Guest Blogger: Mark R. Smith. Many fellow collectors just glance at them, oh a "3" gallon, hey, look at the "2" jar over here. However, in some cases, they are much like fingerprints for detectives, providing a background of information as the origins of our cherished pots.
A beautiful Brown Brothers crock with a stamp and the inscription "Julia 1871" inspired me to tell what I knew of the transition of the Pottery families from 1854 until 1904 from the perspective of Julia Ketcham Caire.
I didn't believe there was any evidence of a potter or an investor who founded the Huntington Pottery until I discovered an obscure passage in a book by Edwin Atlee Barber, a renowned scholar, prolific author, and curator of American Pottery for the Pennsylvania Museum.
Between 1854 and 1863 Huntington Pottery stoneware was marked with the name F. J. Caire. Although this mark was used consistently during this era of the Huntington Pottery, Frederick J. Caire was never the sole owner. His partners fluctuated among Francis S. Hoyt, Isaac Scudder Ketcham, and Henry Scudder Ketcham. [To be continued...]
In 1912, Miss Clara B. Ray of Connecticut donated a set of potter's tools from Huntington, NY to the Pennsylvania Museum, now the Philadelphia Museum of Art.
A Pause for Benjamin Keeler: Connecticut native Benjamin Keeler had a short but profitable stint (1825-1827) as owner of the Huntington Pottery. He'd purchased it from Moses Scudder in 1825 for $1300 and sold to the partnership of Lewis & Gardiner in 1827 for $3100. [Corbett] Keeler "... was engaged in the coasting trade, and … Continue reading Lewis & Gardiner
In this enchanting tale, Georgianna Bennet Sherman recounts her childhood by the pottery. Georgianna's history is interesting and so much can be learned through her memories, but for now I invite you to enjoy the adventures of the five-year-old foster child of George and Eunice Brown, exploring the Brown Brothers Pottery in its heyday.
Pottery manufacturers, who had relied on their team of potters, or in the case of large operations, a skilled decorator or artist to brush or slip trail the cobalt blue glaze in a desired pattern, discovered that applying the blue slip with a stencil created a more uniform and identifiable decoration. This would allow less skilled labor to apply the decorations.
Samuel J. Wetmore & Co. purchased the Huntington Pottery from Jonathan and Sarah Titus on February 27, 1805 for $250.93. The partnership consisted of Samuel Wetmore (1774-1823), Samuel Fleet (1768-1823), Scudder Sammis (1764-1812), and Timothy Williams (1756-1811).
The first known document concerning ownership of the Huntington Pottery is a deed which refers to the the sale of the Pottery by Jonathan and Sarah Titus to Samuel J. Wetmore & Co. on February 27, 1805
The Huntington Pottery 