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California pottery includes industrial, commercial, and decorative pottery produced in the Northern California and Southern California regions of the U.S. state of California. Production includes brick, sewer pipe, architectural terra cotta, tile, garden ware, tableware, kitchenware, art ware, figurines, giftware, and ceramics for industrial use. Ceramics include terra cotta, earthenware, porcelain, and stoneware products.

Key milestones in the history of California pottery include: the arrival of Spanish settlers, the advent of statehood and subsequent population growth, the Arts and Crafts movement, Great Depression, World War II era and the post-WWII onslaught of low-priced imports leading to a steep decline in the number of California potteries. California potters large and small have left a legacy of tableware design, collectibles, art, and architecture.

History

Tile has been a favorite building material in California since the early Spanish settled the area and brought with them the tradition of using brightly colored tiles in architecture. Helen Stiles, author of numerous books on the history of pottery, noted that Spanish, Mexican, and Chinese design of the 17th and 18th centuries all influenced the decoration of tile and other pottery in California.

As people moved into California after statehood in 1848, the demand for ceramic products grew exponentially. Buildings needed roofs, floors, and sewer pipes. The ceramic industry grew as the demand increased. The "Golden Era in tile making" and art pottery, influenced by the Arts and Crafts movement, was around 1910. Architect Julia Morgan used tiles to adorn her buildings, including the Hearst Castle in the 1920s.

The most active period for the production of household ceramics including tableware, kitchenware, giftware, and art ware was from the 1930s through the 1960s. The major area of U.S. household ceramics production was in the Los Angeles basin. Around Los Angeles there were over 300 producers of figurines. Next in size was the Trenton area, followed by East Liverpool, and a few in the middle west, such as Ceramic Arts Studio, Red Wing Pottery and Haeger Potteries.

The period around World War II saw the greatest growth for the U.S. ceramic industry. With imports cut off from European and Asian markets, small family-owned and larger potteries stepped in to fill the need for ceramic giftware and tableware throughout the United States. By 1948, "the peak year for the industry, over eight hundred ceramic concerns were in operation throughout California." With sunlight year round, an abundance of raw materials, and relatively inexpensive natural gas, California became competitive with centers of ceramic production such as the "Pottery Capital of the World" East Liverpool, Ohio, and Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England.

In the 1950s, favorable trade agreements toward Asian countries contributed to a flood of competitively priced ceramic wares entering the United States market. Only a fraction of California potteries survived this competition through the early 1960s. As of 2023, only a few are still in business.

"Big Five" California potteries

The "Big Five" California potteries, from the 1930s to the 1960s in reference to the range of products and output, were Vernon Kilns, J.A. Bauer Pottery, Metlox Potteries, Pacific Clay Products, and Gladding, McBean & Co. All of the "Big Five" potteries operated production facilities in the Los Angeles Basin. Gladding, McBean & Co. grew from one factory manufacturing sewer pipe and architectural terra cotta in Lincoln, California, to factories throughout California and the Pacific Northwest. Vernon Kilns closed in 1958, J.A. Bauer in 1962, and Metlox in 1988. The former Gladding, McBean & Co.'s Franciscan tableware and tile factory in Los Angeles was bought by Wedgwood from the Interpace corporation in 1979. Wedgwood closed the Franciscan Ceramics plant in 1984, moving production of the Franciscan tableware brands to England. The former Gladding, McBean & Co.'s Lincoln factory was purchased by Pacific Coast Building Products in 1976 and continues to produce sewer pipe, architectural terra cotta, and terra cotta garden ware. Pacific Clay Products discontinued manufacturing tableware, art ware, and figurines in 1942. Pacific Clay Products continues to manufacture sewer pipe.

Big Five potteries table

To use the sortable tables: click on the icons at the top of each column to sort that column in alphabetical order; click again for reverse alphabetical order.

Potteries of California

Northern California

Geographically, see Northern California.

To use the sortable tables: click on the icons at the top of each column to sort that column in alphabetical order; click again for reverse alphabetical order.

Southern California

Geographically, see Southern California.

