EarlyAmericanCeramics.com: 19th Century Lead Glazed Earthenware Produced in Galena, Illinois and the Surrounding Area

Friday, March 8, 2019

19th Century Lead Glazed Earthenware Produced in Galena, Illinois and the Surrounding Area

According to the archaeology report, Redware Production in the Lead Mine District of Northwestern Illinois: Summary of Recent Archaeological Research, "Galena lead glazed earthenware has received the attention of antique and pottery collectors for many years. The locally manufactured earthenware was first studied by avocational archaeologist and historian Wayne Horney from Fort Wayne, Indiana during the 1960s. His seminal work, which consisted of the analysis of surface collections from several local pottery production sites, resulted in the publication of the manuscript entitled The Pottery of the Galena Area. Horney's manuscript was a pioneering study of Illinois earthenwares. Additionally, Horney collected samples of ceramic sherds from the various pottery sites that became the focus of later studies.

During late 1986 and early 1987, an archaeological survey of a proposed sanitary sewer and water main extension was conducted for the City of Galena by Fever Rich Research. Based on that survey, it was determined that the proposed sewer and water line construction would have an effect on the Galena Pottery Site. At that time, in order to further assess the potential National Register of Historic Places eligibility of the site, a limited survey was conducted. The results of this research stressed that the site of the Galena Pottery had the potential to yield significant information regarding the local and regional earthenware industry.

Construction of the sanitary sewer line was initiated in 1991 and it appears to have had a minimal impact on the actual pottery production site. Immediately after construction of the sanitary sewer line, Fever River Research re-surveyed the disturbed right-of-way and discovered previously unknown concentrations of earthenware waster sherds which had been deposited in several small gullies, which had been partially filled with ceramics, leveled, and eventually buried, were not identified during the initial survey. Subsequent research recorded the profile walls of these machine cuts and sampled the ceramic waster sherds at three sites along the corridor. This work isolated two temporarily discreet assemblages which have contributed dramatically to our understanding of Galena earthenware by allowing us to separate these wares into early and late assemblages."

My reason for posting this information about Galena pottery today is the fact that wares, especially spotted green glazes, as well as some forms can be misinterpreted today for production from places such as Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, Ontario, New Hampshire, etc. However, similar styles and glazes can also be confused for objects attributed to Galena. But because of the archaeological evidence recovered in the twentieth century and published facts that I just described, a lot of information is known about the lead glazed earthenware made in Galena.

For instance, the three jars that I posted today were just sold on eBay by an antiques dealer in Wisconsin; although, they are attributed to Galena. In fact, the slip-decorated jar may even be a unique style of production from Illinois.

But it should be noted that there were similar types of production found elsewhere in northwestern Illinois, like the earthenwares that were made about 15 miles southeast of Galena in Elizabeth, Illinois. In some ways, I also wonder if it would be more accurate to refer to "some" of this pottery production as northwestern Illinois, as opposed to a more specific location, seeing that there were a group of earthenware manufacturers in this area and there must have been some overlap in production.

However, it should also be taken into consideration that some of these wares could have easily been shipped by way of the Mississippi River, located only a few miles east of this region. This may also explain the origin of some artifacts that I wrote about a few years ago, which were recovered by archaeologists from the University of Iowa at a prairie site in northeastern Iowa. All of these objects are thought to have originated in Illinois.

Map Showing Distance from Galena, IL to Elizabeth, IL

These Communities are Separated by About 15 Miles
This Part of NW Illinois Produced a Large Amount of Earthenware in the 1800s
The Mississippi River is Located Just to the East of this Region

See Article for More Information

It was also published in Redware Production in the Lead Mine District of Northwestern Illinois: Summary of Recent Archaeological Research, "In 1990, improvements to U.S. 20 by the Illinois Department of Transportation near Elizabeth threatened the remains of a middle-to-late nineteenth century earthenware pottery production site, which had been established at this location around 1850. The initial research testing by Fever River Research identified the surface remains of an intact kiln structure. Subsequent investigations exposed the kiln, a large cistern, and the foundations of an associated structure. But unlike the research at the Galena Pottery Site, the excavations at the Elizabeth Pottery Site, resulted in a structural definition of the kiln. Furthermore as part of this research, another 1840s earthenware site (the Goble Site) was located in the immediate area."

Lead Glazed Earthenware Attributed to Northwestern Illinois