A 19th Century Ancient Formed Red Earthenware Jug Recently Discovered in a House in Springvale, Maine

The reproduction of ancient Grecian-style pottery in America is a subject that I am completely fascinated with today, especially with those potters, who pursued such an enterprise after 1870 in New England. I have actually written a feature story about this exact subject, which focuses on the first potter in America to manufacture this style of art ware, the Charles A. Lawrence Pottery in Beverly, Massachusetts during the circa 1872-1906 period. The story should be published in the New England Antiques Journal sometime in 2018.

I was surprised yesterday while walking around the Boston Design and Antique Show at the Shriner's Auditorium in Wilmington, Massachusetts to see what appeared to be an example of the type of production, which I just described tucked away in a dealer's booth from Maine.

I quickly realized once I handled the hand-painted jug that it closely resembled some of the ancient-style products from Beverly that I already own. However, the paint has a shine to it, which I do not know if this was a characteristic later used in Beverly in the late-nineteenth century. I believe all of the objects that I have seen from this type of production in Beverly thus far date from the 1870s. This is a type of production that has never really been researched in depth and new information is constantly presenting itself. But the paint, manufacture and style found on this object closely resemble the production that I am familiar with from the C.A. Lawrence Pottery.

The dealer told me that he recently discovered this object inside an old house on Maine Street in Springvale, Maine; whereas, this would be the fifth example of Grecian-style pottery from Beverly that has come out of Maine in recent years.

I showed this jug to a longtime collector and scholar from Gloucester, Massachusetts yesterday, who was setup at the show. He was excited to see this object since he said he had never handled an example before.

I also want to note that I have found 14 different nineteenth century advertisements from Lawrence's Pottery that specifically advertised this type of production. I do not believe these ads have ever been cited since they were published in any type of publication or scholarship. Images and the whereabouts of these ads will be included in the feature story that should be released later this year.

Note: I have also included images of some of the advertisements owned by Historic New England, where specific companies are promoting this type of ancient production. Interestingly, Historic New England owns an ad from Norwalk, Connecticut; whereas, I have never seen this type of production associated with that industry before.

Grecian-Style Jug Recently Found in Maine

 Late-19th or Early-20th Century Ancient Formed Red Earthenware Jug

Possibly Made at the C.A. Lawrence Pottery in Beverly, Mass.

Recently Discovered in an Old House in Springvale, ME

Stands 4 7/8" Tall

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 Another View of the Jug

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 View of the Handle

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 View of the Interior Glaze

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View of the Base

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Ancient Grecian Formed Pottery Advertisements

 Trade Card for Pottery Sold in Utica, NY

The Vase Shown is an Ancient Grecian Form

Photo Courtesy: Historic New England

Ancient Grecian Forms Advertised by A.E. Smith Sons Pottery in Norwalk CT

 Photo Courtesy: Historic New England

Ancient Grecian Forms Advertised by the Portland Stoneware Company in Portland, ME

Circa 1878

Photo Courtesy: Historic New England

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

The Continued Study About the Late-Eighteenth and Nineteenth Century Red Earthenware Potteries in Vermont

It would seem that Massachusetts author, Lura Woodside Watkins acknowledged on page 140 in 'Early New England Potters and Their Wares' that the research about red earthenware production in Vermont was limited when her book was published in 1950. "Redware was no doubt made in a number of the stoneware factories in Vermont. Many unrecorded redware kilns, also, must have existed throughout the state, but, if so, their history has been lost in the greater note of Vermont's stoneware industry."

Watkins' research is exceptional and so much gratitude is owed to her in thanks for her landmark book, which without it, there would be so many questions left unanswered today. The body of work is incredible. I can only begin to imagine how many miles, years and hours went into it. But it would seem that she left the door open for researchers to expand upon what she published about Vermont's late-eighteenth and nineteenth century red earthenware industry. It is also the shortest chapter in the book since many of the other chapters about red earthenware cover certain potters, industries or regions; whereas, the Vermont chapter is only five pages long and briefly examines the entire state. I would like to think Watkins would agree today that five pages is far from covering all the red earthenware production that happened in Vermont.

Needless to say, I feel there is a lot that is unknown about red earthenware production in Vermont today - and, since the research of the unknown or lesser known potteries has not completely progressed since 'Early New England Potters and Their Wares' was published, then some objects may be dismissed because they do not conform with what is currently known.

