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Historic Richmond Town

Object Record


Object Name Pitcher
Date 1849-1854
Description Ceramic pitcher with firefighting scene. Made of yellow earthenware with Rockingham type glaze. Form has a high waist and angled shoulder, curved spout, and hound shaped handle. Decoration includes relief molded designs of two fire engines and firefighters, with grapevines around the neck. Impressed maker's mark on bottom: "A. CADMUS / CONGRESS POTTERY / SOUTH AMBOY / N.J." Overall height 9 inches.
(Keyword: Firefighter, New Jersey)
Acquisition Museum Purchase
Ownership and History This pitcher was once owned by the Eccleston family of Staten Island, and it may originally have been made to order for a group or individual, perhaps for use at social gatherings of a Staten Island volunteer fire company. At that time, in the mid-1800s, there were only a few Staten Island fire companies that might have owned the type of hand-pump (also referred to as a "gooseneck fire engine") that is illustrated on the pitcher.

Congress Pottery was purchased in 1849 by Abraham Cadmus, who had previously been associated with the firm of Cadmus and Cough, ship-chandlers of New York City. Cadmus made yellowware and brown Rockingham-glazed ceramics until his death in 1854.
Earliest Date 1849
Latest Date 1854
Maker Cadmus (Congress Pottery)
Material Ceramic
Subjects Fire fighters
Fire fighting
Food
Pottery
Tableware
Lexicon Sub-category Food Service T&E
Catalog Number F07.2703
Support Acknowledgment Online Collections Database record made possible by the Efron family in memory of Dr. Meryl Efron, November 2014.
Legal Status Images and text in this database are copyrighted by the Staten Island Historical Society unless otherwise noted. Items represented here are from the collections of the Staten Island Historical Society. Materials reproduced for personal non-commercial use must credit the Staten Island Historical Society. Commercial licensing is available.