Figs. 503 and 504.
Medals have been awarded at the Exhibitions of London, 1851, 1862, Paris 1855, Lyons 1872, and Vienna 1873; at the latter, two medals, one for excellence of earthenware and china and the other for sanitary goods, were awarded. The firm were large contributors to the Philadelphia Exhibition of 1876; some of their exhibits are shown in Figs. [484 to 499].
Trent Pottery.—These works, in Joiner Square, were built by Messrs. Stanway, Horne, and Adams, the present proprietors, in 1859, and they have been carried on without change since that time. The works were established for the production of ornamental goods in parian, and useful goods of an improved design in stoneware and ordinary earthenware, and these have continued to extend themselves year by year. The great speciality is their cheap ornamental parian, in which jugs of various kinds, vases, figures, groups, busts, and a large number of other articles are made; of these they are large makers, not less than 460,000 pieces of these alone being made and disposed of during one year. Notably, among the designs for jugs and cream ewers, are the Indian corn, pine-apple, shell, and dolphin patterns; the first of these is of peculiar elegance. Vases and other chimney ornaments are produced of excellent design and of various sizes. Of late years, classical statuettes, groups, busts, &c., in Parian, have been made, and are a prominent feature of the works; they are well and cleverly modelled, and the quality of the body is remarkably good. A group of “Commerce,” seated, is one of the most effective. The great and laudable aim of the “Trent Works” has been the production of good average designs in Parian at a cheap rate, so as to place them within the reach of all; in this they have eminently succeeded. Stone ware, lustre ware, and terra cotta, are also produced, and of late the manufacture of pearl china has been added. The markets supplied are the home, United States, the Continent, etc. No mark is used.
“The members of this firm, namely, Mr. John Stanway, Mrs. Thomas Horne (Mr. Stanway’s sister), and Mr. Thomas Adams,” writes my good friend Mr. Goss, “are all natives of Etruria, where their grandfathers were the valued servants of the great Josiah Wedgwood. Mr. Stanway’s father was the William Stanway mentioned by Mr. Jewitt in his ‘Life of Josiah Wedgwood,’ as one of the ‘Etruria Jubilee Group of Francis Wedgwood, Esq., and nine workmen, whose average term of servitude is fifty-four and a half years, November, 1859;’ and Mr. Jewitt further remarks: ‘It is interesting to note that in the person of one of these men, William Stanway, an absolute link with the great Josiah is kept up. This man began to work at Etruria the very year of Josiah Wedgwood’s death (1795), and has remained there ever since—a period of sixty-nine years.’ Two others of the nine workmen of the Jubilee Group—William Adams and John Adams—were uncles to Mr. Thomas Adams of the above firm. Mr. John Stanway has distinct recollections of his grandfather, John Stanway the elder, who for many years served the first Josiah, and died in the service of the second. His occupation at the works was that of “slipmaker” or claymaker, a position of great trust at that time, when not only the newly-invented proportions but the very materials used in the composition of the clays were important secrets. It is curious to reflect that the ingredients of all the famous jasper and other wares which the great Wedgwood produced, and which are now numbered among the treasures of kings and emperors, were blended and made into clay by this John Stanway the elder. Being proved a faithful servant, he was greatly valued and favoured by his employer, spending a portion of his time in personally waiting upon Wedgwood at Etruria Hall, whence he used to carry valuable parcels and letters to the Three Tuns Inn at Newcastle-under-Lyme, which was in those days the stage coach house. After the death of Wedgwood, John Stanway retained the same share of the confidence and favour of the second Josiah, both at the manufactory and at the Hall. At that time the country where Etruria now stands, and for miles around, was an uncultivated waste, and Mr. Stanway remembers to have accompanied his grandfather many times when he trudged along the road from Etruria Hall to Newcastle, with his parcels on his back, and his dog Driver and his cat Molley following him all the way, a distance of about two miles. In these journeys it appeared to be distinctly understood between the two animals that Driver was Molley’s protector, and the confidence of the latter was always justified in the moment of danger. In those days old Stoke Church (since removed) was the only church for miles around, and the Wedgwoods had their freehold pew there, which they regularly used until the second Josiah bought the Maer estate, near Whitmore, and removed to it from Etruria Hall. ‘Then,’ relates Mr. John Stanway the younger, ‘Mr. Wedgwood desired my grandfather—who was a good Christian and a regular attendant at church—to make use of that pew ever after. And the good old man never missed attendance there on the Sabbath while he had strength to walk. And because the distance was too great to allow him to go home to dinner and return in time for afternoon service, he used to take his dinner with him in the morning, and stay and eat it in the church or schoolroom, or, when the weather was fine enough, in the churchyard. And Mr. Wedgwood was not ashamed to be represented in that family pew by my grandfather, altho’ the old man used to sound his way up the aisle in wooden clogs, which it was the custom of all workpeople to wear in those days in those parts. But although Mr. Wedgwood was content to be represented by his faithful servant in wooden clogs, there was an old lady, who sat in the pew behind Wedgwood’s, who seems to have objected; and so one week she managed to have taken down the partition between her pew and Wedgwood’s, and made the whole into one square pew for herself. Then my grandfather meekly took his place on the free benches, until, some time after this, Mr. Wedgwood happened to say to him one day at the works, ‘Well, how come you on at church, Jack?’ And my grandfather replied, ‘Well mester, th’ owd lady i’ the pew behind has made it all into a square un’, an’ turned me out. But I’m right enow on the free bench.’ ‘Ha!’ said Mr. Wedgwood. ‘I’ll see to that, Jack.’ And he did see to it, and undid the old lady’s improvements, restoring his pew as before. Ever after that my grandfather enjoyed his sitting without further interference, and continued every Sunday to sound his way up the aisle in his wooden clogs, with his dinner in his pocket, until at last, at a good age, he was taken ill. Mr. Wedgwood went to see him immediately, and sent his own physician to attend him; but after a few day’s illness he died.’”
Keeling.—James Keeling, in 1796, patented improvements in decorative and glazing processes, and, in conjunction with Valentine Close, some improvements in ovens, kilns, and processes of firing. His ware was of remarkably good quality, and some of the services were decorated with series of scenes and views.
Booth & Co.—These potters were makers of a red ware—a kind of terra cotta—in which they produced various articles more or less ornamented with medallions, wreaths, or other decorations, in relief; sometimes of the same colour as the body, and at others in black. The mark was the name, address, and date, within a border—
PUBLISHED BY GR. BOOTH & CO.,
HANLEY, STAFFORDSHIRE,
MAY 29, 1859.