For example, Watkins recognized red earthenware production took place in at least Bennington, Berlin, Brownington, Cavendish, Chester, Corinth, Hardwick, Middlebury, New Haven and St. Jonnsbury. She also wrote that many of these locations produced red earthenware for at least a decade, if not longer. However, the production at most of these locations does not have much of an identity, especially considering the skill that some of these potters possessed, where they eventually transformed themselves into the stoneware potters that are recognized today. But what about the red earthenware that was produced - I feel it was equally as important since in many ways it was manufactured before stoneware took hold of Vermont's utilitarian pottery production in the 1800s.

Note: I have previously written about the Moses Bradley (1765-1826) Pottery in Chimney Point/West Woodstock Vermont and the Woodman family pottery Poultney, Vermont. Both of these businesses emphasized the production of black-glazed wares; in fact, Samuel Woodman (1753-1828) is documented as traveling to Salem, Massachusetts in search of manganese for this type of production in June 1814.

Nevertheless, both of the following nineteenth century red earthenware ovoid jars were discovered in homes in Vermont within the last five-years. They may have also been made in Vermont; whereas, the shapes are similar to a known Vermont form. But they are also glazed black, which is a type of decoration that is not largely recognized from the state's red earthenware industry today. The cup was also discovered in Vermont, and I believe that is also where it was made, circa 1790-1830.

Red Earthenware Found in Vermont

(Back Left) 19th Century Red Earthenware Jar Found in Vermont

Possibly Made in Vermont

Stands 8 3/4" Tall
See Article for More Information

(Back Right) 19th Century Red Earthenware Jar Found in Vermont

Possibly Made in Vermont

Stands 9 1/8" Tall
See Article for More Information

(Front Middle) 19th Century Red Earthenware Cup Found in Vermont

Likely Made in Vermont

Stands 3 /38" Tall
See Article for More Information

Another View of the Objects

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

The 19th Century Bradley Family Red Earthenware Pottery in West Woodstock, Vermont

Last week, I posted an article about the archaeology of Moses Bradley's circa 1790-1797 red earthenware pottery in Chimney Point, Vermont. I wrote, "It was reported that Bradly likely made the typical forms, such as mugs, creams pots, jugs, pitchers, milk pans, vases and other objects. This production is likely based on what is known about Bradley's later production after 1797."

According to a book written by Henry Swan Dana in 1889, 'The History of Woodstock, Vermont,' "Moses Bradley, the father of John W. Bradley, came from Haverhill, Massachusetts. He married Deborah West, at Concord, New Hampshire and went to live in Addison, Vermont in 1790, settling on a spot known from that day to this as Chimney Point. He worked at the brown earthenware business while in Addison, and lived there rather more than seven years. 

From Addison Mr. Bradley moved to Windsor, Vermont, and stayed in that town two-or-three years, then came to Woodstock, Vermont with his family and settled on Bradley Flat, as the spot was called  at the time from this fact, but in later times called West Woodstock.

Mr. Bradley established himself in business on this spot the 1st day of June, 1800, taking possession of the house previously owned and occupied by Colonel Joseph Safford. 

A man named Edson has engaged in the pottery business here for some years before this, but he was now gone, leaving the field free to Mr. Bradley. On the site of the house recently occupied by Aaron Whitney, Mr. Bradley set up his shop, and began forthwith the manufacture of cream-pots, jugs, pitchers, milk pans, etc., and not only was his establishment famous among the housekeepers of this vicinity and abroad, but it was a special centre of attraction to the crowds of children in their leisure moments, who attended the public school in the Flats in those days.

One of these children has described what he saw there in the following language: "I have stood silently by him a great many hours and watched him, while from a lump of clay put upon his wheel he would draw up a structure which would turn out to be a vase, a pitcher or a jug. If a vase, the walls were carried up perpendicularly; if a pitcher, when the sides were carried up, he would on some place put his thumb on the outside and his finger on the inside and bend down the slope, which would be the pitcher's nose; and if a jug, he would put both hands across the upper part of the vessel and contract it, and around the forefinger of his left hand he would  bring up the top of the vessel to form the nose of the jug. I admired to watch this handicraft, but the converting of dull colored bars of lead into a brilliant red powder and then a red glazing  - a liquid with which the outsides of the pottery were washed  - was a mystery, which, in my ignorance of chemistry, seemed to savor of witchcraft and necromancy."

