How British Stoneware May Have Inspired Some Massachusetts Red Earthenware Pitchers

My forthcoming tenth book, An Early Industry of Household Wares: The Red Earthenware of Salem Village, Danvers, Peabody, Beverly and Salem, Massachusetts, spans over 1,900 pages and explores the history behind a group of red earthenware mugs featuring pinched pouring spouts. These mugs were crafted by Quaker potters in Bristol County, as well as a lesser-known type produced by Quaker potters in South Danvers (now Peabody)—two regions deeply intertwined through shared religion and marriage. Here is that story.

"...A small, red earthenware pitcher, crafted between 1809 and 1843, serves as a fascinating piece perhaps connecting the pottery traditions of Essex and Bristol Counties in Massachusetts. Attributed to the Quaker potter Jedidiah Kilburn Southwick (1783–1843) of South Danvers (now Peabody), the pitcher is directly linked to the historic Southwick Pottery workshop through archaeological evidence (see Figures 6.41-6.42). Excavations at the family’s pottery site at 161 Central Street recovered discarded pottery fragments, where the pitcher's unique shape possibly tells a much broader story of global inspiration and local migration.

What makes this specific pitcher so intriguing is its physical construction. Rather than throwing a traditional pitcher shape, the potter threw a standard cup or mug form and then altered it by hand, pinching or pulling the rim to create a pouring spout. This exact design quirk—mugs and cups converted into small pitchers—was also happening simultaneously down in Bristol County, Massachusetts. The potters in both Essex and Bristol Counties may have been imitating eighteenth century British salt-glazed stoneware of a very similar shape.

The design crossover between Danvers and Bristol County is far from a coincidence; it is deeply rooted in the tight-knit network of early American Quaker communities. Bristol County towns like Dartmouth and Somerset were major hubs for the Society of Friends (Quakers), and these communities maintained intense religious, familial, and business ties with the historic Quaker strongholds of Salem and Danvers. Potters, apprentices, and families frequently moved along these well-traveled Quaker pathways, carrying specific trade secrets, glaze recipes, and altering techniques with them. Through Jedidiah Southwick's small pitcher, we can see how shared faith, family geography, and a desire to mimic British style may have united early Massachusetts craftsmen across county lines."

Note: For more information about the Southwicks - see a feature story I wrote published on page 10 in the December 12, 2025 issue of Antiques And The Arts Weekly, titled, The Southwick Family Of Potters Of Salem & South Danvers, Mass.: http://www.earlyamericanceramics.com/2025/12/new-published-feature-story-in-antiques.html.

(Right) Early 19th Century Red Earthenware Cup with a Pinched Pouring Spout

Reportedly Made by Jebediah Kilburn Southwick in South Danvers (now Peabody), Mass.

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(Left) Late 18th or Early 19th Century Red Earthenware Cup with a Pinched Pouring Spout

Possibly Made by the Southwick Family in South Danvers (now Peabody), Mass.

Found Years Ago in Essex County, Mass.

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Photo Courtesy: Private Collection and National Museum of American History

Late 18th or Early 19th Century Red Earthenware Mugs with Pinched Pouring Spouts

Attributed to the Quaker Potters in Bristol County, Mass.

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Photo Courtesy: Private Collection, Historic Deerfield and Flying Pig Auctions

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