Norwich bulletin., 1921-01-01

residence Of John Porteous. on Fair
mount street, alone as the forerunner pf
the development of this section as a
residential part of the city.
On April 2, 1856, Sidney Risley bought
the pottery and the land on which it was
situated from Eli ah A Bill and contin-
1ea 20 operate 1t until his death at the
age of I'll on April 2e, 1875 His son.
George L. Risley continued the business
until his death, Dec "A, 1881. About a
ear later the pottery was again opened
Is the Norwich Pottery Works. B. C.
Ghace proprietor. Mr.. Chace was sue
ceeded in 1885 by George q. Chamberlain
and after he had run it for about two
years the business was continued by Otto
N. Suderberg until 1895, when it was DIS
continued.
Distributed Wares by Horse and Wagon.
Stoneware crooks. pitchers, jugs and
bottles were the product Of the old Risley
pottery, winch got us clay IN schooner
loads from New Jersey and Long Island
and converted the raw clay into the re-
quired shape on turning .iathes run by
foot treadles. When enough had been
manufactured and dried out ready for
baking. the kiln was loaded up and the
fires were started. All the West. Side
knew when the pottery was firing, for the
black smoke from the wood fire of three
foot chestnut sticks swirled out from the
top of the kiln in dense volumes. while
the fires were kept going for IS or 4S or
SO hours, according to the time required.
The stoneware was distributed to the
country stores by wagon all through east
ern Connecticut and westward beyond the
Connecticut river. One of the old drivers
was the late Alvin T. Davis, whose pot
terry wagon with a pair of fine Newfound-
Low 1Hrr- - 1l-@ L. 4
is still remembered by some of the older
! residents In later years some glazed
and decorated ware was added to the line
which the pottery made.
Pottery Yard Was Boys Playground. +
Norwich men who grew up as boys on
| the West Side retain vivid memories of
| the old pottery yard as their playground.
When they played soldier, the crates that
stood around were used for guard. houses
| for their prisoners, and in winter when
| liIey We're shufng down the High street
| hill their favorite fun was to end theiz
slide with dash through the potter y
| doorway to knock down as many pots as
possible The elder Risley would build
barricades Of snow against his doorway
i to keep them out, but sled after sled
would be sent against the barricade until
it would finally be overcome and some
urchin work havoc among the accumulat-
ed pottery Close by on the banks Of the
cove was Sheepskin Hollow, SO named
because of the sheepskins that were tan
ned there for the tannery at the end OF
Cove street Mummychug chowder, cook
ed at the pottery fire, and made from fish
caught in the nearby cove, delight tc
the vigorous boyish imaginations and ap-
petites, is another boyhood memory still
fresh in the minds of a number of Nor.
witch men. once West Side boys.
In later years the original kiln was in.
creased by the addition Of another ant
extensions were made to the buildings
used for storage and manufacturing.
Located on such low ground and neal
to the river, the pottery was frequentl.
threatened by high water and once in tn,
second year of the management of Mr.
the freshet put the fires out Is hours afte
they had been started, leaving half
baked lot of pottery that was total loss
Tragic Death of Proprietor.
The tragedy that brought to an en-
! the connection of the Risley family wit
the business came on Saturday morn
ing, the day before Christmas, 1881
George L. Risley had gone to the potter
10 HSuL tile IRE upright DOl1e
at the rear of the building. Tho boile
blew up, went out through the roof of tn
building ard E,rted aDout IL teft ava!
sinking foot into the mud of the COW
So great was the force OF the exDlosio
that the 1900 pound boiler passed CON
pleteIy over so foot elm tree at the rea
of the pottery in its flight. Mr. RisIe
was so badly injured that he died. ths
evening,
The picture of the pottery used for III
calendar is reproduced from an old pril
in the possession of Attorney Villa.
i, ! H. Shields, who for years has been niue
interested in the accumulation of valuab'
historical data Of the early history
Norwich.
I In this connection It IS a y,oinctden
, that the fine residence of Attorne
n Shields at ITO Washington street W:
h once the home of Richard Adams, wi
h had been educated in his youth in No
witch schools, but had gone to Esequfb
d British Guiana, South Americas Late
b a wealthy man, he returned to Norwi
and established himself here. Being
: foreigner he could not by law buy a.,
e hold real estate here so THAT when j
9 lame to buy the Washington stree