Mr. Bradly pursued for some years a thriving business at the earthenware trade, but finally gave up the entire concern to his son, John W., who took charge of the pottery-works September 20, 1824,- continuing the business, however, only a short time; and with him was the end, it may be said, of this branch of industry in West Woodstock."

This bit of history that Henry Swan Dana wrote about in 1889 is further proof of the small family oriented red earthenware potteries, which operated in Vermont during the circa 1790-1830 period. But many of these companies are hardly recognized today. The way the child described the production of the jug leads me to believe that the form is similar to jugs that were produced in Essex County, Massachusetts and southern New Hampshire; whereas, that would certainly make sense considering Moses Bradley originated from this area.

The child's description of the pitcher also leads me to believe that the form is similar to other forms manufactured in Essex County, southern New Hampshire and Maine.

However, the vase is intriguing since a number of somewhat straight-sided vases are attributed to Maine today without an exact attribution. But ovoid vases with long necks (or noses) were also popular with Vermont potters, and some of the vases that exist today from Vermont may have been created in West Woodstock before 1830. But I also question what the child meant by the word "vase;" Was he referencing what we view as a traditional vase today or is it possible that he referenced what is commonly called a straight sided jar today?

Note: I have posted images of a jug and a straight-sided jar, which both retain histories of ownership in Vermont. I believe both of these objects were made in Vermont and they seem to represent the type of forms that the school boy describes in the passage, which author, Henry Swan Dana documented in 1889.

Red Earthenware Jug

 19th Century Red Earthenware Jug Attributed to Vermont

Retains History of Ownership in Vermont

Stands 6 3/4" Tall

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Another View of the Jug

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Red Earthenware Jar

 19th Century Red Earthenware Jar Attributed to Vermont

Retains History of Ownership in Vermont

Stands 7 3/4" Tall

See Article for More Information

Another View of the Jar

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

The 19th Century Woodman Family Red Earthenware Pottery in Poultney, Vermont

According to Massachusetts author, Lura Woodside Watkins (Early New England Potters and Their Wares), "One of the first settlers of Poultney, Vermont, was an Essex County man, Samuel Woodman (1753-1828), who left Salem, Massachusetts in 1800. He is mentioned in Reverend William Bentley's (1759-1819) diary (1784-1819) from Salem under the date of June 14, 1814 (where he had returned to Salem in search of potter's supplies):

"Mr Woodman, formerly of Salem, who has four sisters married in Salem, in town from Poultney, Vermont. He could give us no history. He is a potter & is down to purchase materials for glazing his ware. He is in search of manganese in this quarter. He leant his trade in Braintree, Massachusetts, removed to Connecticut, & thence to Poultney on the river which enters at the south end of Lake Champlain. He tells me that his neighbors are chiefly from Connecticut  & from his prejudices I am inclined to believe him."

Reverend William Bentley's 1784-1819 Diary

Samuel Woodman Referenced in Reverend William Bentley's Diary

Cited Purchasing Glaze Material on June 14, 1814

Published by the Essex Institute in 1905

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Courtesy: Library of Congress

Samuel Woodman Referenced in Reverend William Bentley's Diary

Cited Purchasing Glaze Material on June 14, 1814

Published by the Essex Institute in 1905

See Article for More Information

Courtesy: Library of Congress

Sameul Woodman was forty-seven when he started his pottery in Poultney. He carried it on until about 1820, when his son John (b. 1780) succeeded him. His shop stood where a bank building was later erected (thus archaeological evidence is limited). There is no documentary evidence that he made anything more substantial than "brown earthenware," as noted in the local history. His search for manganese for use in glazing corroborates this tradition."

Nevertheless, the Woodman Pottery in Poultney is another potter's business from Vermont, which is hardly recognized today even though the ouput appears to have been skilled based on a shaving cup that is owned by the Bennington Museum in Bennington, Vermont. The cup was once owned in the early-twentieth century by famed collector, George S. McKearin and it is attributed to the Woodman Pottery.

Interestingly, the unusual combination of the cup's black exterior glaze combined with the colorful interior glaze is a style that matches a pitcher I own, which was recently found in central New Hampshire.

For as long as I have owned this pitcher, I felt it possessed an Essex County, Massachusetts influence; whereas, similar formed pitchers with a single exterior and interior glaze have been recovered from an eighteenth and early-nineteenth century privy at the Narbonne House in Salem, Massachusetts (but similar forms were also made in Portsmouth, New Hampshire). This may be evidence that Samuel Woodman originally trained at the industry in Danvers/Peabody (formerly South Danvers), Massachusetts. John Woodman would have also likely learned the potter's craft by working with his father.

