A Signed 19th Century Red Earthenware Jar, Possibly from Erie County, New York

While attending the Walker Homestead Show yesterday in Central Massachusetts, a friend acquired a nineteenth century red earthenware jar from the booth of Vermont dealer Cooper O'Connell. The piece had previously sold, as part of the Matt King Estate at Flying Pig Auctions in New Hampshire. What particularly piqued my interest, however, is the signature on its base and a form characteristic of Western New York production.

Specifically, the double-rim—featuring a distinct incised line below the lip—closely matches archaeological fragments recovered during the twentieth century from multiple kiln sites in Erie County, New York. These sites include the Lorenzo Johnson (1821-1893) Pottery in Newstead, as well as a multi-owner pottery operation in Millgrove.

Given the heavy nineteenth century German migration to this region, the unrecorded inscription on the base may represent a lesser-known immigrant potter rather than one of the area's prominent, established manufacturers.

Nonetheless, for more information - see my recently published two-volume, 1,400-page, ninth book, titled, America's Great Awakening and Migration: The Red Earthenware of Western New York: https://historicbeverly.net/product/americas-great-awakening-and-migration-the-red-earthenware-of-western-new-york/.

19th Century Red Earthenware Jar Probably Made in Western New York

Possibly from Erie County, New York

The Base is Signed with an Inscribed Name, Possibly German in Origin

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A View of the Inscribed Name on the Base

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