This post is another preview of my forthcoming two-volume, 1,800+ page, tenth book, titled, An Early Industry of Household Wares: The Red Earthenware of Salem Village, Danvers, Peabody, Beverly and Salem, Massachusetts: http://www.earlyamericanceramics.com/2026/01/update-on-new-book-book-sent-to.html.
While conducting research for my new book, I came across many of the Osborn family records from South Danvers (now Peabody), Massachusetts, in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. While not all families are represented, the existing records really demonstrate the depth and influence of this Quaker family of potters. Here is that story.
"...To demonstrate the extent and influence of the Osborn family, these records are important witnesses to the multi-generational Osborn family pottery dynasty that defined the industrial landscape of Danvers and Peabody, Massachusetts throughout the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries.
The lineage began with Joseph Osborn (1702–1780), who established his pottery in 1736; by the time the individuals in these documents were active, the Osborns were the most prominent family among the region's dozens of active potteries.
The family's expansion during the mid-eighteenth century is documented through the records of Joseph Osborn Junior (1726–1791), Abel Osborn (1746-1806), James Osborn (1738–1810), and Samuel Osborn (1742–1814). This generation helped master the production of red earthenware that became a staple across New England.
As the lineage progressed into the nineteenth century, records for Jonathan Osborn (1763–1833), Daniel Osborn (1768–1826), and Richard Osborn (1769–1826) show the family reaching the peak of its influence in the Beverly, Danvers and Salem area.
Ultimately, this family dynasty produced at least seventeen master potters bearing the Osborn name, many of whom operated their own kilns or exported their skills to establish new pottery centers in places like New Hampshire.
However, while these records show several key branches, they do not tell the whole story. Other important family members, like Israel (1739-1790) and Aaron Osborn (1742-1803), also ran potteries but are not included in these specific records.
Additionally, these records do not show Jacob Osborn (1750-1824), who moved north to establish a business in Loudon, New Hampshire, which grew into family potteries in places like Boscawen and Gonic, New Hampshire..."
Nevertheless, each of these family records are described in detail in the captions in my forthcoming book!
Note: For more information about later production at the site of the Osborn Pottery at 106 Central Street in Peabody - see my second published book, titled, The Moses B. Paige Company: The Last of the Peabody Potteries: https://historicbeverly.net/product/the-moses-b-paige-company-the-last-of-the-peabody-potteries/.
The Osborn Family Records: Mapping a Century of Master Potters
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