I also question whether this company only produced red earthenware decorated with dark glazes, which resulted from the use of manganese. On the contrary, the only evidence Watkins may have had to work with was what was published in Reverend William Bentley's diary; however, this shaving cup clearly demonstrates the use of two glazes, which I assume may have been produced after 1820 when John Woodman operated the pottery.

Aside from the shaving cup that is attributed to the Woodmans, I have also posted pictures of another red earthenware shaving cup that I acquired in a group lot at a sale at Northeast Auctions last summer in Portsmouth. I have previously written that this cup appears like it may have originated in Essex County or was influenced by the industry in Danvers/Peabody; however, this cup may have also been made in Poultney since it shares similarities in the way it was made, as well as the dark exterior and colorful interior glazes.

Note: Earlier this week, I wrote about the Moses Bradley Pottery, circa 1790-1826, which operated at two different locations in Vermont in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. Similar to the Bradley Pottery, there seems to have been a significant output that took place at the Woodman Pottery, which is not realized today. I can easily see this type of production attributed to New Hampshire, Maine and even Massachusetts based on where these type of objects are found today.

A few days ago, I also wrote, "There is a lot yet to be learned about the red earthenware made in Vermont in the 1790s and 1800s. Bradley's business is just one example of the type of production that has been somewhat forgotten in Vermont today. There were many small businesses in Vermont, which likely operated similar to some of the smaller potteries in New Hampshire and Maine. However the Farrar family is what is most known today for the red earthenware that was produced in Vermont, but there were many more potteries, who's production is not defined - and, the stoneware industry in Vermont has overshadowed much of this production for most of the research that has taken place in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries."

Red Earthenware Cup

19th Century Red Earthenwware Shaving Cup

Reportedly Made at the Woodman Pottery in Poultney, VT

See Article for More Information

Photo Courtesy: Bennington, Museum - Bennington, VT

Red Earthenware Pitcher

 19th Century Red Earthenware Pitcher

Possibly Made in Poultney, VT
Stands 8 1/2" Tall
Recently Discovered in Central New Hampshire

Unusual Combination of Exterior and Interior Glazes Closely Resemble the Cup Above

Form Also Appears to Posses an Essex County, Mass. Influence
Similar Forms were also Made in Portsmouth, NH

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View of the Interior Glaze

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Another Red Earthenare Shaving Cup

 19th Century Red Earthenwware Shaving Cup

Possibly Made at the Woodman Pottery in Poultney, VT

Stands 4 1/2" Tall

See Article for More Information

Photo Courtesy: Bennington, Museum - Bennington, VT

View of the Interior Glaze

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

An 18th Century Slip-Decorated Red Earthenware Mug Discovered Decades Ago in Eastern Massachusetts

This is an eighteenth century slip-decorated barrel-formed red earthenware mug that I recently studied, which is owned privately today in Massachusetts; although, it was also reportedly discovered decades ago in eastern Massachusetts, as well.

Barrel-formed mugs were a popular form of production with eighteenth century potters in Massachusetts, especially those, who worked in Essex County, where the form was manufactured as early as the 1720s by Joseph Bayley (ca. 1701-1761) in Rowley, Massachusetts. These type of mugs were also produced at the Daniel Bayley (ca. 1729-1792) Pottery and probably the Ebenezer Morrison (ca. 1741-1803) Pottery in Newburyport, Massachusetts before the American Revolution, but the Bayleys and Morrison may have also made the form after 1775. Nonetheless, I also suspect this form was made elsewhere in Essex County in the 1700s, such as the potter's industry in Danvers and Peabody (formerly South Danvers), Massachusetts.

However, I have not seen this amount of slip-decoration combined with the use of manganese on this form of mug before. In this case, the mug appears to have been manufactured as a special object - the initials "MB" have been prominently placed on the front of the mug, where this is known as a monogram. The remaining slip combines the use of decorative motifs and dots, which seem to imitate some of the English pottery that was imported into the colonies during the period.

When I initially saw this mug, I wondered if it was made at the potter's industry in Charlestown, Massachusetts before the American Revolution.  The style of slip seems to conform with some of the decorative styles that were applied at the colonial potteries in Charlestown.

