EarlyAmericanCeramics.com: Eighteenth Century Ceramic Remains Recovered from a Chimney of a Colonial House in Exeter, New Hampshire

Monday, June 15, 2020

Eighteenth Century Ceramic Remains Recovered from a Chimney of a Colonial House in Exeter, New Hampshire

This is a Colonial eighteenth century house in Exeter, New Hampshire that is being restored by Richard Kenney, an antiques dealer and investor from New Hampshire, although, the house was owned decades ago by Portsmouth, New Hampshire antiques dealer Hollis Brodrick. I visited this house this past Friday in order to see some pottery sherds that were just recovered from behind a fireplace surround on the first floor, which was old but most likely not original to the house. All of the paneling was removed revealing a wonderful brick fireplace.

The majority of the pottery dates from the eighteenth century and includes English creamware, tin glazed earthenware, the remains of an eighteenth century English earthenware teapot decorated in a Chinese pattern, as well as locally made red earthenware.

However, it was the locally made wares that really stood out to me seeing that red earthenware production dates back to the 1700s in Exeter and the location where this pottery was produced was only about a mile or two away from this house. The recovered sherds include the remains of a jug along with a black glazed inkwell. I suspect the inkwell dates from the late eighteenth century or perhaps earlier, while the jug could have been made in the eighteenth or early nineteenth century.

Interestingly, the practice of concealing objects within fireplaces, walls, under floorboards and other areas within a house is considered an Old World folk practice usually done to prevent some form of witching.

For a full history about early red earthenware production in Exeter, I recommend a research story I wrote for the August 2018 issue of Maine Antique Digest, titled, The Dodges and Their Potteries.

Colonial Eighteenth Century House in Exeter, New Hampshire