The Use of Tulips on the 18th Century Massachusetts Potter, Daniel Bayley's Gravestone - The Use of Tulips as a Means of Design Report 5

"The early New England settlers found themselves in a harsh, unfamiliar environment (The New World), looking for a new beginning. What they brought with them were their skills, ingenuity, and, more than anything else, their perseverance and their religious faith. One of their legacies, one that still resonates in our culture (today), is revealed on the stones in early New England graveyards (and churches)...The stones remain out there (today), stuck in the New England dirt, deteriorating as any man-made things must, ultimately vanishing. They seem to have been made almost without thought, although that of course can't be." (Carved in Stone: The Artistry of Early New England Gravestones)

I have briefly looked through a number of sources for any indication of the possible significance towards the tulip design used on the tombstone of the early Newburyport, Massachusetts potter, Daniel Bayley. A design that I have described and thought of, up until today's report - as merely decorative - appears extremely unusual for any early New England graveyard. Let me explain.

The flower seen in Newburyport can be described as a tulip or a lily depending on who you are talking with - and in some instances, it can be suggested as both. I personally view the flower as a tulip. That's how it appears to me - however, it may appear as a lily to others. Tulipware versus Lilyware? I have never once considered this, but as of today - I now do - please keep reading and I'll explain.

The springtime flower was one of the more popular symbols used by the Pennsylvania-German immigrants of the eighteenth to early nineteenth centuries on both the decorative arts and apparently in graveyards, too. The use of the flower saw a some-what decline during the first half of the nineteenth century, but for it to only be reborn in popularity of what can be associated as a revival period on graves of the later Victorian Period. The lily or tulip is regarded as a symbol of resurrection so its context on gravestones is the obvious one. However, its use on Daniel Bayley's Massachusetts gravestone - is still a bit of a mystery to me.

 Daniel Bayley: 1729-1792

Newburyport, Ma Potter - 18th Century

Bayley is Buried at St. Paul's Parish in Newburyport, Ma

He Was Born in Nearby Rowley, Ma

Daniely Bayley Died in Feb 29, 1792

13 Days After His 2nd Wife Died

There Are a Number of Lillies or Tulips that Decorate Bayley's Grave

In the book, "From Slate to Marble: Gravestone Carving Traditions in Eastern Massachusetts, 1770 - 1870," it reads, "Every distinguishable period of gravestone design involves some significant design invariance: why else would it be classified as a period to begin with?" 

Bayley's gravestone was carved in 1792, but it should be noted of what exactly was happening in design about a decade later: "The invariance of design that we meet in the early decades of the nineteenth century may in part be explainable as the the result of a human need for a familiar, predictable and reliable form." In no way do I see the use of a tulip or lily as a familiar design among the early New England graveyards - up until to this point, I am still unsure of how the flower came to be on the Daniel Bayley grave.

The Bayley last name is of English origin and each of Bayley's wives were of English descent - so how did a design that really derived from the German and Dutch settlers in Pennsylvania end up on a grave at an Episcopal Parish in early Massachusetts?

 

St. Paul's Parish - Newburyport, Ma

Sign Attached and Seen at the Parish's Main Entrance

Bayley was a prominent and very-active member of St. Paul's Church. His home and potter's business bordered the church's property. Could he have been viewed in such a favorable way that the church awarded him the hope of an eventual resurrection? There are no other tombstones that depict a tulip in any such form or inscription that I can see within the church's eighteenth century graveyard beyond Bayley's grave.

Part of St. Paul's Parish Cemetery

18th Century Graves

Part of St. Paul's Parish Cemetery

18th Century Graves

"Perhaps when an artist or artisan is working for an individual client, or for just a few at a time, the product can be personalized and individualized," and this is very-well may have been what happened in the case of Daniel Bayley's grave. He had a number of surviving relatives and one of them are likely responsible for whom placed the order through what is likely a local grave carver. The use of tulips or lilies is still a bit of mystery. The design was certainly not popular in eighteenth century Massachusetts and likely not of the period in New England either. It was really most popular within the decorative arts manufactured by the Germans and Dutch in Pennsylvania and North Carolina that apparently continued through its importance of local cemeteries within these regions.

