Object Record
Images
Metadata
Catalog Number |
2023.027.013 |
Object Name |
Kettle |
Description |
This is a large, white tea kettle. It is painted with a floral pattern of mostly pink and yellow flowers and green leaves. The tea kettle features a small lid with a similar pattern of three pink flowers and green leaves. There are small blue flowers and a yellow flower on the lid. There is writing in black on the bottom of the teapot that reads: "Original Blue Ridge Pattern SPI Erwin Pottery." The painted design of this kettle is attributed to Negatha Peterson. Negatha Peterson was an artist employed by Southern Potteries. She became known for her Blue Ridge Pottery designs, primarily after their closure. In 1957, when Southern Potteries closed, Peterson purchased some of their pottery molds and used them under the name of "Erwin Pottery." She painted such pieces herself. The following biographical excerpt was submitted by a Reece Museum volunteer in December 2024: "Negatha Peterson was born December 20, 1920 in Lego, West Virginia. She was the daughter of Oscar Webb and Birdie Calhoun. In 1941, Negatha was hired by Southern Potteries in Erwin, Tennessee as one of about 500 employees who worked the assembly line, hand-painting strokes on the dishware. The majority of the painters were women. At one point during the 1940s they earned a rate of 13.5 cents per hour. In a Kingsport Times article in 1991, Negatha recalled, "They gave me a brush and I practiced one day and went to work the next." Negatha began by painting details such as stems and leaves but her skills led to her becoming a well-known artist. In 1916, the Carolina, Clinchfield and Ohio Railroad selected Erwin as the site for a pottery to encourage industry that would ultimately benefit the railroad. Initially the pottery was called Clinchfield Ware. It eventually became known as Southern Potteries Inc. in 1920. Southern Potteries produced "Clinchfield" china from 1917-1937. "Blue Ridge" china became their signature product from 1937-1957. Southern Potteries produced some 5,000 different painted designs featuring flora, fauna, mountain scenes and people. The commercial production of china in Erwin began in 1917, in which Clinchfield employed about 100 people. Decal templates were used initially, but beginning in 1938 the bisque was hand-painted before it was glazed. Southern Potteries Inc. became one of the largest producers of china in the United States in the 1940s and by the middle of that decade annual production was estimated at 17 million pieces. Southern Potteries Inc. had over 1,000 employees at that time, about one half were painters. Their eleven showrooms in the United States, including those in New York and San Francisco, helped boost their sales, as did retailers such as Sears & Roebuck and Montgomery Ward. Such retailers marketed the china in-store and through mail order. Blue Ridge china was offered by some retail outlets as premiums. Due to foreign competition, namely from Japan, by 1956, their work force was down to about 600. When Southern Potteries closed in 1957, Negatha remarked that its effects were devastating to the small town of Erwin. For a while Negatha worked for Cash Pottery. While there she incorporated the French Peasant design into her painting. Those pieces became highly sought after. When Southern Potteries closed she purchased a large number of their molds. In 1960 she and her husband Robert Earl Peterson (Earl) founded Erwin Pottery. Earl had worked at the pottery in the early 1940s but didn't like it. In their own pottery business, Earl poured the pottery and Negatha painted it; vases, dinnerware, pitchers, etc. The couple produced her versions of Blue Ridge china. Negatha painted reproductions of some of the Blue Ridge patterns, labeling the pieces accordingly. The business did well and they began receiving orders from across the country. Negatha is featured in several nationally-known books written about cookie jars. She was the full-time painter, but the Worthpoint.com website lists a Colonial Lady jug with the initials "EP," indicating her husband Earl was the artist. Joey Lewis, a Blue Ridge pottery collector speaking to the Erwin Record in 2024 said that Southern Potteries was the second largest employer in Erwin; the railroad was the largest. Lewis indicated the pottery had their own post office which employed 16 people. Their most popular line was the French Peasant pattern, carried exclusively by Macy's and Marshall Field. Negatha stated that she owes the "jump start" of her career to the Blue Ridge designs and her ability to find an approach for using them. Negatha alone took credit for her excellent, precise painting. Negatha and Earl ran their two-person business until Earl became ill after which she completed the unpainted pieces remaining in inventory. Earl passed in 2005, the same year Erwin Pottery went out of business. Mr. and Mrs. Gary Smith purchased the Erwin Pottery assets, back stamps, and a large number of molds, some of which were original to Cash Family Pottery. Mr. Smith said "no one will ever paint like Negatha." Negatha Peterson died on September 15, 2013." |
Date |
c. 1957 |
Artist |
Negatha Peterson |
Collection |
Blue Ridge Pottery Collection |
Place of Origin |
USA/Tennessee/Erwin |
Material |
earthenware, clay, glaze |
Made |
Erwin Pottery |
Search Terms |
Appalachian Art Tennessee History |