A Red Earthenware Jug Found Today in New Hampshire that was Made in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania

My lone find today was this unglazed red earthenware jug that is stamped 'R.C. MOOORE / HARRISBURG, PA.' I have not been able to find any information about this specific potter; however, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania was  an area in the nineteenth and early-twentieth-centuries that was predominantly dominated by stoneware production by the Cowden family; although, the Wilcox, Wilson, Young and Moyer names also found some success in Harrisburg in the 1800's. Surprisingly, I have not been able to find any information about a documented potter named 'R.C. Moore' who was employed in the Harrisburg area in the nineteenth-century - even though, the Moore name is tied to the nineteenth-century potter's industry elsewhere in Pennsylvania. Unfortunately, the only Moore names that I have been able to associate with Pennsylvania were stoneware potters rather than red earthenware potters.

This jug was found in New Hampshire today - the style and the font type left by the impression of the stamp in the wet clay do correspond with other stamp styles applied by other nineteenth-century potters in Pennsylvania.

What's also notable about this stamp is that it is similar to some of the stoneware potters who used stamps in Harrisburg where the first and middle initial was stamped to go along with the last name - and, there are also instances where the first name was abbreviated to two letters to go along with the last name. For example, 'J.W. Cowden,' WM. Moyer' and 'F.H. Cowden' are all stamps that were used by potters in Harrisburg in the 1800's which relate to the style of the stamp seen on the red earthenware jug that I discovered today.

According to the book, 'Decorated Stoneware of Cowden and the Stoneware Potteries of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania: 1852-1924' published in 2001 - and, written by Matthew R. Miller, "Pennsylvania was one of the last areas to make the change to salt glazed stoneware in the 1800's. In the years between the middle of the nineteenth and the first quarter of the twentieth century, two potteries produced salt glazed decorated stoneware in Harrisburg Pennsylvania (capital of Pennsylvania). The first pottery changed hands several times within its first years of operation and was not a long lasting endeavor. The second of the two potteries existed for more than sixty years and spanned three generations (Cowden family) inside of the owning family. 

During the third quarter of the nineteenth century, nearly all salt glazed stoneware was decorated with blue cobalt for aesthetic purposes. Decorations at the Harrisburg potteries ranged anywhere from a simple flower to unique and highly artistic decorations consisting of extravagant florals, birds, animals, and sometimes even scenes and people." However, this book does not make any mention of any red earthenware production in Harrisburg in the nineteenth or twentieth-centuries.

Overall, this red earthenware jug is crudely potted. Normally, I would have passed on such an object; however, any type of signed or stamped utilitarian American-made red earthenware from the 1800's is very-rare today. Ultimately, that is why I purchased this jug. The jug also possesses a very-rare characteristic which is seen on the front of the jug where the potter placed a support knob.

It should also be noted that this jug is in the form of a traditional stoneware jug made after 1850 - and, in some ways, it emulates some of the stoneware jug forms that were produced in Harrisburg in the second-half of the nineteenth-century.

 Possibly 19th/20th Century Red Earthenware Jug Made in Harrisburg, PA

Marked 'R.C. MOORE / HARRISBURG, PA'

Stands 8 1/2" Tall

Found Today in New Hampshire

 View of the 'R.C. MOORE' Mark

 View of the Handle

 View of the Support Knob on the Front of the Jug

 Another View of the Handle

View of the Base

Please Stay Tuned...Much More to Come...