Colonial Slip-Decorated Red Earthenware Sherds Recovered in Nova Scotia

Four or five years ago, I was able to identify a slip-decorated red earthenware chamber pot recovered in the 1970s at the site of the Fortress of Louisbourg in Nova Scotia. The pot was previously published and attributed to French production, but I recognized it as an object that was actually made at the Colonial industry in Charlestown, Massachusetts. That information was based on the extensive amount of artifacts that I have handled from this industry recovered by archaeologists in the 1980s, and now kept at the City of Boston Archaeology Program in West Roxbury, Massachusetts.

Upon learning about this object, I contacted Parks Canada, where I was told the chamber pot was recovered within a circa 1755-60 archaeological context; although, this information was also later published in a feature story I wrote for the April 2017 issue of the New England Antiques Journal, titled A Pioneering Potter: Samuel Marshall of Portsmouth, New Hampshire.

Chamber Pot Recovered at the Fortress of Louisbourg in Nova Scotia

Colonial 18th Century Slip-Decorated Red Earthenware Chamber Pot Recovered in Nova Scotia

Attributed to the Industry in Charlestown, Mass.

Probably Made at the Parker Family Pottery

Found Within a Circa 1755-60 Archaeological Context at the Fortress of Louisbourg

See Article for More Information

Photo Courtesy: Fortress of Louisbourg, Parks Canada

(Left) Slip-Decorated Sherd Recovered at the Site of the Parker Pottery in Charlestown, Mass.

(Right) Slip-Decorated Chamber Recovered in Charlestown, Mass.

Found in a Privy at the Site of the Three Cranes Tavern

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Photo Courtesy: City of Boston Archaeology Program

However, while recently reviewing some images of pottery found in various archaeological contexts throughout Nova Scotia, I came across these two slip-decorated red earthenware sherds recovered from a similar mid-eighteenth century context. These artifacts may very well be from Charlestown, as well; they certainly have a Charlestown look to them.

The fact that these type of eighteenth century wares are found hundreds of miles from where they were produced is not an anomaly either. Colonial Charlestown slipware has been recovered as far south as North Carolina, as well as Long Island and all throughout coastal New England.

Slip-Decorated Sherds Recovered in Nova Scotia

Colonial Slip-Decorated Sherds Recovered in Nova Scotia Likely from a Pan

They Very Much Appear Like Production from Charlestown, Mass.

See Article for More Information

Photo Courtesy: Natalie Jess-Fiene & Nova Scotia Archaeology Society

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

Red Earthenware Artifacts Recovered at the Site of a School in Quebec City in Canada

This nineteenth century red earthenware figure was just recovered by archaeologists from Laval University in Quebec City in Canada. It was uncovered a few days ago at a school site and also a site occupied by families in the city. I do not know the origin, but I thought it would be an interesting object to share since it was likely played with as a toy by a child.

The site is located in La Cité-Limoilou, which is the central borough of Quebec City, and the oldest section surrounded by fortifications dating from the seventeenth century. The toy was found surrounded by transfer printed ceramics, stoneware, drain pipe, nineteenth and early twentieth century glass, porcelain toys, marbles, among many other artifacts.

Interestingly, I have also posted some lead glazed red earthenware sherds recovered around the site, which I think are difficult to identify to a specific pottery. But they do appear like they may have been made in Canada; although, seeing that Quebec City is located directly on the St. Lawrence River, I suspect if the sherds were not made locally that they could have been shipped from just about anywhere in the nineteenth century.