"What makes gravestone carving an odd case, however, is that carvers rarely shipped their work to very distant towns (with the exception of carvers in the larger cities such as Boston and Providence)...The light-bulb skull was reproduced almost endlessly in most burial grounds in eastern New England from about 1760 through 1790 or so. This certainly qualifies as a standardized design." At the very-least, the use of any form of flower is not seen from one early New England graveyard to the next - it can be strongly assumed that this was not a standardized design and even if Bayley's tombstone were shipped from as far away as Providence - it may be the only grave in all of historic Newburyport that demonstrates a tulip or lily. Providence and Rhode Island are still many miles away from the popular tulips or lilies of distant Pennsylvania.

Early eastern Massachusetts tombstones are often seen with a winged-skull, elaborate scenic compositions, ships in distress, willows, willows with an urn, cherubs and souls - but the use of a floral, tulip or lily design appears very rare and unexpected.

A tombstone in Plymouth, Massachusetts made by the carver, Nathaniel Holmes in 1803 - does demonstrate a floral design, but not comparable to the use on Bayley's site.

"The flowers are probably the lily and the anemone or pasque-flower, both symbolic of the Resurrection. (Nathaniel) Holmes used this on a few other stones." This leads me to believe that the symbol of resurrection was a rare design that was not often used on period New England gravestones when compared to the more popular designs - especially in the case of Holmes. Holmes was an established and accomplished southeastern Massachusetts and Cape Cod carver who is regarded as only using the flower on a very small number of graves through the course of his career.

In the beloved valley of roses,
Numberless roses grow;
There also is the lily field,
There in the new heavenly world
There everything is in heavenly bloom,
Growing after its own kind.

The lily and tulip are reportedly heavily phrased in early literature when referring to Christ by the Pennsylvania-Germans. I am far from an expert on any form of religion, but the coupling of the two flowers suggests a symbol for Christ and Christianity. Many of the figures or scenes used on early American gravestones are beliefs that developed hundreds of years earlier in The Old World - as in the case of the tulip, it began in Turkey and spread throughout Europe in the 1500s - as part of Tulipmania. Both flowers see their bulbs planted in a dead-state of winter - and only to be reborn in a lively-state through the spring. This is how the idea of resurrection was born - from death to birth through the emergence of two perennial springtime flowers. It's fascinating!!

I now understand the true meaning of tulipware through the early decorative arts of the Dutch and Germans immigrants of America. However, can I call it lilyware, too? What do you think? Did I just create a variation of the term tulipware that can now be used in the museum, scholarly, institution, antique and collectors worlds!? The term tulipware has been used for more than a hundred years, but is its idea completely accurate? Based on what I have been reading with how tulips and lilies are interchangeable in the graveyard - I feel it may not be.

I still don't understand the influence that is seen on the Daniel Bayley gravestone. How did this style come to be in an area that is not known for such a style? Maybe more research will help understand this mystery?

I have written extensively on the use of tulips in early American design. Here are links to each report. If you have the interest - I would recommend reading each.

Part 1 

Part 2 

Part 3

Part 4

I have also previously written of an Alamance County, North Carolina redware charger that recently sold at auction where a great use of tulips is seen. Here are the links to those reports.

Alamance County, NC Report 1

Alamance County, NC Report 2

What do you think? Any comments? Ideas? Theories? I am very encouraged with the idea of lilyware.

Much more to come...

The Possible Kiln Site and Workshop of the 18th/19th Century Massachusetts Potter, William Pecker

The eighteenth turned nineteenth-century West Amesbury, Massachusetts (today known as Merrimacport) redware potter, William Pecker is arguably one of America's most important utilitarian potters. Not a lot is known of his work outside of the most common forms and pumpkin orange with manganese decorated glazes. There is no archaeological evidence known that can support his lesser known forms, glazes, utilitarian wares and stoneware experimentation.

