A Pair of Red Earthenware Jars Made in Vermont Before 1840

The nineteenth-century stoneware that was produced in Vermont is widely known today thanks in part to the Bennington Museum in Bennington, Vermont, numerous twentieth-century publications and a large number of collectors, who have spanned multiple generations. However, I feel that Vermont's late-eighteenth and nineteenth-century red earthenware industry is a well-kept secret today.

The red earthenware that was produced in Vermont was equal in skill to the state's stoneware industry that is so well known today. There were various businesses located all over the state; although, the Farrar family is likely the most well-known of these businesses today operating a successful company in Middlebury, Vermont during the early-to-mid-nineteenth-century.

The Mint Museum in North Carolina, Colonial Williamsburg in Virginia, the Smithsonian in Washington, D.C. and the Art Institute of Chicago in Illinois are among the major national museums, which own objects related to the Middlebury pottery today.

This morning, I would like to show two Vermont-made nineteenth-century red earthenware jars that I own, which are directly related to red earthenware jars that are owned by the Smithsonian and the Bennington Museum.

I purchased both of my jars a few years ago at small antique shops in central New Hampshire; however, I was told they were both previously found in homes in Vermont. I should also mention that they were both purchased without any kind of attribution - they were merely called, 'American Redware.

The Smithsonian's jar (see below) was owned by Massachusetts author, Lura Woodside Watkins - she attributes the jar to Vermont in her important book, 'Early New England Potters and Their Wares' (see figure 72a).  She also reportedly discovered the jar in an early-context of ownership in Vermont before 1950.

The Bennington Museum attributes their jar (see below) to either Middlebury, Vermont or New Haven, Vermont before 1840. Unfortunately, I do not know the history of this object before the museum acquired it.

I also do not possess the sherd evidence to prove it, but I feel there is an argument that could suggest that all of these objects in today's article could be related to the Farrar family during the circa 1820-1840 period.

Note: There are some variations in form when the jars owned by the museums are compared below - the variations are found in the manufacture of the rim and the shoulder. However, these jars still appear like they are directly related (to me).

Found in Homes in Vermont

19th Century Red Earthenware Jar Attributed to Vermont

Likely Made in Middlebury, VT or New Haven, VT

Circa 1820-1840

8 1/4" Tall

Recently Found in a House in Vermont

19th Century Red Earthenware Jar Attributed to Vermont

Likely Made in Middlebury, VT or New Haven, VT

Circa 1820-1840

9 7/8"

Recently Found in a House in Vermont

View of the Two Jars Together

The Bennington Museum

19th Century Red Earthenware Jar with Brushed Manganese Attributed to Vermont
Probably Made in Either Middlebury, VT or New Haven, VT
Still Retains Its Original Lid

Circa 1820-1840

Stands Approximately 7"-9" Tall

Photo Courtesy: The Bennington, Museum - Bennington, VT

The Smithsonian

19th Century Red Earthenware Jar Likely Made in Middlebury, VT or New Haven, VT

Stands 7" Tall

Lura Woodside Watkins Collection

Discovered in an Early-Context of Ownership Before 1950

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

View of One Handle

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

View of the Rim

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

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