Red Earthenware Artifacts Recovered in Quebec City

19th Century Red Earthenware Figure or Child's Toy

Recovered by Archaeologists from a School Site in Quebec City in Canada

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Photo Courtesy: Laval University Archaeology

 19th Century Red Earthenware Sherd Recovered at a School Site in Quebec City
The Exterior Appears to Have Been Left Unglazed

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Photo Courtesy: Laval University Archaeology

 19th Century Red Earthenware Sherd Recovered at a School Site in Quebec City
The Exterior Appears to Have Been Left Unglazed

See Article for More Information

Photo Courtesy: Laval University Archaeology

19th Century Red Earthenware Sherd Recovered at a School Site in Quebec City

The Interior is Glazed Brown

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Photo Courtesy: Laval University Archaeology

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

19th Century Red Earthenware Jug Recovered in Detroit But Possibly from Ontario

The remains of this nineteenth century red earthenware jug were recovered by archaeologists a few years ago within a circa 1830s archaeological context in Detroit, Michigan. The thought is that the jug may be of Ontario origin. But my reason for posting this artifact today is partially a result of the glaze, which I have written about many times saying that this type of spotted green glaze is too often attributed to New Hampshire today. This type of glaze was produced all over North America, and cannot really be used as a tool for attribution, especially with the rounded shape of this jug.

Interestingly, it was only a few years ago that Garth's Auctions in Columbus, Ohio sold a large collection of red earthenware, much of which had been collected for decades in Michigan. A lot of the pottery was sold in group lots. But I was fascinated with the fact that a lot of Ontario red earthenware was mixed in with the collection. I had never really considered it, but the wares made in Ontario must have regularly migrated to places like Detroit in the 1800s and 1900s seeing that Detroit and Ontario are only separated by the Detroit River.

It should also be taken into consideration that red earthenware made in Ontario may have been infrequently exported to Detroit in the nineteenth century, considering that to my knowledge Detroit did not have much for local production. Although I suspect that some of the city's utilitarian demand was also fulfilled by production from Ohio.

Nevertheless, the utilitarian wares had to have come from somewhere, especially with Detroit's population expanding by the thousands during the period. In 1820 the population was just under 1,500, but that grew drastically with over 21,000 people living in Detroit by 1850.

Remains of Red Earthenware Jug Recovered in Detroit

19th Century Red Earthenware Jug Found in Detroit

Recovered by Archaeologists Within a Circa 1830s Context

Thought to Have Been Made in Ontario

See Article for More Information

Photo Courtesy: Brenna Moloney

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

The Continued Study of the John Hinds Pottery in Holland (South Brimfield), Massachusetts

Almost one year ago, I posted a story titled, An Introductory Report: The 18th Century Red Earthenware Pottery of John Hinds in Holland, Massachusetts. At the time, I had noted that I could not find much information about Hinds, but the archaeological evidence suggested that he was a skilled potter who produced some Colonial slipware in central Massachusetts.

According to the information that I posted last year, "Doug Lyon and a friend made the discovery in the 1980s, and it was determined that the site of the kiln was once owned and operated by a red earthenware potter named John Hinds (d. 1793) for a period in the eighteenth century. The site was later excavated in 1987 by Lyon, his friend and a team of archaeologists from Old Sturbridge Village in Sturbridge, Massachusetts."

This was a significant discovery for more than one reason, which included the fact that Hinds is not listed as a potter in Massachusetts author, Lura Woodside Watkins' (1897-1982) book, 'Early New England Potters and Their Wares.' But Hinds was clearly a skilled potter based on some of the artifacts I have previously posted as well as those that I have included today.

However, soon after I posted that article, Hunter Lyon replied providing some really interesting information into Hinds' background: "He was born about 1714. In 1741 he married Judith Marcy in Woodstock, Connecticut. He doesn't seem to move into Holland (South Brimfield) until 1750 when he was given land by his father-in-law James Marcy. He must have had some connection with the Bixby potters from Woodstock. Hinds died about 1793."

Note: The link to the story above provides more pictures of the artifacts recovered along with images of the archaeology dig in 1987.

18th Century Sherds Recovered in Holland (South Brimfield), Mass.

18th Century Sherds Recovered at the Site of the John Hinds Pottery in Holland, Mass. 

See Article for More Information

Photo Courtesy: Doug Lyon

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

A British Earthenware Inkwell Recovered from a Farm Site in South Yorkshire, England

This type of black glazed earthenware inkwell is regularly found in the American antiques market, but I have also studied these type of inkwells in multiple shapes and somewhat varying sizes within early nineteenth century archaeological contexts throughout Maine, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, even the Midwest. There are even glass inkwells known in this form.