To use the sortable tables: click on the icons at the top of each column to sort that column in alphabetical order; click again for reverse alphabetical order.

Studio pottery

Gallery

Tile

• Batchelder tile, detail on chimney of Batchelder house, Pasadena.
• Paramount Theater tile mural by Gladding, McBean & Co., Oakland.
• Malibu Potteries peacock fountain, Adamson house, Malibu.

Art ware and giftware

• Catalina Clay Products Catalina Pottery art ware vase.
• Gladding, McBean & Co. Catalina Pottery Art Ware head vase.
• Pat and Covey Stewart covered box with lid.
• Karl Roma clock.
• Robertson Hollywood covered jar.
• Brad Keeler Ming Dragon Blood covered ginger jar.
• Bauer Pottery two handled vase by Matt Carlton.

Figurines

• Metlox Manufacturing Company bear figurines.
• Kay Finch Ceramics cocker spaniel dog figurine.
• Jean Manley peasant girl figurine.
• Kay the Potter (Kay Kinney) dog figurine.
• Sorcha Boru deer figurine.
• Copa de Oro (Mary Jane Hart) horse figurine.
• California Figurine Company Weil Ware girl figurines.
• Freeman McFarlin burro figurines by Kay Finch.
• Jane Fauntz baby and sitting boy figurines.
• Pixie Potters Millesan Drews Pixies by Millicent Andrews.
• Susi Singer lady figurine.
• Hardie-Arnita dog figurines.
• Beth Barton bug band figurines.
• Marc Bellaire dancer figurine.
• Robert Simmons zebra figurines.
• Brayton Laguna purple bull, cow, and calf figurines based on the poem Purple Cow by Gelett Burgess.
• Sascha Brastoff Merbaby figurine.
• Joy Thompson spring and autumn figurines.
• Jaru Art Products cubist rabbit.

Tableware

• Gladding, McBean & Co. Franciscan ware Wild Flowers pattern pitcher.
• Metlox Poppytrail covered tureen.
• Monterey Jade teapot.
• Heath Ceramics covered canister.
• Environmental Ceramics chicken bakeware by Win Ng.

