Nineteenth century red earthenware production in Erie County, New York will be a big part of Volume II, as part of my forthcoming two-volume ninth book, titled, America's Great Awakening and Migration: The Red Earthenware of Western New York, which will be published sometime in 2025. However, a subject that I do not think is widely recognized today is the amount of migrant German potters who appear in the western part of Western New York in the 1800s, especially in Erie County and the Buffalo, New York area, many of whom are only documented today in surviving period records, whereas these potters certainly made red earthenware, but there is not a lot of physical evidence or archaeology that can demonstrate how these wares appeared.
For instance, there is some evidence that will be included in the book that shows three styles of nineteenth century slip decorated red earthenware made by the same potter likely of German descent, which are kept in the collection of the Rochester Museum & Science Center; these objects appear like they could be misinterpreted for production from Pennsylvania, although they are from the collection of New York archaeologist and museum specialist George Hamell and are strongly associated with production in Western New York. These objects have not previously been published or cited in publication.
Among those red earthenware potters who are recognized in records in the Buffalo area is John Schwartz, who was born in Germany and is documented as having worked as a red earthenware potter in Lancaster, Erie County in the 1850s. Schwartz is found in the 1865 United States Federal Census in Lancaster with a profession of "Pot Maker."
Interestingly, there is a Sherman Remington (1810-1880), who in previous publications is described as an employee of the Lancaster, New York Glass Factory, although he worked during the same period as Schwartz, both appearing as potters in the area about 1851. In fact, an 1866 map of Lancaster describes "S. Remmington" as being a "Pot Maker."
Production in Lancaster, Erie County, New York
Nonetheless, this is an excerpt from my forthcoming book about the Betz family of potters in Buffalo: "There were clearly a number of potters of German descent working in Buffalo, Erie County, New York, perhaps most notably the Betz family, who ran a multigenerational red earthenware business, as early as 1850 or a few years prior. However, there has also been inaccurate information previously published about this family.
John Heinrich Henry Betz Sr. (1786-1873) was a German trained potter who migrated from Germany to Western New York sometime before 1850. He and his son, Heinrich "Henry" Betz Jr. (1824-1876) established a red earthenware business in the Buffalo area about 1850, producing all types of household pottery. The father and son operation continued into the 1860s, when the father stepped away from the pottery business, leaving Henry Betz Jr. in ownership of the family enterprise. Henry Jr. ran the company until sometime around the time of his death in 1876, which is when his son George Betz (1852-1893) and possibly other children took control of the company, although previous to Betz Jr's death, the pottery was known as, Betz & Sons.
Furthermore, Henry Jr.'s obituary reads, "Born in Feilbingert, Rheinpfalz, he was a potter. He emigrated with his parents, adult siblings and wife-to-be Catherina Dern Betz (1824-1898) sometime between 1835 and 1845. He and his father established an earthenware business at 824 Genesee. He was elected supervisor of Ward 7 several times. At the age of 51, he suffered a head injury from a fall resulting in delirium and 2 weeks later, suicide."
After 1876 the company became known as Betz & Brothers, where it was operated by Henry Jr.'s sons Henry Betz III (1849-1911), George Betz and Ferdinand Betz (1856-1922); there may have been some other family members also involved, although red earthenware production seems have continued into the late 1890s and possibly the early 1900s.
Additionally, there were a number of German migrant potters who briefly appeared in census records in Buffalo, and some of these potters may have found some employment working for the Betz family. This may have also been a similar operation as the Wingenders in Haddonfield, New Jersey and the Bachs in Allentown, Pennsylvania, both of which were multigenerational family enterprises that began with potters migrating from Germany. This was also the hope of Carl Mehwaldt, who ran a red earthenware business for decades in the Village of Bergholz, located to the north of Buffalo near the Niagara River in Niagara County; Mehwaldt was also a migrant German potter who established his red earthenware business about the same time as Heinrich Betz Sr., however his sons could not continue the family business, seeing that they died in battles in Virginia during the American Civil War.
Nevertheless, the only examples of pottery that I know of that I suspect may have been made by the Betz family is a group of nineteenth century black glazed red earthenware plates found together decades ago in a house in the Buffalo area by Ron Korman of Muleskinner Antiques, now in the personal collection of Western New York historian and collector Vince Martonis. But there must be much more of this family's production in existence, although more evidence or archaeology is needed to prove this production. I suspect that much of the production after 1870 or 1880, focused towards, garden wares and flowerpots, but the wares made before this period were likely more typical of early household utilitarian wares."
The Betz Family of Potters in Buffalo, Erie County, New York
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