But this has also been a subject of personal interest since I have seen this type of inkwell generically attributed to American red earthenware production, usually from the eighteenth century. Although, I believe this type of production was made in both the 1700s and 1800s, and it is likely very difficult to identify the difference. In fact, most of the examples that I have handled from American archaeological sites date from the early nineteenth century.

However, without archaeological evidence from any American pottery sites, I believe that these type of inkwells found in America could be of English origin (or some of which could be at least). For instance, this inkwell was posted on Facebook about five years ago by Dr. David Barker, which he recovered from an archaeological context in England.

According to Dr. Barker, "This tiny lead glazed earthenware item, possibly a small inkwell of sorts was picked off the ground on the site of Swinden Farm on the moorland in the Langsett area of South Yorkshire several years ago. The inkwell was most likely made at the pottery at Midhopestones (established about 1720) a few miles eastward down the valley of the Little Don River."

Note: I would also like to include that I have seen a number of these inkwells posted on Facebook in recent years from collectors, archaeologists and antiques dealers in England. I suspect that this may have been a type of production shipped to America after the American Revolution and into the 1800s.

Earthenware Inkwell Recovered in England

 English Earthenware Inkwell Found in the Langsett Area of South Yorkshire in England

Recovered at the Site of Swinden Farm

See Article for More Information

Photo Courtesy: Dr. David Barker

Swinden Farm in the Langsett Area of South Yorkshire in England

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Photo Courtesy: Dr. David Barker

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A Wonderful 19th Century Photograph of the Exeter, New Hampshire Pottery Works

This is a wonderful photo owned by the Exeter, New Hampshire Historical Society that shows four workers in front of the Exeter Pottery Works pot shop in the nineteenth century. At the time, the business was owned by Frank Lamson (1859-1936), as seen posted in the company's description on the building. The photo is thought to have been taken sometime in the 1880s. Aside from the workers, all of the pottery stacked in the windows is awesome to see!

Note: For more information about the history of this business, I suggest a feature story I wrote for the February 2018 issue of Maine Antique Digest, titled, The Dodges and Their Potteries.

Exeter, NH Pottery Works

The Exeter, New Hampshire Pottery Works

Circa 1880s

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Photo Courtesy: Exeter, NH Historical Society

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The Use of Kaolin in Essex County, Massachusetts and a Mug Made at the C.A. Lawrence Pottery

While getting organized for an upcoming pottery exhibit later this year that I am guest curating at the Custom House Maritime Museum in Newburyport, Massachusetts, museum specialist Sean Palmatier shared a link to a book titled, The Physical Geography, Geology, Mineralogy, and Paleontology of Essex County, Massachusetts, which was written by John Henry Sears in 1905 for the Essex Institute, now the Peabody Essex Museum. The book provides an excellent description of the type of clays available throughout Essex County, especially the clay beds that were used by both potters and brick-makers.

These four pictures are some of the photos included in a chapter titled, Clay. But an aspect of this chapter that I found absolutely fascinating is the discovery of a kaolin bed that was apparently used by the C.A. Lawrence Pottery in Beverly, Massachusetts.

According to Sears, "In Essex County was the beginning of brickmaking and the earthenware industries of New England. Over two hundred years ago it was famous for its manufactures from clay. Clay-beds have been worked for brickmaking in nearly every town and village in the County, and Newburyport, Beverly, Peabody, and Danvers still continue the production of earthenware. At the present time bricks are made in twelve different cities and towns in the County.

Residual Clays, formed from the decomposition of ledge rock in situ are rare in Essex County. One bed, which was probably decomposed from a ledge of felsite, occurs on the west end of Kent's Island, Newbury, and now a very fine white kaolin. The deposit has not been worked and its extent is unknown. A mug made from this clay at the Beverly Pottery burned out white. Another mass of residual clay occurs in South Lawrence, and is the result of the decomposition of a ledge of gneissic granite, quartz being absent."

