Jar
MAKER: This jar is attributed to David Drake, one of the many enslaved craftspeople who worked on the pottery plantations of Edgefield County, South Carolina. Dave was first enslaved by Abner Landrum (1780-1859), who has been credited with establishing the first pottery, Pottersville, in the Edgefield district during the 1810s. Later Dave was enslaved by the pottery proprietor Lewis Miles (ca. 1809-1868). This jar is glazed with a thick, runny alkaline glaze. Alkaline glaze is a mix of clay and ash or lime that acted as a flux.
Of the nearly 3000 enslaved craftsmen who have been identified by MESDA, Dave is the only one whose work we can positively identify. Despite laws prohibiting literacy among slaves, Dave was taught to read and write. His pots–more than 150 signed examples are known–testify to both his literacy and his skill as an artist. Once freed at the end of the Civil War, he adopted the more formal appellation “David” and the last name “Drake,” the name of one of his earliest enslavers
Lewis Miles (1808-1868) was one of early pottery owners of Edgefield District, South Carolina. His financial interest in potting probably came from his father-in-law, the Reverend John Landrum (1765-1846), who owned one of the earliest Edgefield stoneware potteries. Slave labor played an important role in the development of Edgefield stoneware. A significant portion of the labor force in Edgefield stoneware factories was African American, and these artisans are often named in court proceedings and newspaper advertisements involving transfers of ownership of the factories. The most frequently named occupation for slave potters was turner, but they most certainly participated in all aspects of stoneware production. Lewis Miles enslaved the famous potter David Drake (1801-after 1870) throughout the 1850s and early 60s.
Baldwin, Cinda K. “Great and Noble Jar: Traditional Stoneware of South Carolina.” Athens, GA: UGA Press, 1993.
Calfas, George.” Nineteenth Century Stoneware Manufacturing at Pottersville, South Carolina.” Ph.D. Diss., Department of Anthropology, Univ. of Illinois, 2013.
