A Circa 1910 Photograph of a Potter's Kiln in North Yarmouth, Maine

I have written eight stories in the past week, which have focused on the eighteenth and nineteenth-century red earthenware potter's industry in North Yarmouth (today known as Yarmouth), Maine. I feel the size of this industry has been overlooked; however, the following photograph illustrates the size of the kilns that were built in North Yarmouth. This picture really helps tell the story in regards to how important this potter's industry was in the nineteenth-century. I have no doubt that this industry produced a lot of pottery in its century of production.

This is a large bottle-style kiln that is similar to kilns that were built in other industries in the eighteenth and nineteenth-centuries. Potters could have easily used this building to fire monthly loads of red earthenware in the 1800's.

This picture was taken circa 1910 - and, the kiln is actually located about one-half mile from where a group of potteries were located in North Yarmouth during the circa 1791-1880 period (see this link for a story about this location). All of these businesses were also located next to the Royal River, which gave the local potters the opportunity to export their wares throughout various coastal communities in Maine (and possibly New Hampshire).

According to Massachusetts author, Lura Woodside Watkins (Early New England Potters and Their Wares), "A potter, Joel Brooks, Sr. purchased the John Thomas (1754-1843) Pottery in North Yarmouth, which was located at North Yarmouth Corner. The buildings from the Thomas Pottery were in bad condition after a half century of use. Brooks tore them down in 1848 and moved the business down the road. Brooks ended up establishing the Brooks Pottery in North Yarmouth, where he produced red earthenware with his son, Joel Brooks, Jr."

Unfortunately, the identity of this kiln is not currently known today, but the location of this business may suggest that it was once a kiln operated by the Brooks family. Although, it may have been from another potter's business, as well, as there were a number of potter's businesses located in North Yarmouth in the 1800's.

Note: This photograph is fascinating - look closely at the steel belts that wrapped around the potter's kiln. During the firing process, the kiln would expand as a result of the heat, and the belts helped protect the kiln from expanding too far.

North Yarmouth, ME Potter's Kiln, Circa 1910

Potter's Bottle-Style Kiln in North Yarmouth, ME

Circa 1910

Photo Courtesy: Yarmouth, Maine Historical Society

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