The chapter then goes onto further discuss the various type of clays and levels in Essex County, but I would love to learn the whereabouts of the mug today that Sears cites from the Beverly Pottery. I'm curious to know if it still exists or if it was just a test conducted by the pottery to see how an object made entirely from kaolin clay would react once fired in the kiln. Although, I suspect they must have been aware of kaolin pipes made in America, and especially Europe for centuries.

The Physical Geography, Geology, Mineralogy, and Paleontology of Essex County, Massachusetts

 Courtesy: John Henry Sears, The Physical Geography, Geology, Mineralogy, and Paleontology of Essex County, Massachusetts

Courtesy: John Henry Sears, The Physical Geography, Geology, Mineralogy, and Paleontology of Essex County, Massachusetts

 Courtesy: John Henry Sears, The Physical Geography, Geology, Mineralogy, and Paleontology of Essex County, Massachusetts

Courtesy: John Henry Sears, The Physical Geography, Geology, Mineralogy, and Paleontology of Essex County, Massachusetts

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

The Estate Sale of Russell Stahl in the Summer of 1987, Featuring More Than 1,000 Pieces of Pottery

I'm way too young to have attended the estate sale of the third generation potter Russell Stahl (1911-1986) in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania in 1987. But it's certainly a sale I wish I could have witnessed seeing that more than 1,000 pieces of red earthenware were sold a year after the potter died in August of 1986.

According to the newspaper The Morning Call, "Many of the fluted flowerpots, colorful pie plates and sgraffito vases had been collecting dust in the Stahl shop for more than 40 years. A number of the pieces offered were considered greenware, pieces that were never fired, and biscuit ware, which was fired once, glazed, but never finish fired.

A number of historical finished pieces also sold, including an 11 1/2-inch tall Bob Adam ewer with stopper and a sgraffito 10 3/4-inch green glazed dish with squirrel and oak leaf designs. Other objects included medallions, plaques, lidded sugar bowls, rooster & kitten figures, in addition to pots of every description.

Russell was the third generation of Stahls to produce red earthenware on the site in Powder Valley, Pennsylvania. His grandfather, Charles Ludwig Stahl (1828-1896) began the enterprise in 1847.

The sale also featured the wood-fired kiln and pot shop; included in the shop were molds, potter's wheels, slip cups, assorted tools, a small library, and an old potter's hat and apron left hanging on a nail after the last pot was thrown in 1953."

Unfortunately, I don't have access to any pictures from the auction since it took place more than 30 years ago, but I can share this picture, which shows Russell Stahl (right) in front of his kiln in 1985. Many pieces of pottery are seen in this photograph, all of which probably sold at the estate sale in 1987.

Russell Stahl (1911-1986)

Russell Stahl (Right) in Front of His Kiln in Powder Valley, PA in 1985

More Than 1,000 Pieces of His Pottery Were Sold from this Estate in 1987

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Photo Courtesy: http://www.stahlspottery.org

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The Albert Hastings Pitkin Collection Feature Story Published in the April 12, 2019 Issue of Antiques & Auction News

Published in the April 12, 2019 issue of Antiques & Auctions News is a feature story I wrote about the Albert Hastings Pitkin (1852-1917) Collection at the Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art in Hartford, Connecticut. The article tells the story of Pitkin, a native of Hartford, as well as illustrates a dozen red earthenware objects from his collection, and how some of these pieces were influential in the early-1900s with museums and authors.

Interestingly, a feature story I also wrote about The Bradford Family Potteries in Massachusetts is published in the May 2019 issue of Maine Antique Digest, which mentions Pitkin's name, so the timing was perfect for both of these stories to be published.

Nonetheless, here is a link to The Albert Hastings Pitkin story posted on Antiques & Auction News' website. The photos posted below reveal how this story appears in print.

