A 19th Century Crock Attributed to Alfred, Maine, Which is Owned by Winterthur in Wilmington, Delaware

According to Massachusetts author, Lura Woodside Watkins book, 'Early New England Potters and Their Wares,' "Joshua Emery started the Alfred, Maine pottery in 1791. At some point before 1805 he moved to Windham, Maine, and later to Gorham, Maine, where he ran a gristmill. He was followed in 1805 by Daniel Holmes, whose pottery stood opposite of the Alfred meetinghouse. Either the shop itself or the business was reportedly moved north, and under the ownership of Porter Lambert, it was nearly opposite the courthouse. 

The Lambert shop was behind the buildings that composed the Berry Tavern. When the inn was being demolished in 1938, we visited the site finding numerous fragments, but none of any significance (these sherds are owned by the Smithsonian in Washington, D.C. today). This tavern was bought in 1832 by General Samuel Leighton, who, in his diary, facetiously refers to it as his 'pot stable.' Porter Lambert was working there as early as 1825.

Thus came a close to the Lambert Pottery. General Leighton makes a note that Porter Lambert died the morning of August 9, 1839. When Leighton bought the property, Lambert was in business with his son-in-law Albert Webber. The Executive Documents Relative to the Manufacturers in the United States record that they made annually earthenware of various kinds worth five-hundred dollars. They employed two men at seventy-five-cents a day and sold all their output in Maine. Albert Webber is remembered by persons now living (1930's). After the pottery in Alfred came to an end he opened a shop in North Yarmouth, Maine."

To my knowledge, the men, who were employed in Alfred, Maine for "seventy-five-cents per day" are not documented potter's today. It is also not certain whether they were potters or merely day-laborers, who were employed around the Porter & Webber Pottery. Nonetheless, this is the list of potter's, who are known to have made red earthenware in Alfred in the late-eighteenth and nineteenth-centuries - this was a small country-style operation that likely did not operate year-round.

1. Joshua Emery, Circa 1791-1804/1805
2. Daniel Holmes, Circa 1805-1820's
3. Porter Lambert, Circa 1825-1839
4. Albert Webber, Circa 1832-1840's
5. Paul Webber, Circa 1832-1840's

Alfred is a location that deserves more attention in terms of what was actually produced there versus what is attributed to Alfred today. It is known that the Alfred potters did experiment with glazes, and the forms also occasionally varied. For example: not every jug was produced in the same form. It is also my assumption that the products made in Alfred were mostly distributed locally; although, some of the products may have also traveled thirty-five-miles northeast to Portland, Maine.

The following object is a simple utilitarian crock that is owned by Winterthur in Wilmington, Delaware. These type of objects are often nearly impossible to properly attribute to an exact potter's business today. However, there are noticeable variations in the manufacture of these type of objects that can be distinguished from region-to-region, and sometimes state-to-state.

Winterthur attributes this crock to Alfred, Maine after 1825. Unfortunately, I am not familiar with how the attribution was developed. I assume this crock must possess some kind of history or family ownership that directly ties it to Alfred in the nineteenth-century.

 19th Century Red Earthenware Crock Attributed to Alfred, ME

Museum Suggests Circa 1825-1875 Production Period
Stands 9 1/8" Tall
Photo Courtesy: Winterthur - Wilmington, DE

View of the Base

Photo Courtesy: Winterthur - Wilmington, DE

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