William Pecker Redware Jug - Merrimacport, Ma

Late 18th or Likely Early 19th Century

Height: 9 Inches

Sold: $1,880 in 2006

Photo Courtesy: Skinner, Inc - Boston

Pecker was born in Haverhill, Massachusetts in 1758 and by 1780 - he was working in West Amesbury as a potter. It can be assumed he was working earlier than 1780 and likely apprenticed on Boston's North Shore. Many today associate Pecker with being a nineteenth-century potter, but he was really a late colonial potter who continued to work into the nineteenth-century - this is why Pecker is so important today. He was much more than the dozens of accomplished potters who worked alongside him in New England during the 1800s - unlike the rest - his work dates back to the colonial days and his earliest work predates the American Revolution.

William Pecker's best-known work - all dates after 1791 when he ran his own kiln and company in West Amesbury. Pecker owned roughly 64 acres in the small riverside village. He worked as both a country farmer and a utilitarian potter equally supplementing his income, while supporting his family. Sadly, in 1820 he was crushed to death when his kiln collapsed on him.

Yesterday, my nine-year-old nephew, Jason and myself set out on a bike trip from my house in Newburyport, Massachusetts to the small village of Merrimacport, Massachusetts. It was about a six mile bike ride each way. He wanted to go somewhere we had never ridden to before and I wanted to check the Merrimacport area out. I have been imagining for some-time now how many sherds may be in the ground if the kiln was full with wares when the walls fell on Pecker. The death was tragic, but the surviving archaeological evidence could be immense.

Our bike ride took us through Amesbury, Merrimac and into Merrimacport - all located in northeastern, Massachusetts. We rode alongside the picturesque Merrimac River the entire length of the ride - the same river Pecker likely shipped his earthen ware east and west of his workshop for distribution. The day was perfect - blue skies and temperatures in the lows 80s with very-little humidity. It was your typical mid-summer's day.

Upon our arrival in Merrimacport - we saw the house that Pecker once called home and a town-owned park that has a sign that indicates it is a historic site, but there is no indication of why it is historic. The sign on the house reads, "The Potter's House, 1776."

William Pecker's House - Early Utilitarian Potter - Merrimacport, Ma

Pecker Lived 1758-1820
Lived Here Circa 1791-1820

Sign Reads, "The Potter's House, 1776"
There Appears to Have Been Many Additions to the Home

The Park that Neighbor's the House

Sign Reads, "Merrimac Historic Site 2"

Memorial Rock in the Park

No where does it indicate in this park what the historic site means. The house and park, both back up to the Merrimac River. My nephew I and decided to take a walk down to the edge of the park and pear over the steep hill down onto the Merrimac River. I did not expect to see much. Fortunately, it was low tide - and as we both looked down from the cliff - that winter storms had created through erosion - we saw an unexpected amount of bricks.

Jason went down, like any curious nine-year-old boy would do - and investigated. All I could see were plain looking bricks, but none-the-less - definitely out of place for this far up river. Bricks are seen on the shores of Newburyport due to the amount of brick use in the city. There was no real reason why such a concentrated amount were on the shores of Merrimacport and really only in this one location that we could see.

Me Photographing from Atop the Cliff-Like Wall

My Nephew Investigating the Shores of the Merrimac River

Photo Taken in Merrimacport, Ma

After only a few minutes, my nephew yelled for me to come down and see what he had found. I could hear the excitement in his voice. He kept yelling for me. When I got there, he held up a crooked brick and asked me what it was. I quickly got excited and told him it was a kiln brick and likely a part of William Pecker's kiln.

Early Kiln Bricks - Late 18th or Early 19th Century

Likely Used in William Pecker's Kiln - Merrimacport, Ma

I looked away from my nephew and in the area we were standing - I realized that we may be surrounded by the partial remains of William Pecker's kiln. Pecker's nephew, James Chase and his family also ran a kiln only a matter of a few houses west from this site - that was closer to the center of the village. The site we were standing on is not believed to have been where Chase worked and we are extremely hopeful it is the the partial remains of Pecker's one-time operation.

 The Area Covered in Kiln Bricks

 Bricks Still Attached
Likely from William Pecker's Kiln

Noticeable Kiln Bricks

All late 18th or Early 19th Century

As I looked closer - I noticed it wasn't only kiln bricks, kiln furniture, too - in the form of thin bricks used for stacking earthen ware in the kiln. We didn't find any redware or stoneware fragments.

