Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1907-05-17
OLD BENNINGTON POTTERY.
Works Dating Back More Than 100
Years.


Years.
The manufacture of pottery in the
United States has been Of longer duration
and of greater Importance than most
people might suppose. The potteries Of
Pennsylvania, New Jersey and New York
state were early at work the one es-
tablished by a German named Remmey
near the old city hall in New York go
ing back as far as 1875. While the New
England potteries were not many in num-
Der and while most OF them ore of COM
para lively recent date, the potteries es-
tablished at Bennington, Vt, are among
the most interesting which this country
has produced. AS early as 1898 the Nor
ton pot works was established there and
it made the brown glazed ware which
people are apt to call Rockingham, no
matter where ii is made. Stoneware and
this brown ware were the two classes of
pottery made, pitchers, dishes, candle
sticks and animals being the articles pro-
duced
In 1898 there were no china shops eX
cept in a few great cities, and such
products as came from the Norton pot
terry We're sent out through the country
| by peddlers, who sold the wares from
wagons or from packs. At various times
new members were taken into the firm
and by 1910 the firm was Norton & Fen
ton. the mark being impressed in printed
| letters i'm a circle, the words "Benning
! ton, Vt" forming the lower half. This
mark was large, over two inches in di-
ameter.
! About 1S47 there was established in
! connection with the stoneware works a
| branch for making articles of more orna-
| mental character but of less utility A
! certain white ware had been produced in
| England a year or two previously which
| was called Parian, and the new works at
! Bennington went into the manufacture Of
! this and made some pitchers and other
| articles which were very pretty.
Much of this Parian ware was made.
! OF all the pieces the pitchers with the
! pond lily pattern and the one copied from
| an. Alcock pitcher, showing knights and
| ladies, are the best known and the most
! eagerly sought The Parian ware was
either pure white, pure white with blue
background, or of a grayish shade.
The marks of this period were impress
| sed on either an oval or an oblong panel.
In the oval were the words Lyman Fem
| ton & Co. Fentons enamel, patented
! 1S49, Bennington, Vt" In the oblong
| panel were the words, "Fenton's Works,
Bennington, VT" BY 1859 these works
were closed and no more Parian was
made.
At the height of its prosperity the
| town of Bennington had a worldwide rep
utation, at least in the potting world.
| The flint rock combined with clay made
"a paste which was good to work, native
| cOlors were used to stain the paste or
| glaze, ideas were Welcomed and designs
| from all sources in demand. Sometimes
as many as 800 potters were at work,
many of them from the old world potter
les.
The colors used in this old notified ware
were different from the common brown
seen in domestic articles today. The
brown was rich in tone and often COM
bined with dark red or green and a dull
blue. One of the most famous notified
pitcher patterns showed a tulip design,
Another pattern had a hound handle
| which was copied from the famous pitcher
made by Greatback.
In buying specimens of Bennington
ware it is safe to accept only those which
are marked, and there are even speci-
mems marked Lyman, Fenton & Co..
which are common notified ware quite
distinct from the better, richly-colored
pieces
The lion and the dog are two specimens
CT the best period of Bennington ware
and are richly and finely colored. Inter
esting also are the dogs which come II
white with blue eyes and are exceeding