As noted, I am currently working on my eleventh book, A Monumental History: Stories of Red Earthenware Production in Western Massachusetts, the Berkshires, and Vermont. While this 700-to-800-page volume is nearing completion, it briefly discusses the work of Jesse Hazen—another potter about whom very little is currently known. Here is a part of that story.
"...The industrial and artistic landscapes of early New England was often shaped by individuals whose primary occupations, according to official records, lay outside the artisan trades. A compelling case study is Jesse Hazen (1820–1896) of Orange, New Hampshire, whose career highlights the fluid boundaries between agriculture and local red earthenware manufacturing in the nineteenth century. Hazen came to light in twentieth century ceramic scholarship through a small, distinctive group of red earthenware objects preserved in the Nina Fletcher Little Collection at Cogswell’s Grant. The most notable survivor is a punch bowl inscribed in black slip-script with his surname. While museum records conventionally describe these objects as having been manufactured circa 1820–1830, this early timeline is highly unlikely given that Hazen himself was born in 1820. Although, Orange is located less-than twenty miles from the Vermont border.
Stylistically, Hazen’s production utilizes a decorative group of incised wavy and straight lines applied just below the rim that closely mirrors the trio of jars manufactured by Jacob Barrows (1757-1843) in Dalton after 1806. A similar use of incised lines is also attributed to the Osborn family of New Hampshire by the New Hampshire Historical Society.
However, studying Hazen’s life through official government documents reveals a timeline heavily dominated by agrarian pursuits rather than pottery production. In the 1850, 1860, and 1880 Federal Censuses, Hazen is consistently listed under the occupation of "Farmer." It is only the 1870 Federal Census that explicitly categorizes him as a "Manufacturer." This single designation strongly suggests that Hazen operated a seasonal or part-time workshop, utilizing the kiln to supplement his yearly agricultural income.
Biographical records further reveal that Hazen spent the majority of his life living outside the town of Orange. The family’s geographic roots appear centered in New London, New Hampshire, where Jesse’s father, Jeremiah Hazen (1778–1833), passed away on August 8, 1833. Jesse remained tied to the area into early adulthood, marrying Lydia Cook Sargent (1824–1906) in New London on June 7, 1842. While it remains unclear precisely when or where Hazen received his initial training in output stands as an invaluable material study. Hazen’s career exemplifies the versatile, multi-occupational nature of rural New Englanders who successfully balanced the demands of farm life with the technical mastery of red earthenware production..."
Note: For more information about production in New Hampshire - see my eighth book, An Influential Family of Early Potters: The Clarks of New Hampshire and Related Businesses: https://historicbeverly.net/product/an-influential-family-of-early-potters-the-clarks-of-new-hampshire-and-related-businesses/.
Please Stay Tuned...Much More to Come...
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