”Unless Delayed by Unforeseen Circumstances”: A Tale of a Shenandoah Valley Industrial Pottery

摘要

THE SHENANDOAH V A L L E Y has been renowned as a pottery region ever since the eighteenth century.Potters recognized the excellent clay sources in the area, and scholars and collectors have acknowledged the incomparable ware that has been produced from tiiat clay.The socially and culturally significant craft has been analyzed in books, essays, and exhibitions, and individual craftsmen and tiieir shops are the focus of much scholarly activity.1 In 1890 the reputation of the region led one group of late-nineteenth-century entrepreneurs to open an industrial pottery for the manufacture of fancy ware in Harrisonburg, Virginia, a booming town in die central valley.Comprised of local business leaders and a Staffordshire-bred potter most recently from Trenton, New Jersey, die faction opened a state-of-the-art manufactory.Although rarely mentioned in studies of Shenandoah Valley pottery, this venture represents the final chapter of the region's pottery culture.This essay combines die history of die physical pottery building, available documentary evidence, and archaeological material to fill in die gap left by die many years of focus on die traditional aspects of die Shenandoah Valley region's pottery production.By exploring the business side of die five different entities that manufactured ware at die site, die background of die potters themselves, and archaeological remains, tiiis study contributes to a more complete understanding of Shenandoah Valley pottery.