Early Kiln Furniture

Likely Used in William Pecker's Kiln - Merrimacport, Ma - 18th or 19th Century

There is plenty more to this site, but I do not want to make it all public. I think this site is begging for an archaeological dig, in-depth research and publication, however, I do not want the artifacts to leave the Merrimac area. Many archaeological digs see its artifacts leave for areas that are not easily accessible for research. I would like to see these artifacts kept within the Merrimacport Historical Society - or at the very least locally. This is an extremely important part of this village's history and it needs to stay that way.

The artifacts that have found its way onto the shores of the Merrimac are likely the result of storms that have caused erosion into the park's property. A few bricks were noticeably protruding out from the earth's cliff that has been created over the years.

Back Wall Has Been Eroded

Bricks Are Seen Partially Exposed

I feel the entire park may have been the one-time site of Pecker's kiln and workshop - and it could possibly be loaded with artifacts just below the surface level. It could possibly be one of the more important archaeological digs (if it were to happen) in American ceramic history. I now ask all the archaeologists reading this - can, and how do we proceed? And most importantly, can we make sure ALL the archaeological findings are kept local? I have no problem contacting the town and local historical society - but beyond that, what do you all think? This would likely be one of the most important potter's sites that have been kept intact and virtually untouched from as early as 1780.

Wide Shot of Much of the Park

 Merrimacport, Ma

Who could have been Pecker's supplier of bricks? Is this the actual site of his kiln or have these bricks traveled up or down river? All valid questions.

I also hope the Merrimac River doesn't wash what is currently seen away through future coastal storms.

I feel there is much more to accomplish here than merely acknowledging it as an archaeological site. I'll speak with some archaeologists privately later today.

My nephew is really the one who discovered all of this! I would have eventually, but he beat me to it and I give him full credit.

I'd tell you I have much more to come (because I do), but I would really like to focus on this subject at the moment and hear what you all think. I am extremely excited over this! If you don't already know - William Pecker is one of the more important utilitarian potters in American history.

The Mystery Home or Barn - Near Ebenezer Morrison's Pottery Site

Ebenezer Morrison Report 1
Daniel Bayley Report

The eighteenth-century Newburyport, Massachusetts potter, Ebenezer Morrison has been an area of interest for me as of late. Very little is known of his work. He reportedly worked across the street from Daniel Bayley and the Old North Church in the latter years of the 1700s. Each made similar utilitarian wares that included dye and lard pots; kitchenware; hollow ware and some tableware. Sherds excavated from a construction site near where the Morrison kiln site may have once stood - have revealed a use of slip decoration that was a common decorative characteristic of many eighteenth-century potters, including the work of Daniel Bayley. The similarities between Bayley and Morrison in technique, form and use of slip may have been a contribution from two of Daniel Bayley's relatives who trained under Bayley, but were later employed by Morrison.

As indicated in my first report - I have been curiously walking around the Old Hill Burial Ground in Newburyport looking for any type of evidence that may indicate a kiln or potter's workshop at one time.

Harvard Professor Lura Woodside Watkins research has suggested Morrison's kiln was near the cemetery or possibly located on property that is now cemetery owned land. I have walked the grounds of this cemetery on many occasions and there is no evidence that I can see to support her research, but there is no appropriate evidence to discredit her idea either.

Earlier this week, I was out for a bike ride and I decided to check out a construction site that borders a later part of the cemetery. A steep hill falls down from the cemetery to the construction site where a number of early twentieth-century homes have been taken down. An earlier building still stands. It is unclear if the city has given permission to further demolish the building - since crews have apparently halted their demolition and any further work on the site. I sure hope the home or barn does not come down. It appears early. I do not know the history of it at this time.

Building Near Old Hill Burial Ground Under Demolition

Demolition May Have Been Halted by the City - Newburyport, Ma

Building Appears Early 19th Century

Is it a barn? House?

