There seems to be very little information available about a potter named Joseph Bell, who reportedly produced unglazed stoneware figures of reclining whippets in Muskingum County, Ohio in the 1800s, one of which is owned by the Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn, Michigan and another that was previously owned by antiques dealer David Good until it sold this past winter at New England Auctions (previously known as New Haven Auctions) in Brantford, Connecticut. Although, seeing that these objects are not signed, I'm interested in learning more about this reported potter's work, considering that his last name is Bell, a name that is also known amongst a prominent family of potters working throughout the Shenandoah Valley from the 1700s through the early 1900s.
Crocker Farm also sold earlier this year in Sparks, Maryland a large figure in the form of a head on a pedestal that was made during the early stages of the American Grecian Revival Movement, inscribed "Bell / Facit 1875." The thought was that this may have also been made by Joseph Bell.
Furthermore, I learned yesterday about a third whippet that is privately owned, which seems to add some credibility to the production of these figures in the Muskingum County area since it was purchased about fifteen years ago at a small country auction in Belpre, Ohio, which is located in Washington County, the next county over from Muskingum County. This whippet is cold painted, and probably done in an early context of ownership.
I have spent the past few days researching through genealogy records trying to learn more about Joseph Bell, partly because I think the reclining spaniel that I wrote about yesterday could somehow be related. These types of spaniels are known to have been both glazed and unglazed, whereas there are some similarities in the form of the molds and the color of the clay when compared to the unglazed whippets. But I'm not positive yet that there is any relationship.
In fact, there were a number of Joseph Bell's living in Ohio in the 1800s, although I found only one record of a man with that name residing in Muskingum County that would match up with when these objects were likely produced, circa 1850-1900.
1) Joseph W. Bell (1818-1903) was born in Springfield, Muskingum County, Ohio. He died in Zanesville, Muskingum County, Ohio. He was married once to Mary Ann Van Horn (1811-1882) who was born in Ohio. Joseph's father George R. Bell (1778-1864) was born in Scotland, moved to England and was living in Ohio by 1807 when he married Margaret J. McCowan (1790-1873), who was born in Chester County, Pennsylvania. Both Joseph and George are consistently listed as "Farmers" in the United States Federal Census in 1850, 1860 and 1870.
Interestingly, there are a group late nineteenth century unglazed stoneware coffee pots with an applied tin spout, lid, handle and bail handle known that were made at the Muskingum Pottery Company in Zanesville. The clay color appears to be the same when compared to the whippets, although that is not necessarily a strong indicator of anything.
However, with all of this said - does anyone reading this know any additional information about these whippets and "Joseph Bell?"
Note: While it is not the exact same shape - a fourth unglazed reclining stoneware whippet sold in Crocker Farm's March 2014 sale.
*** Update: This is actually a greyhound, as are the other known American pottery dogs related to this form from the 1800s.
Please Stay Tuned...Much More to Come...
5 comments:
Justin; just a little information in no way adverse to your well writen article. Other potters listed themselves as ‘farmers’ duringthe 19th century. Anthoney Weiss Bacher, one of the better known potters in the Shenandoah Valley and others were listed in the Federal cencus as farmers. Perhaps they did farm as well and considered it more important than potter.The dog listed and made by Joseph Bell and other Bells in the eastern United States were in fact not Whippets, but Greyhounds. The Whippet was not developed in England until 1892. The 1829 book Pottery of the Shenandoah, “The Shenandoah Pottery” by A.H Rice and John Baer Stoudt, called the item Whipppets. The first ones were made by John Bell in Waynesboro, Pennsylvania ,of which he called Greyhound. Bells original form was one of plaster which were sold by many traveling salesmen's waggons .
Thank you Gene! I will add a citation to the story.
Gene, Do you know what John Bell’s chalkware whippets/greyhounds look like? I have a chalkware whippet that is about 11” long. Ralph Arthur
Just to follow up on Gene's feedback - John Bell did not make any chalkware figures of any animals including whippets/greyhounds. In fact, nobody in the Bell family worked with chalk.
The publish date of The Shenandoah Pottery is accidentally incorrectly started. It should have been 1929.
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