Museum of Ceramics (East Liverpool, Ohio)

The Museum of Ceramics, housed in the former East Liverpool Post Office, is a ceramics museum that contains an extensive collection of ceramic wares produced in and around East Liverpool, Ohio, United States. The museum is operated by a Museum of Ceramics Foundation and by the Ohio Historical Society in a city long known as "America's Crockery City" and "The Pottery Capital of the Nation."[2]

East Liverpool Post Office
Front of the museum
Museum of Ceramics (East Liverpool, Ohio) is located in Ohio
Museum of Ceramics (East Liverpool, Ohio)
Museum of Ceramics (East Liverpool, Ohio) is located in the United States
Museum of Ceramics (East Liverpool, Ohio)
Location5th and Broadway Sts., East Liverpool, Ohio
Coordinates40°37′6″N 80°34′38″W
Built1908
ArchitectJames Knox Taylor
Architectural styleBeaux Arts
NRHP reference No.76001384[1]
Added to NRHPNovember 21, 1976

Description

The Museum of Ceramics is dedicated to the preservation of the rich pottery history of the East Liverpool area. During the late 19th century and early 20th century, the East Liverpool area produced over 50% of the nation's ceramic output. Over 200 pottery factories have operated in and around East Liverpool, starting in the 1840s, when the English potter James Bennett established the area's first commercial pottery.[3] James Bennett was the elder brother of Edwin Bennett of Baltimore.

The museum contains the largest public display of Lotus Ware, an award-winning fine porcelain ware produced only for a short period in the 1890s by the Knowles, Taylor, Knowles pottery of East Liverpool.[4] Also on display are collections of early Rockingham Pottery, ironstone, whiteware, yellow ware, and Victorian majolica. Other highlights are Homer Laughlin's Fiesta dinnerware, Hall China's Donut teapot, and William Bloor's 1860s Parian Ware, along with Craven Art Pottery vases. Related displays on East Liverpool's social, political and economic history show the impact of the industry on the community and the nation.[5] Susan Weaver is Director of the Museum of Ceramics.

Building

The museum occupies the former United States post office, a Beaux-Arts structure designed by architect James Knox Taylor and built in 1909.[2] The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on November 21, 1976.[1]

The main lobby features a post office mural by Ohio artist Roland Schweinsburg, titled Old Bennett Pottery Plant (1936). The large 15-foot lunette was commissioned by the Treasury Relief Art Project.[6][7]

References
  1. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. April 15, 2008.
  2. "About the Museum". Museum of Ceramics, Ohio, USA. Archived from the original on 2008-09-20. Retrieved 2008-11-21.
  3. Vivian A. Wagner,"Pottery: The Pride of East Liverpool, Ohio". Archived from the original on 2009-02-10. Retrieved 2008-11-26.
  4. Catherine S. Vodrey,"Lotus Ware".
  5. "The Museum of Ceramics". Ohio History Society, USA. Archived from the original on 2008-12-21. Retrieved 2008-11-26.
  6. "Work in Progress Under the Treasury Relief Art Project". Bulletin Number 8. Washington, D.C.: Treasury Department Art Projects, United States Department of the Treasury. January–February 1936. p. 28. Retrieved December 5, 2022.
  7. "New Deal/WPA Art in East Liverpool, Ohio". New Deal Art During the Great Depression. Retrieved December 5, 2022.
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