April 12, 2019 Issue of Antiques & Auction News

 My Niece Alexis Holding the April 12, 2019 Issue of Antiques & Auction News

A Story I Wrote About Albert Hastings Pitkin is Published in this Issue

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 My Niece Alexis Holding the April 12, 2019 Issue of Antiques & Auction News

A Story I Wrote About Albert Hastings Pitkin is Published in this Issue

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My Niece Alexis Holding the April 12, 2019 Issue of Antiques & Auction News

A Story I Wrote About Albert Hastings Pitkin is Published in this Issue
See Article for More Information

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

The Research, Photography and Ephemera of Frederick H. Norton

A few years ago, I acquired some pottery from the estate of Frederick H. Norton (1896-1992), a professor at Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and descendant of the famed Norton family of potters in New England. Although, Norton was also a potter himself, and much of Norton's antique and original pottery collection is actually owned by the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston today. But recently I purchased much of Norton's research notes, original hand-written articles, original pottery manuscripts, original photography and New England pottery ephemera.

Norton's research and ephemera was largely referenced in 1950 when Massachusetts author Lura Woodside Watkins' (1897-1982) book, Early New England Potters and Their Wares was published. Norton also published some of his own information in the 1920s and 1930s through places like MIT and The Magazine Antiques, such as an original article with original photography written about the nineteenth century Osborn pottery in Gonic, New Hampshire. 

Nonetheless, I have just been able to acquire Professor Norton's original hand-written pottery articles, archaeology notes from Dogtown in Gloucester, Massachusetts, original photography of Gonic pottery, original photography of potteries in Peabody, Massachusetts and Exeter, New Hampshire, original photography of the Crafs pottery in Nashua, New Hampshire, notes on the Norton pottery in Worcester, Massachusetts, ephemera from the Norton pottery in Worcester as well as Bennington, Vermont, along with some original bills of receipt that Watkins actually wrote about from potteries in Dublin, New Hampshire and West Sterling, Massachusetts. I'm really thrilled over this, and I hope in the near future that I can publish some of this information in a magazine or newspaper.

Frederick H. Norton (1896-1992) Collection

Norton's research notes, original articles, original photography and New England pottery ephemera 

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 Norton's research notes, original articles, original photography and New England pottery ephemera 

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 Norton's research notes, original articles, original photography and New England pottery ephemera 

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 Norton's research notes, original articles, original photography and New England pottery ephemera 

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 Norton's research notes, original articles, original photography and New England pottery ephemera 

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 Norton's research notes, original articles, original photography and New England pottery ephemera 

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Norton's research notes, original articles, original photography and New England pottery ephemera 

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 Norton's research notes, original articles, original photography and New England pottery ephemera 

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 Norton's research notes, original articles, original photography and New England pottery ephemera 

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 Norton's research notes, original articles, original photography and New England pottery ephemera 

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 Norton's research notes, original articles, original photography and New England pottery ephemera 

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 Norton's research notes, original articles, original photography and New England pottery ephemera 

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 Norton's research notes, original articles, original photography and New England pottery ephemera 

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 Norton's research notes, original articles, original photography and New England pottery ephemera 

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 Norton's research notes, original articles, original photography and New England pottery ephemera 

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 Norton's research notes, original articles, original photography and New England pottery ephemera 

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Norton's research notes, original articles, original photography and New England pottery ephemera 

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 Norton's research notes, original articles, original photography and New England pottery ephemera 

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Norton's research notes, original articles, original photography and New England pottery ephemera 

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Norton's research notes, original articles, original photography and New England pottery ephemera 

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 Norton's research notes, original articles, original photography and New England pottery ephemera 

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 Norton's research notes, original articles, original photography and New England pottery ephemera 

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Norton's research notes, original articles, original photography and New England pottery ephemera 

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 Norton's research notes, original articles, original photography and New England pottery ephemera 

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 Norton's research notes, original articles, original photography and New England pottery ephemera 

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 Norton's research notes, original articles, original photography and New England pottery ephemera 

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Norton's research notes, original articles, original photography and New England pottery ephemera 

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

Upcoming Museum Exhibit: Three Centuries of Earthenware Production on the Merrimack River

I would like to announce that I am guest curating an exhibit later this year at the Custom House Maritime Museum in Newburyport, Massachusetts, which will focus on the pottery made along the Merrimack River in the Newburyport-area from Colonial times through 1908. I am working on the exhibit with museum specialist Sean Palmatier and the curator of the Custom House Museum, Kevin MacDonald. The title of the project is Three Centuries of Earthenware Production on the Merrimack River.