But the color combination of the clear lead glaze, the slip and the manganese also compare to a red earthenware pan (see below), which was recovered by archaeologists during the archaeology of Boston's infamous Big Dig Project in the 1980s. The pan was found in an eighteenth century privy at the site of the Three Cranes Tavern in Charlestown; whereas, the pan is also thought to have been made locally around the mid-eighteenth century or earlier.

Note: I have not been able to determine, who "MB" represents, but it is worth mentioning that there was a pottery, which operated in Charlestown before the American Revolution by Samuel Bodge and his son, Samuel Bodge, Jr. The name, Stephen Badger also appears in records as a potter employed in Charlestown before 1775. There were also a number of Bayley family members involved with that successful potter's business in Newburyport. However, I do want to reiterate the fact that the style of the colors found on this mug appear similar to how the colors were applied on the pan recovered in Charlestown.

18th Century Slip-Decorated Barrel-Formed Mug

18th Century Slip-Decorated Red Earthenware Barrel Formed Mug

Probably Made in Coastal Massachusetts

Probably Made in Either Charlestown, Mass. or Essex County, Mass.

Most Likely Made Before 1775

Stands Approximately 5" Tall

See Article for More Information

Photo Courtesy: Private Massachusetts Collection

Another View of the Mug

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Photo Courtesy: Private Massachusetts Collection

View of the Initials "MB" in Slip

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Photo Courtesy: Private Massachusetts Collection

Another View of the Initials "MB" in Slip

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Photo Courtesy: Private Massachusetts Collection

View of the Slip on the Handle

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Photo Courtesy: Private Massachusetts Collection

View of the Top of the Handle and the Interior of the Mug

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Photo Courtesy: Private Massachusetts Collection

View of the Base

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Photo Courtesy: Private Massachusetts Collection

18th Century Red Earthenware Pan Recovered in Charlestown, Mass.

 18th Century Slip-Decorated Red Earthenware Pan

Recovered from a Privy at the Site of the Three Cranes Tavern in Charlestown, Mass.

Attributed to the Industry in Charlestown Before 1775

See Article for More Information

Photo Courtesy: Boston Archaeology Department - West Roxbury, Mass.

Another View of the Pan

Photo Courtesy: Boston Archaeology Department - West Roxbury, Mass.

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

A Wonderful Slip-Decorated Plate Possibly from Philadelphia Acquired Today in Portsmouth, New Hampshire

Last summer, I visited the Independence Park Archaeology Department in Philadelphia with my nephew, Jason, where we brought along a rare eighteenth or early-nineteenth century red earthenware dish that we had just acquired in Pennsylvania. The dish closely resembled some of the slip-decorated red earthenware artifacts that had been recovered locally in Philadelphia - and, we were fortunate to be able to compare some of the archaeological evidence to our dish.

Nevertheless, I acquired this plate today at a Peter Mavris Antique Show in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. The style of the slip on this plate is similar to the dish that I wrote about last summer; whereas, I believe this object was also made in Philadelphia. But this plate may be a little later dating from the early-nineteenth century rather than the eighteenth century.

I purchased the plate from Stephen Corrigan and Douglas Jackman, antique dealers from Rockingham, Vermont, who specialize in eighteenth and nineteenth century Americana. They told me they purchased the plate for their personal collection about twenty-five years ago at an antique show in Indiana.

Note: It is also worth mentioning that similar plates have also been recovered in circa 1830 contexts in New York City. Whether those plates were made in New York City is not documented today. But the red earthenware production from New York City is an area that deserves more attention today.

Red Earthenware Philadelphia

 Late-18th or 19th Century Slip-Decorated Plate Possibly Made in Philadelphia
But Similar Plates Have Also Been Recovered in New York City

Measures 11 3/4" in Diameter

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View of the Back

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

The Remains of a Circa 1790-1797 Potter's Business Found in Chimney Point, Vermont

According to the Vermont Agency of Transportation, "The Champlain Bridge opened in 1929 - it traveled across Lake Champlain from Crown Point, New York to Chimney Point, Vermont. The bridge was closed because of safety concerns on October 16, 2009. It was taken down by explosive demolition on December 28, 2009 and it was replaced by a new bridge, which opened on November 7, 2011.

During the demolition and construction process, part of a stone foundation was discovered next to a pillar from the old bridge, which is potentially thought to be from an old French fort built in 1731. The foundation is about a foot and a half from the side of a pillar on the Vermont shore.

