Jeremiah Burpee was born the son of a local Boscowan brickmaker. Lura Woodside Watkins wrote in her book, "Early New England Potters and Their Wares," of the elders living within the Boscowan area who remembered the Burpee workshop. Watkins wrote of a conversation she had in 1937 when she was told the Burpee manufactory produced jugs, jars, milk pans and cream pots. The elders described the pottery as, "QueensWare." Reading and understanding this description seemed a little misconveived to me since QueensWare is a type of earthenware produced in England, but that's what she was reportedly told.
It has been previously written that Burpee was a stoneware potter. John Spargo wrote about this idea in his book, "Early American Pottery and China." This information as far as I can tell, is false and has mislead many collectors, dealers, researchers, institutions and auction houses over the years. Jeremiah Burpee did not produce any stoneware and instead, as Watkins described, "...he was just another redware potter working in New Hampshire." At the very least, there has been no strong information that has been passed down through the years that can actually prove Burpee as a stoneware potter. I stand to be corrected, but it is my belief that because of Spargo's book, Burpee is credited with being a stoneware maker and since that book was published in 1926, readers have been misled with inaccurate information.
While exploring through southern New Hampshire's antique shops this weekend, I stumbled upon the following jar. It is my belief that the seller thought it was French. I knew exactly what it was when I saw it. I had just recently seen a nearly identical form within the New Hampshire Historical Society's collection attributed to the hands of Jeremiah Burpee.
Jeremiah Burpee Jar
Large: 13 inches tall
View of Handle
As mentioned in the caption above, the jar is large. If you haven't already done so - notice the pouring spout. That is unusual, interesting and I feel a very-well executed addition by Burpee. I want to described this jar as a dye pot, but I am not positive. It could be described as holloware from its size, but the pouring spout leads me to believe that it's purpose was for some type of liquid, rather than any sort of dry goods. I can only imagine how heavy this may have been when full. It must have weighed thirty-pounds. It's surprising that the handles have survived and its condition especially with what I believe its intended purpose was. The argument for a dry good use can be made, but the pouring spout is what really leads me to believe its purpose was for a liquid substance. Maybe the jar was never intended to be completely filled?
Jeremiah Burpee Pot - Boscowan, NH
Photo Courtesy: New Hampshire Historical Society
I was asked over the weekend why the jar was only partially glazed on the exterior. I didn't have an exact answer. My thought was the glaze appears to be more expensive than others. It appears thick - and rich in a deep, dark brown. To me it looks like melted chocolate. My guess is the glaze was expensive and Burpee only glazed the necessities and left the exterior walls unglazed. It was not photographed, but the interior is entirely coated in a nice thick glaze. That's my theory at least. The idea is the jar is large and it was costly for the potter to coat it altogether. Instead, only the important areas were protected to keep safe whatever its household intentions were. Then again, leaving part of the jar unglazed may have been a form of artistic expression by Burpee.
The New Hampshire Historical Society indicated their jar was made between 1805 and 1830. I feel this jar was made later and rather between 1820 and 1850. Note the slight differences in the two jars: the NHHSO's jar is incised with decoration, while the other is not.
I consider this to be an extremely interesting and rare form that is not usually found from New Hampshire's redware makers. The size, I find more common amongst the earliest New England potters where there was a greater importance for storage and holloware. I had always believed that with the nineteenth-century came a greater importance for kitchenware and not storage with New England redware potters. Stoneware of the period had replaced redware for such uses because of its durability, but I believe Burpee's intentions with this jar were to compete with stonware.
This jar has the potential for a fascinating study.
More research to follow...
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