Where Ceramics Once Thrived :: essays research papers

Where Ceramics Once Thrived Watching a skilled ceramics artist shape a creation on the wheel is a thrilling experience. under(a) her or his hands, a spinning blob of mud grows into a work of art. Its not unusual, after witnessing such a display of virtuosity, for the audience to realize that the pine away on their own kitchen shelves pales by comparison. So its logical to ask Is every thrown piece made the same way? By hand? unconstipated the cheap stuff at home? Of course the answer is No. Production ceramic rot comes from highly automated assembly lines. A skepticism with a more elusive answer might be Where are the factories? Where does production ceramic ware come from? The answer Until recently a broken Ohio town. A visit today to East Liverpool, Ohio, a hamlet situated on the Ohio River just a few miles from the Pennsylvania border, reveals little of the towns history as the former world capitol of production pottery. This is a domicile of boarded up buildings, discount automotive parts outlets and abandoned storefronts. However for the ceramics industry East Liverpool is an historical mecca, the place Americas where pottery industry fought its way to the worlds center stage and thrived, albeit briefly. It was in 1841 that British-born potter James Bennett settled here, drawn by accessible clay deposits and the sense that he could make a better living than in Jersey City where hed worked at the Henderson Pottery Company since immigrating in 1839. Bennetts hunch turned into a family function - he sent for his brothers in 1845 - and soon expanded. Within four years the familys successful pot-throwing operation had spun off a host of competitors. In 1849 there were sixsome firms running 94 kilns in the sleepy town. Between 1850 and 1950, few would use the word sleepy again to describe East Liverpool. Following Bennetts lead, and copying his familys immigration pattern, a flood of mostly English-born potters arrived in East Liverpool. The work they produced was initially limited in quantity by inadequate power sources and in quality by a lack of clay varieties. Still, the towns early potters were successful. By the time of the opening shots of the civil war, a scant 20 years since Bennetts first endeavors, East Liverpool ware was being shipped throughout the United States and the town was booming. More than large amounts of red and yellow clay and a steady supply of immigrants figured into East Liverpools growth.