Footnotes

1. Stiles, Helen E. (1941). Pottery in the United States. New York: E.P. Dutton & Co., Inc. pp. 140.
2. ^ California Heritage Museum (2003). Joseph A. Taylor (ed.). California Tile: The Golden Era 1910–1940: Acme to Handcraft. Atglen, Penn.: Schiffer Publishing LTD. ISBN 0-7643-1942-6.
3. "A Brave New Label Figurines, Made in U.S.A.". Ceramic Industry. October 1944.
4. ^ Chipman, Jack (1999). California Pottery. Paducah, Kentucky: Collector Books. ISBN 1-57432-037-8.
5. "Colored Pottery, California Manufacturers Lead the World in Beauty of Design and Coloring". California Magazine of Pacific Business: 16. September 1937.
6. "Gladding, McBean LLC". Retrieved 10 July 2011.
7. ^ Gibbs, Carl (2001). Collector's Encyclopedia of Metlox Potteries: Identification and Values, Second Edition. Paducah, KY: Collector Books. ISBN 1-57432-224-9.
8. "Pacific Clay Products". Retrieved 10 July 2011.
9. Nelson, Maxine F (2003). Collectible Vernon Kilns. Paducah, KY: Collector Books. ISBN 1-57432-370-9.
10. ^ Trapp, Kenneth (1994). Arts and Crafts Movement in California, The: Living the Good Life. New York: Abbeville Publishing Group.
11. ^ Chipman, Jack (2005). California Pottery Scrapbook. Paducah, Kentucky: Collector Books. ISBN 1-57432-407-1.
12. ^ Bray, Hazel V. (1980). The Potter's Art in California: 1885-1955. Oakland, California: The Oakland Museum Art Department.
13. Morse, R. Neil (2006). California Pottery Company Merced. Merced, CA: Merced Historical Society. ISBN 0-9729318-4-8.
14. ^ Lehner, Lois (1988). Lehner's Encyclopedia Of US Marks On Pottery, Porcelain Clay. Paducah, KY: Collector Books. ISBN 0-89145-365-2.
15. ^ Mosier, Dan L., and Williams, Earle E., History of Tesla, A California Coal Mining Town, Mines Road Books, Fremont, CA, 2002.
16. ^ Pasadena Art Museum (1968). California Design/Ten. Pasadena, CA: Pasadena Art Museum.
17. Pasquali, Jim (1999). Sanford's Guide to Garden City Pottery: A Hidden Treasure of Northern California. Adelmore Press. ISBN 0-9633531-5-2.
18. ^ "Handcraft Tiles History". Retrieved 13 July 2011.
19. "Hans Sumpf Closes". E-News from the Tile Heritage.
20. ^ Derwich, Jenny B. and Mary Latos (1984). Dictionary Guide to United States Pottery and Porcelain: Ninth and Twentieth Century. Franklin, Michigan: Jenstan. ISBN 0-9612624-0-0.
21. ^ California Heritage Museum (2003). Joseph A. Taylor (ed.). California Tile: The Golden Era 1910–1940: Hispano-Moresque to Woolenius. Atglen, Penn: Schiffer Publishing LTD. ISBN 0-7643-1943-4.
22. "Panama Pottery". Retrieved 14 July 2011.
23. ^ Pasadena Art Museum (1976). California Design 76, A Bicentennial Celebration. Pasadena, CA: Pasadena Art Museum.
24. ^ Pasadena Art Museum (1962). California Design/Eight. Pasadena, CA: Pasadena Art Museum.
25. ^ Dietrich, Waldemar Fenn (1928). "The Clay Resources and the Ceramic Industry of California". California State Mining Bureau (Bulletin No. 99). Retrieved 16 July 2011.
26. "UCLA Special Collections - Finding Aid for the Max and Rita Lawrence Architectural Pottery Records, ca. 1950-1994". OAC Online Archive of California. Retrieved 12 July 2011.
27. Chipman, Jack (2003). Barbara Willis: Classic California Modernism. JaBa Books. ISBN 0-9727430-0-6.
28. "Bauer Pottery of Los Angeles". Retrieved 10 July 2011.
29. Gordon, Maddy (2007). Head Vases Etc.: The Artistry of Betty Lou Nichols. Atglen, Penn.: Schiffer Publishing, Ltd. ISBN 978-0-7643-1490-2.
30. ^ Tufft, J. Edward (August 1947). "Art Ware Pottery Gossip from Southern California". Ceramic Industry.
31. "California Pottery and Tile Works". Retrieved 16 July 2011.
32. Fridley, A.W. (1977). Catalina Pottery, The Early Years 1927–1937. Costa Mesa, California: Rainbow Publishing.
33. ^ Tufft, J. Edward (June 1946). "Art Ware Gossip from Southern California". Ceramic Industry.
34. Classic Terra Cotta Company
35. Humphries, John, Joanne Schaefer and Ralph Schaefer (1997). Delee Art: The Pictorial Story of a California Artist and Her Company. S&S Books. ISBN 0-9655422-0-3.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
36. ^ Tufft, J. Edward (October 1949). "Art Ware Gossip From Southern California". Ceramic Industry.
37. ^ Snyder, Jeffrey B. (2000). Pacific Pottery, Tableware from the 1920s, '30s, and '40s...and more!. Atglen, Penn.: Schiffer Pub Ltd. ISBN 0-7643-1276-6.
38. ^ Tufft, J. Edward (May 1947). "Art Ware Gossip from Southern California". Ceramic Industry.
39. Kline, Barbara S., Margaret C. Wehrspaun, and Jerry Kline (2002). The Complete Book of Florence Ceramics. Atglen, Penn.: Schiffer Publishing Ltd. ISBN 0-7643-1528-5.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
40. ^ Pasadena Art Museum (1965). California Design/Nine. Pasadena, CA: Pasadena Art Museum.
41. ^ Kelly, Nancy (2001). Hagen-Renaker through the Years. Atglen, Penn.: Schiffer+publishing Ltd. ISBN 0-7643-1385-1.
42. ^ Tufft, J. Edward (January 1946). "Artware Pottery Gossip from Southern California". Ceramic Industry.
43. "About H.F. Coors China". Archived from the original on 2011-09-26. Retrieved 10 July 2011.
44. Tufft, J. Edward (June 1944). "News of the Whiteware Industry". Ceramic Industry.
45. Dommel, Darlene Hurst (1997). Collector's Encyclopedia of Howard Pierce Porcelain: Identification and Values. Paducah, KY: Collector Books. ISBN 1-57432-019-X.
46. Whitaker, Jim and Kaye Whitaker (1999). Josef Originals: Figurines of Muriel Joseph George. Atglen, Penn.: Schiffer Publishing LTD. ISBN 0-7643-1049-6.
47. Nickel, Mike and Cindy Horvath (2000). Kay Finch: Ceramics. Atglen, Penn.: Schiffer Publishing Ltd. ISBN 0-7643-0008-3.
48. ^ Tufft, J. Edward (October 1945). Ceramic Industry. {{cite journal}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
49. Malibu Ceramic Works
50. Torrance Press. - September 4, 1952
51. Eidelberg, Martin (1984). Eva Zeisel Designer for Industry. Musee Des Arts Decoratifs De Montreal. pp. 44–45. ISBN 0-226-19473-6.
52. "Robert Maxwell Pottery". Retrieved 12 July 2011.
53. Conti, Steve, A. Dewayne Bethany, Bill Seay (1995). Collector's Encyclopedia of Sascha Brastoff: Identification & Values. Paducah, KY: Collector Books. ISBN 0-89145-647-3.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
54. Higby, George A. (2004). Treasure Craft & Pottery Craft Stoneware: California & Hawaii's Last Major Pottery. Atglen, Penn.: Schiffer Publishing LTD. ISBN 0-7643-2072-6.
55. "Architectural Pottery Vessel USA". Retrieved 10 July 2011.
56. "Vohann of California". Archived from the original on 10 July 2011. Retrieved 10 July 2011.
57. ^ Roller, Gayle, Kathleen Rose, Joan Berkwitz (1989). The Hagen-Renaker Handbook.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
58. "Western Quarry Tiles". Archived from the original on 2011-02-25. Retrieved 15 July 2011.

