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...]
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
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
Before any current record of pottery manufacture in Huntington, the quality of Long Island clay was recognized by potter Adam States (his Dutch name Anglicized from Staats). States used Long Island clay to create, most likely, the first sustainable stoneware manufactory in New England.
The Huntington Pottery 