A section of the property was excavated by a team of archaeologists in the late-twentieth-century, where an eleven-seat early-nineteenth-century privy was discovered with artifacts dating from the circa 1770-1820 period. These artifacts represent the types of wares, which were available during the period in the Newburyport, Massachusetts-area. The ceramic collection includes wares that were imported from China, Europe and Japan; however, Charlestown, Massachusetts stoneware and locally produced red earthenware was also represented.
Spencer-Peirce-Little Farm, Newbury, Mass.
Spencer-Peirce-Little Farm
Photo Courtesy: Historic New England
Spencer-Peirce-Little Farm
Photo Courtesy: Historic New England
Spencer-Peirce-Little Farm
Photo Courtesy: Historic New England
The following description was provided by Historic New England, and it represents the history of ownership at the Spencer-Peirce-Little Farm.
1635-1651: Spencer Ownership: First Settlement
"The site was first settled by John Spencer in 1635 when he was granted a 400-acre parcel as part of the first allocation of land to new settlers. The town also granted him a house lot of four acres near the landing site in the Parker River.
In 1637, Spencer was disarmed for being a supporter of Anne Hutchinson and part of a heretical sect. He left Newbury, and gave his property to his nephew. John Spencer died in England in 1648, and his nephew sold the property to Daniel Peirce."
1651-1778: Peirce Ownership: Colonial Farm
"Daniel Peirce, Sr. came to Newbury from Watertown, Massachusetts in 1638. He took an active role in the affairs of the new town, and was engaged in blacksmithing, malt-making, farming and cattle raising. The house remained in the Peirce family until 1778."
1778-1861: Tracy, Boardman, Pettengill Ownership: A Country Estate
"In 1778, Newburyport merchant, Nathaniel Tracy purchased the farm from the Peirce descendants. Tracy's ownership inaugurated an era when the house served as a country seat for prominent families in nearby Newburyport.
The property was sold to Offin Boardman when Nathaniel Tracy died in 1796. Boardman used the house for family quarters and also for servants.
Boardman died in 1812, and John Pettengill purchased the farm at auction, also in 1812. Pettengill seems to have used the home as a summer house, leasing portions of the property to tenant farmers."
1851-1986: Little Ownership: A Family Farm
"In 1851, Edward Little, a descendant of early settlers of Newbury leased the farm from the Pettengill heirs. By 1861, his hard work and shrewd business investments made it possible for him to purchase the farm outright. The farm remained in the Little family until it was acquired by Historic New England in 1986. Historic New England also acquired all of the Little family's furnishings with the property, which included a variety of locally produced products that remained in their original context of ownership."
The following three red earthenware pans were all recovered from the eleven-seat privy. They are all believed to be from a local manufacturer, as well.
The privy was basically used during the Tracy, Boardman and Pettengill ownerships, which makes it difficult to determine the family (or families), who would have originally used these objects. But it does appear that these pans may have been manufactured in the late-eighteenth-century, despite this type of form (and glaze) traditionally having been interpreted as a nineteenth-century northern New England style today.
It was also a similar scenario with the Charlestown, Massachusetts potter's industry, where there have been red earthenware pans recovered in privies in Charlestown in a pre-1775 archaeological contexts, although, (without that documented information), these objects would likely be attributed to a nineteenth-century location (or potter) today.
It is interesting to see these type of objects from the Spencer-Peirce-Little Farm since they would likely be attributed to Maine due to the color of the glaze. However, these objects are more refined than most of the typical Maine-made pans, which survive today. This also demonstrates how building an attribution on only a glaze can be very risky.
I have also shown a pan from my collection, which was found years ago in a vintage shop in downtown Newburyport. The manufacture of the pan, the clay color and the glaze color is very-similar to the pans that were uncovered at the Spencer-Peirce-Little Farm, but it may also have been made in Portsmouth, New Hampshire.
Note: The eighteenth-century red earthenware potteries in the Newburyport area were larger than what is generally understood today. For example, the Daniel Bayley Pottery Company produced red earthenware from circa 1764-1799. This was a full time business, which archaeological evidence shows the company's products were exported elsewhere in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Maine and Canada. However, this was not the only known Newburyport potter's business before 1800, either.
Pans Recovered at Spencer-Peirce-Little Farm in Newbury, Mass.
18th/19th C. Red Earthenware Pan Recovered at the Spencer Peirce Little Farm - Newbury, MA
Probably Made in Newburyport, Mass.
Recovered in a Circa 1770-1820 Context
This Type of Glazed Object Would Likely be Attributed to Maine Today
Photo Courtesy: Spencer-Peirce-Little Farm - Historic New England
18th/19th C. Red Earthenware Pan Recovered at the Spencer Peirce Little Farm - Newbury, MA
Probably Made in Newburyport, Mass.
Recovered in a Circa 1770-1820 Context
This Type of Glazed Object Would Likely be Attributed to Maine Today
Photo Courtesy: Spencer-Peirce-Little Farm - Historic New England
18th/19th C. Red Earthenware Pan Recovered at the Spencer Peirce Little Farm - Newbury, MA
Probably Made in Newburyport, Mass.
Recovered in a Circa 1770-1820 Context
This Type of Glazed Object Would Likely be Attributed to Maine Today
Photo Courtesy: Spencer-Peirce-Little Farm - Historic New England
Pan Found in Newburyport, Mass.
18th/19th Century Red Earthenware Pan Found in a Shop in Newburyport, Mass.
The Form, Clay Color, Refinement and Glaze is Very Similar to the Pans Shown Above
This Pan is Especially Similar to the First Pan Shown Above
But this Pan Also May Have Been Made in Portsmouth, NH
Measures 15 3/4" in Diameter
Please Stay Tuned...Much More to Come...
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