A Group of 19th Century Terra Cotta Tiles Found at an Antique Show in North Hampton, New Hampshire

As far as I can see, terracotta or red earthenware tiles made in the late-nineteenth-century at the Boston Terra Cotta Company (circa 1880-1893) in Boston, Massachusetts are rare to find today - in fact, I can barely recall ever seeing an example for sale in a shop, an auction, an antique show, a flea market and such. However, my three-year-old niece, Alexis and myself stopped at an antique show at Sage Farm in North Hampton, New Hampshire, over the weekend, where we found three tiles that I believe were made at the Boston Terra Cotta Company. One of the tiles is faintly marked Boston, while the rest are not marked, but they all appear to have been made (molded) in the same manner.  I was told they were all recently found together at an estate sale in New Hampshire.

Personally, I don't know a lot about the Boston Terra Cotta Company - there isn't a lot of published material on the subject today. Although, I have always felt that it would be nice to own an example from this company's output in my collection. Historic New England actually owns a catalog from the Boston Terra Cotta Company that shows a variety of tiles, which the company made. The only example that I have ever handled was an object that I saw when I visited the red earthenware and stoneware storage facility at the National Museum of American History at the Smithsonian in Washington, D.C. The Smithsonian owns a beautiful example, which was prominently stamped with the company's name on the front of the tile. The National Building Museum in Washington, D.C. also owns an example - that object originally came from the cornice of the U.S. Pension Building in Washington, D.C.

From what I have read, the high-end products made by the Boston Terra Cotta Company were in demand with large-scale projects in a number of American cities in the 1880's and the early-1890's. This company's output went along with the fascination that grew with art tiles - and, the fashion trends that widened with the American Arts & Crafts Movement in the latter years of the nineteenth-century - this fascination was found with American manufacturers all over America.

Below I have shown a picture of the tile that the Smithsonian owns - and, a grouping of pictures that show the three tiles that my niece and myself found last weekend.

 Sage Farm Antiques Show - North Hampton, NH
Saturday November 7, 2015

 Sage Farm Antiques Show - North Hampton, NH

Saturday November 7, 2015

Boston Terra Cotta Company Tile - Boston, MA

Circa 1880-1893

Photo Courtesy: The National Museum of American History, The Smithsonian - Washington, D.C.

Boston Terra Cotta Company Tile - Boston, MA

Circa 1880-1893

Purchased at Sage Farm Antiques Show in North Hampton, NH

Recently Found at an Estate Sale in New Hampshire

View of the Back

View of the Side

Boston Terra Cotta Company Tile - Boston, MA

Circa 1880-1893

Purchased at Sage Farm Antiques Show in North Hampton, NH

Recently Found at an Estate Sale in New Hampshire

View of the Back

Boston Terra Cotta Company Tile - Boston, MA

Circa 1880-1893

Purchased at Sage Farm Antiques Show in North Hampton, NH

Recently Found at an Estate Sale in New Hampshire

View of the Back

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