Slipped, Salted and Glazed: An Overview of North Carolina’s Pottery from 1750-1850

Summary

Not long ago, Pennsylvania potter, Jack Troy declared "if North America has a ‘pottery state’ it must be North Carolina, as there is probably no other state with such a highly developed pottery consciousness,"  – and he is right!  North Carolina’s pottery heritage is unique in many ways:  it is the most southern state with a well-developed earthenware tradition (ca. 1750s);  it is the most northern state with an alkaline-glazed stoneware tradition, in addition to its salt-glaze; its early potters used a variety of kiln types (updraft, downdraft, crossdraft) in a variety of shapes (round, square, rectangular) burning earthenware and stoneware; it is known for its abundant clays, strong family networks (or clay clans), its survival and resurgence of the craft, and diversity of its continuous heritage.  While this overview highlights pottery from one century, let it be said that the potters’ wheels in North Carolina have never stopped turning.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for Historical Archaeology 2016   •
• The Production and Archaeological Analysis of 18th and 19th Century American Ceramics

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Individual & Institutional Roles

Contact(s): Society for Historical Archaeology

Record Identifiers

PaperId(s): 240