When the old bridge was built in 1928/29, workers reported seeing the old fort's stone foundation near the first concrete bridge pier on the Vermont side."

The history of this fort has been well-published over the years; for example, "In 1690, the British governor of New York, Francis Nicholson (1655-1728) sent Captain Jacobus du Warm, a Dutchman from Albany north to what is now Chimney Point, Vermont, to watch the French on Lake Champlain and engage them as enemies if possible. It is thought he built, a small, temporary, stone defense, where he, 20 Mohawks, and 17 soldiers stayed for about a month.

In the late 1600s and early 1700s the English granted land tracts for development at the south end of the lake, but most early settlement was unsuccessful.

France and England signed the Treaty of Utrecht in 1711, settling many property and boundary issues in Europe and the "New World." In the Champlain Valley, the dividing line between English territory and New France was settled upon as Split Rock, near what is now Westport, New York, and Basin Harbor in Ferrisburgh, Vermont. Because waterways were the easiest route for travel, whoever controlled Lake Champlain controlled the region. In 1731, the French became concerned about English entering the lake for trade and control. That year they built, well to the south of Split Rock, a wooden stockade of posts (Fort de Pieux) on the bluff at Chimney Point, at one of the narrowest points on the lake. For the French this was the simplest way with limited resources to control the lake and keep out the English. The British were greatly angered, as they felt this violated the Treaty of Utrecht and also blocked their travel on Lake Champlain north to Canada.

The stockade fort at Chimney Point measured about 100 feet by 100 feet. It had chambers for the commandant, a chaplain, and the guard - and a kitchen, bakery and storehouse. There was room for 30 soldiers." (Historic Sites Vermont)

Remains of Circa 1731 French Fort

Artist Sketch of Circa 1731 French Fort in Chimney Point, VT

See Article for More Information

Photo Courtesy: Vermont Agency of Transportation and Artist Len Tantillo

Stone Foundation was Found Near this Concrete Pillar in Chimney Point, VT

 See Article for More Information

Photo Courtesy: Vermont Agency of Transportation

However, this was not the only potential archaeological discovery that was identified when construction crews were engaged with the bridge work in Chimney Point; whereas, archaeologists from Vermont also located the remains of a nearby red earthenware pottery that was operated by Moses Bradley (1765-1826) in the 1790s. Bradley is regarded today as one of the first red earthenware potters to work in Vermont before 1800, where many of these late-eighteenth century potters also possessed a training from Essex County, Massachusetts.

Massachusetts author, Lura Woodside Watkins wrote about Bradley when she published 'Early New England Potters and Their Wares' in 1950 -- "Moses Bradley traveled from Haverhill, Massachusetts to Chimney Point in Adddison County in Vermont in 1790. After a residency of seven years, Bradley, with his family moved east to Windsor, Vermont, where they continued to produce red earthenware well into the 1800s."

From what I have read, Bradley dug his own clay from the local riverbanks while he operated in Chimney Point that he later used to produce pottery, which was sold locally, but it may have been shipped to other locations along Lake Champlain, as well. Archaeologists reportedly recovered kiln bricks, wasters and kiln furniture at this site, where these artifacts certainly indicate the remains of a pottery. It was also reported that Bradley likely made the typical forms, such as mugs, creams pots, jugs, pitchers, milk pans, vases and other objects. This production is likely based on what is known about Bradley's later production after 1797.

Unfortunately, I have not been able to find any red earthenware that is properly attributed today to Bradley's circa 1790-1797 production. But I also have little doubt that some of this production from this period survives; although, it may appear similar to wares that were made in Essex County, Massachusetts in the eighteenth and nineteenth century.

Note: Nevertheless, there is also a lot yet to be learned about the red earthenware made in Vermont in the 1790s and 1800s. Bradley's business is just one example of the type of production that has been somewhat forgotten in Vermont today. There were many small businesses in Vermont, which likely operated similar to some of the smaller potteries in New Hampshire and Maine. However the Farrar family is what is most known today for the red earthenware that was produced in Vermont, but there were many more potteries, who's production is not defined - and, the stoneware industry in Vermont has overshadowed much of this production for most of the research that has taken place in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries.

Moses Bradley Pottery, Circa 1790-1797

Moses Bradley Pottery in Chimney Point, VT, Circa 1790-1797

See Article for More Information

Photo Courtesy: Vermont Business Registry

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