Back End of Building

Side of Building

More From Side of Building

Demolition Debris in Front of Building

It is Not Clear if All Debris is from this Building

 Close-Up of Debris

 

 Second Floor of Interior of Building

 Third Floor of Interior of Building

First Floor of Interior of Building

Much of the ground surrounding the construction site had a lot of the earth disturbed and artifacts can easily be seen. I looked around for a bit and it appeared to me that with the amount of bricks, late nineteenth to twentieth-century bottles, late nineteenth-century ceramics and such - that a privy may have been disturbed. Either that, or the property had a great deal of trash on it just below the surface level.

Newburyport, Ma Construction Site

Piles of Bricks and Late 19th Century Artifacts

There Are a Number of Dirt Piles

Ground Covered in Bricks and Smaller Artifacts

Protruding out of one of the dirt piles that backhoes had created on the site - was an obvious example of redware. Much of the dirt was being removed by dump trucks and the remainder is what has been left behind while the site is at a standstill.

At first, I thought the redware was a complete form, but after carefully removing it - I realized it was broken. It did not appear to fit in with the rest of the late nineteenth to twentieth-century artifacts. This example of redware appeared much earlier. Morrison's site is purportedly somewhere up the hill that leads to the cemetery that I have previously visited.

Redware Sherds Found on Construction Site in Newburyport, Ma

Either 18th or 19th Century and Possibly from a Local  Potter

I carefully examined the redware sherds and they appeared primitive to me - especially the over-exaggerated base. The freckled brown glaze reminded me of a passage that Watkins included in her book, "Early New England Potters and Their Wares" - where she wrote of a brown glaze that Morrison was apparently known for by the people of Newburyport of the period.

Watkins credits Sarah Ann Emery, "In my childhood, Frog pond was the center of a tangled wilderness of alder and other bushes, and at the upper end there was a frightful ravine. Near this gully stood the gun house, where the cannon belonging to the artillery company was kept. Back on the heights stood an ancient windmill...Back of the pond was located quite an extensive pottery for the manufacture of brown glazed earthenware." (Watkins, Early New England Potters and Their Wares, 1968, page 60)

Daniel Bayley is known for a similar chocolate-brown glaze that he used within the interior of his hollow ware and on the exterior of additional forms. A similar glaze can be seen demonstrated on the right mug below.

Reportedly a Pair of Daniel Bayley Redware Mugs - Newburyport, Ma

Late 18th Century

Photo Courtesy: Skinner, Inc - Boston

Could the sherds I found represent the work of Ebenezer Morrison - whose forms, glazes and technique were similar to Bayley's work? Could the mugs pictured above that Skinner attributed to Bayley actually be the work of Morrison? Are the sherds the work of Daniel Bayley rather than Morrison - or are they the work of a Bayley trained relatives employed by Morrison? These I feel - are all good questions.

I personally feel the sherds represent Morrison's work. They just coincidentally happen to appear out of place with the number of later artifacts that surrounded them. The sherds may have been buried at this site long before any of the other artifacts or homes were there. They may have been dumped in this part of Newburyport with many other sherds. Those sherds may have been trucked off or may still be in the ground. It is not currently known. There is  really no explanation at this time for how the sherds I found - ended up where they were found exposed on the construction site.

There will hopefully be much more on Morrison's work in time. I am planning a trip to the Smithsonian (among other stops) this fall and I plan on studying the hundreds of Bayley sherds from the Watkins collection. I also hope to study the Morrison sherds.

In the meantime - what do you think of these sherds? Any idea on the form? Are they eighteenth-century or later? Are they a product of Newburyport's one-time redware industry?

It should be noted again that the actually kiln site of Morrison has never been found with a proper representation of kiln bricks, wasters and kiln furniture. It is likely still in the ground near the Old Hill Burial Ground in Newburyort.

On a side note - I am not a person who supports the demolition of old homes. If you want to live in a new home - don't buy an old one to tear down. Buy an old one if you want to live in an old home. I am not sure why this particular home may potentially be taken down, but the interior structure looks fine to me. It appears to need a great deal of work, but I think it is worth saving. I don't know why Newburyport would sign off on it to be torn down. Maybe that is why construction has stopped? Maybe the city does not agree?

What do you think about the destruction of early American homes? In most cases, I do not agree.

Much more to come...

