Kiln Furniture Recovered at the Site of the Phineas Chase Pottery in Merrimacport, Massachusetts

Earlier this year, my nephew, niece and I began to collect artifacts related to the 1850s-1880s Phineas Chase Pottery in Merrimacport, Massachusetts, who was the son of William Pecker's nephew, James Chase. Although, the material we have been collecting actually dates from the circa 1863-1880s period. The site of the pottery is long gone today, but some artifacts still remain around the surface - and we are salvaging what we can before construction happens on the property sometime next year.

According to Massachusetts author, Lura Woodside Watkins' (1897-1982) book, Early New England Potters and Their Wares, "At some time before 1863, Phineas moved the works to his own land in Merrimacport at the top of the hill on the road leading up from the Merrimack River. John Donovan (1851-1932), a traveling potter who worked at Moses Paige's (1847/48-1941) pottery in Peabody, recalled his producing a green glaze. Not very much is known about Phineas' activities, except that pieces of Chase pottery from this later period are frequently encountered about the country."

My niece, Alexis and I visited this property again over the weekend, hoping we could find some new artifacts that had emerged from the ground with the unseasonable warm weather, which found its way into New England. Surprisingly, we found quite a few red earthenware pads or a form of kiln furniture used to separate stacked pots inside of the kiln.

The property owners also showed us three trivets (kiln furniture) that they recovered on the property decades ago. Aside from Watkins' research before 1950, artifacts were also collected on this property in the 1960s by a retired professor from Merrimack College in North Andover, Massachusetts.

Kiln Furniture Recovered at the Site of the Phineas Chase Pottery in Merrimacport, Mass.

Red Earthenware Trivets or Kiln Furniture
Recovered at the Site of the Phineas Chase Pottery in Merrimacport, Mass.

Circa 1863-1880s

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Another View of the Trivets

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The Remains of a Red Earthenware Trivet

Recovered at the Site of the Phineas Chase Pottery in Merrimacport, Mass.

Circa 1863-1880s

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Another View of the Remains of a Red Earthenware Trivet

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Red Earthenware Pad Recovered at the Site of the Phineas Chase Pottery in Merrimacport, Mass.

Circa 1863-1880s

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Another View of the Pad

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Kiln Furniture Recovered at the Site of the Phineas Chase Pottery in Merrimacport, Mass.

Circa 1863-1880s

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Another View of the Kiln Furniture

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Red Earthenware Pad Found at the Site of the Phineas Chase Pottery in Merrimacport, Mass.

Circa 1863-1880s

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Another View of the Pad

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Red Earthenware Pad Recovered at the Site of the Phineas Chase Pottery in Merrimacport, Mass.

Circa 1863-1880s

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Another View of the Pad

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