Further reading

• Derwich, Jenny B. and Mary Latos. Dictionary Guide to United States Pottery and Porcelain: Ninth and Twentieth Century. Jenstan, Franklin, Michigan (1984) ISBN 0-9612624-0-0
• Chipman, Jack. Collector's Encyclopedia of California Pottery. Collector Books, Paducah, Kentucky (1999) ISBN 1-57432-037-8
• Chipman, Jack. California Pottery Scrapbook. Collector Books, Paducah, Kentucky (2004) ISBN 1-57432-407-1
• Lehner, Lois. Lehner's Encyclopedia Of US Marks On Pottery, Porcelain Clay. Collectors Books, Paducah, Kentucky (1988) ISBN 978-0-89145-365-9
• Schneider, Mike. California Potteries, The Complete Book. Schiffer Publishing, Atglen, Pennsylvania (1995) ISBN 0-88740-877-X
• Stern, Bill. California Pottery: From Missions to Modernism. Chronicle Books (2001) ISBN 0-8118-3068-3
• The California Heritage Museum, Joseph A. Taylor ed. California Tile: The Golden Era 1910-1940: Acme to Handcraft. Schiffer Publishing LTD, Atglen, Pennsylvania (2003) ISBN 0-7643-1942-6
• The California Heritage Museum, Joseph A. Taylor ed. California Tile: The Golden Era 1910-1940: Hispano-Moresque to Woolenius. Schiffer Publishing LTD, Atglen, Pennsylvania (2003) ISBN 0-7643-1943-4

• American pottery
• Art in California
• American art pottery
• Ceramic art
• Ceramics manufacturers of the United States
• Companies based in California
• Cultural history of California
• Lists of companies based in California