Ebenezer Morrison - an 18th Century Utilitarian Redware Potter of Newburyport, Ma

Daniel Bayley Pottery Company (Nbpt, Ma) Report

With my recent research towards the Daniel Bayley Pottery Company of eighteenth-century Newburyport, Massachusetts - I stumbled upon a second early Newburyport potter that very little information is known of. I have briefly read of Ebenezer Morrison in Lura Woodside Watkins book. "Early New England Potters and Their Wares" - but outside of that, there is almost no known information of his work. I do use the word "almost" loosely - because I believe nothing is known of Morrison's work. I do know Morrison worked on the adjacent side of High Street near the southern edge of the Old Hill Burial Ground of the same period as Bayley. They basically worked across the street from one another. The burial ground is across the street from where Bayley worked.

Old Hill Burial Ground Sign - Newburyport, Ma

Old Hill Burial Ground Main Entrance - Newburyport, Ma

Northeastern Wall of Graveyard

A number of Revolutionary War soldiers and important, prominent Newburyport  figures are buried at the Old Hill Burial Ground in Newburyport. Morrison is buried in this cemetery. I have looked for his grave before, but there are hundreds of tombstones - if not more and many of those are tough to read due to weathering over the years.

Important Figures Buried at Old Hill Burial Ground - Newburyport, Ma

 Important Figures Buried at Old Hill Burial Ground - Newburyport, Ma

Watkins describes Morrison's kiln as being built southeast and a distance from his house near the Old Hill Burial Ground. Newburyport city records suggest that Morrison's kiln may have been at or near the northwest side of the graveyard and may be near the western entrance of the graveyard and south of High Street. This is also all according to Lura Woodside Watkins. I feel it is all still left up to interpretation at this point - with such little information known of Morrison.

 Near the Western Entrance of the Old Hill Burial Ground - Newburyport, Ma

 Near the Western Entrance of the Old Hill Burial Ground - Newburyport, Ma

 Near the Western Entrance of the Old Hill Burial Ground - Newburyport, Ma

Watkins wrote that when the Route 1 underpass became a construction site in the 1930s - enabling her to salvage many of the Bayley Pottery Company redware sherds - a new wall was provided for the cemetery. She does not get into anymore detail than that, but I assume the entire wall that covers the graveyard in four parts was all replaced. She says that a trench was dug for the wall - and pottery sherds, wasters and kiln furniture were found in abundance. All of these artifacts have been attributed to the work of Morrison. Watkins says many were found, but it is not clear what her definition of the word "many" was. Were there dozens of examples? Hundreds? She never defines that in her book. It is assumed these artifacts are all now kept along with the rest of her collection at the Smithsonian in Washington, D.C. It's interesting knowing she kept these sherds, but they were never pictured in her book. Why? I feel Morrison is easily as important as Bayley and yet, Bayley gets all the credit. I believe Watkins propelled the Bayley name to prominence due to her article in the Magazine Antiques in 1938 and the focus she placed on the Bayley site in her book. What about Morrison? And in-fact, John Thomas and Clement Kent who both also worked in Newburyport of the same period - likely producing similar utilitarian wares. Morrison and Bayley's wares are described as both purely utilitarian in glaze and demonstrating yellow slip decoration. Kent and Thomas may have made similar wares, too.

 Circa 1930s Wall - Old Hill Burial Ground - Newburyport, Ma

Western Wall of Graveyard

 Circa 1930s Wall - Old Hill Burial Ground - Newburyport, Ma

Western Wall of Graveyard

  Circa 1930s Wall - Old Hill Burial Ground - Newburyport, Ma

Southern Wall of Graveyard

Out of mere curiosity, I have walked around the grounds of this graveyard on many occasions - looking for any type of remains of Morrison's pottery operation or kiln. I have never found anything. There have been a few archaeological reports done of the Morrison site, but it is not believed much was found due to its location within a graveyard. Obviously a dig is absolutely out of the question.

Over the weekend, I visited the graveyard again out of curiosity - and like all the previous visits, there was not much to be seen. I did however come up with a theory; the Old Hill Burial Ground is separated into two halves. The first part is all eighteenth and early nineteenth-century graves - while the second half is later. The two halves are divided by a street and the second half continues up a hill that eventually flattens out and overlooks the entire Old Hill Burial Ground. The latter half contains later nineteenth and twentieth-century graves. My thought is that this later half may have served as Morrison's location for a kiln at one time. The graveyard ran out of space and it extended its property across the street into the newer part of the Old Hill Burial Ground. It's only a theory at  this point, but its a thought. I haven't done much research into the property's history.