The exhibit is bringing together a lot of objects from private collectors and museum collections that will represent the wares made at the circa 1764-1799 Daniel Bayley Pottery Company in Newburyport, the circa 1790-1820 William Pecker Pottery in Merrimacport, Massachusetts, the circa 1820-1880s Chase family potteries in Merrimacport, along with Thomas Nickerson's circa 1897-1908 Merrimac Pottery Company in Newburyport. There will also be a lot of archaeology included, such as a large amount of stoneware artifacts from William Pecker's business.

A publication should also be available in the museum bookstore that will highlight the history of these potteries and everything on display.

I will post more information as opening night draws near, but you can read more about the exhibit by clicking this link.

Three Centuries of Earthenware Production on the Merrimack River

Upcoming Museum Exhibit: Three Centuries of Earthenware Production on the Merrimack River

August 26, 2019 to May 30, 2020

Custom House Maritime Museum in Newburyport, Mass.

Click this Link for More Information About the Exhibit

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

A Great Green Glazed Jug Acquired Yesterday in Brimfield, Massachusetts

This is another one of my purchases this week at the antique shows in Brimfield, Massachusetts, which was recently acquired directly from a house in Connecticut by Sheffield, Massachusetts antiques dealer, Sam Herrup. It was found along with a late-eighteenth or early-nineteenth century lead glazed red earthenware stew pot from the William Pecker pottery in Merrimacport, Massachusetts.

This jug stands almost 12-inches tall and is decorated in a beautiful green glaze with orange halos and some faint use of manganese for decoration. Although, when I initially saw this jug on Tuesday, I could remember seeing a nearly exact handle, however I could not remember where I had seen it.

But I realized last night that the handle and base on this jug seem to match a pitcher illustrated in my most recent feature story published in the May 2019 issue of Maine Antique Digest, titled The Bradford Family Potteries in Massachusetts. This story identifies the significance of the Bradfords and their impact within the pottery industry in southeastern Massachusetts and Cape Cod. However, it wasn't identified until recently by a grad student from the University of Massachusetts Boston that this was a four-generation family business, which began before the American Revolution and continued into the 1870s.

Comparison of Handles and Finger Impression

Comparison of the Handles

The Manufacture of Each Handle and Finger Mark Appears to Match

Also Notice the Similarities in Glaze and the Orange Halos in Each Object

See Article for More Information

The pitcher that I reference was illustrated among a group of other pitchers, all of which can be linked to archaeological evidence collected by Massachusetts author Lura Woodside Watkins (Early New England Potters and Their Wars), and owned today by the National Museum of American History at the Smithsonian Institute in Washington, D.C. All of this information was discussed in the MAD article, but I also suggested that a lot more pottery was made by the Bradfords than what may be realized today. I also noted that Watkins found extensive archaeological evidence to prove that various green glazes were produced at the Bradford family pottery in Kingston, Massachusetts.

Nevertheless, upon comparing the jug to that pitcher last night, I found that the handles and finger impressions on each object appear to match, both objects show orange halos in the glaze (which may have been a reaction that happened in the kiln), both objects exhibit the use of some manganese for decoration, the glazes are also similar and the manufacture of the bases appear to be very similar.

Red Earthenware Jug and Pitcher

My Niece Alexis Holding the Large Lead Glazed Red Earthenware Jug

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Early-19th Century Lead Glazed Red Earthenware Jug

Possibly Made at the Bradford Family Pottery in Kingston, Mass.

Recently Found in a House in Connecticut

Stands 11 1/8" Tall

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Another View of the Jug

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View of the Handle

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View of the Base

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Another View of the Handle

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 Early-19th Century Lead Glazed Red Earthenware Pitcher

Attributed to the Bradford Family Pottery in Kingston, Mass
Attribution Based on Archaeological Evidence
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Photo Courtesy: Private Massachusetts Collection

 View of the Handle

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Photo Courtesy: Private Massachusetts Collection

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