Second Half of the Old Hill Burial Ground - Newburyport, Ma

I explored this graveyard and like the previous half - there were no obvious redware sherds in plain sight. I walked along the edge of the property and within grass free pathways - and under trees.

Old Hill Burial Ground - Newburyport, Ma 

Later Part of Graveyard

19th Century Graves

 Old Hill Burial Ground - Newburyport, Ma 

Later Part of Graveyard 

19th Century Graves

 Old Hill Burial Ground - Newburyport, Ma 

Later Part of Graveyard 

19th Century Graves

 Old Hill Burial Ground - Newburyport, Ma
Later Part of Graveyard 

19th Century Graves

 Old Hill Burial Ground - Newburyport, Ma
Later Part of Graveyard 

19th Century Graves

Old Hill Burial Ground - Newburyport, Ma
Later Part of Graveyard 

19th Century Graves

According to Watkins, Morrison may have dug his own clay within the vicinity of his kiln. There is a water source in between the Bayley and Morrison sites known as the Bartlett Mall or the Frog Pond. This area may have proven abundant with a satisfactory clay source for both companies. It is interesting to point out that Watkins describes many of the Morrison sherds as being comparable to the products of Bayley. I guess this could be what she may have meant - when she said the utilitarian wares of Bayley are nearly impossible to properly attribute today. If Morrison's wares were comparable to Bayley's - then it would be tough to distinguish the two. I feel the colonial wares of potters outside of Newburyport are not comparable to Newburyport's and they can be properly attributed. I have studied a handful of eighteenth-century sherds and I will say that attributions of colonial utilitarian redware can be identified to a proper city or town, but beyond that - it can be difficult to attribute to a specific potter - if multiple potters were working within a single location. There really needs to be concrete evidence for any accurate attribution.

The Bartlett Mall or Frog Pond - Newburyport, Ma

Located Between the Bayley Potter Company and Ebenezer Morrison Pottery Sites

Once I reached the top of the Old Hill Burial Ground's hill- I found a number of nineteenth-century terracotta sherds scattered on the outskirts of the cemetery. None appeared eighteenth-century, but it was nice to see some sort of ceramic evidence. For the archaeology people reading this report - all of these sherds are still laying as I found them.

19th Century American-Made Terracotta Sherds 

Scattered on Property of the Old Hill Burial Ground - Newburyport, Ma

Watkins credits Sarah Ann Emery with the following passage, "In my childhood, Frog pond was the center of a tangled wilderness of alder and other bushes, and at the upper end there was a frightful ravine. Near this gully stood the gun house, where the cannon belonging to the artillery company was kept. Back on the heights stood an ancient windmill...Back of the pond was located quite an extensive pottery for the manufacture of brown glazed earthenware." (Watkins, Early New England Potters and Their Wares, 1968, page 60)

Morrison passed away in 1803 and he was apparently laid to rest near the location of his kiln, but I have not yet been able to find his grave. I hope to eventually. It would be an interesting comparison to see both his and Daniel Bayley's. Bayley's grave is covered in tulip designs, similar to the decoration used by the early Pennsylvania-Germans. Does Morrison's have any decoration? This is still yet to be proven or seen, but it may make for an interesting study of two potters, with similar skill and working in  the same period, but how did the general public view them after death? Bayley was celebrated and buried on Saint Paul's Church property in Newburyport. It should be noted that Bayley was actively involved within the church. It is not known if Morrison had a similar religious involvement as did Bayley.

Yesterday, I was riding my bike down the road that divides the Old Hill Burial Ground into two halves. The property that borders the western side of the second half of the graveyard is under demolition. I took a quick ride down to this large area and I did find some examples of what appear to be Morrison's work that crews were likely to destroy if I had not found them. This construction is quite interesting....

Stay tuned for what I found at this construction site and the second half of this report later this week or early next week.