The Manufacture of Ceramic Tiles in Trenton
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December 2003 Volume 4 Issue 4 TRENTON POTTERIES Newsletter of the Potteries of Trenton Society The Manufacture ofCeramic Tiles in Trenton-Part 2: The Trent Tile Company (1882-1939) by Michael Padwee he Trent Tile Company was first dent. Mr. Lee died in 1905. In 1912 T organized as the Harris Manufac Thomas Thropp, a member of the turing Company, c. 1882, but soon had Eureka Flint and Spar Company of its name changed to Trent. By 1892 Trenton, was appointed receiver, and Trent operated 20 kilns--including six Lewis Whitehead of the Providential round biscuit kilns and upwards of a Tile Company and Everett Townsend dozen enameling or English muffle were appointed appraisers by the re kilns!, and by 1910 employed 300 ceiver. Mr. Thropp purchased Trent workers. By 1912 Trent ran into finan in 1916, and at the time of his death in cial difficulties and was placed in re 1931, Trent had 22 periodic kilns (12 ceivership. In 1916 Trent was pur biscuit and 10 glost)"and one continu chased by the Receiver, Thomas H. ous tunnel kiIn, and the factory could Thropp, who died in 1931. The com produce 8,000,000 square feet offloor pany was then purchased from and wall tile annually. Thropp's family by R. P. Herrold, but The years prior to World War I, it went into receivership, again, in and especially the 1880s and 1890s, 1939, and was closed down. In 1940 were the heyday ofTrent's production the Wenczel Tile Company bought the of art tile. Isaac Broome, who had . factory. The tile factory was located at worked for the Etruria Pottery of Klagg Avenue and Plum Street.2 Trenton and for the Ott & Brewer Pot Everett Townsend, who was born tery, was Trent's designer and mod in 1866 and started his career in the eler from about 1883 to 1885, when he Contents tile industry in 1895, wrote a briefhis left Trent to help organize the Provi tory ofhis recollections of the tile in dential Tile Works. According to The Manufacture of Ceramic dustry in 19433, and was involved Edwirl Atlee Barber Isaac Broome left Tiles in Trenton, Part 2: The Trent Tile Company with the Trent Tile Company after a enough art tile designs at Trent that Micha£/ Padwee 1 receiver was appointed in 1912. many were still being made in the Townsend's reminiscences discuss the 1890s. Another major artistic influ Stoneware Symposium 7 people who were involved in the or ence at Trent was William Wood Gal ganization of Trent: he states that limore. Gallimore, an English mod Benjamin F. Lee became the sole eler of portrait busts and vases, came The Potteries of Trenton Sodety is a owner of Trent in the early 1890s, to work at Trent in 1886 and stayed non-profit organizntion dedicated to the study and preservation of Trenton's however, he was Chief Oerk of the for six years. Gallimore's specialties ceramic past. Officers: Presjdent~ Supreme Court of the State ofNew were the portrayal ofboys, cupids and Patricia Mmtrigal; Treasurer-Amy Jersey at the time and did not take an portraits.4 Also, about 1905 Charles Earls; Secretary--Gtristy Morganstern. Board: Ellen Denker, Barbara Goldberg, active part in the company. Alfred W. Babcock Upjohn, who had worked for Richard Hunter, Jay Lewis, Emma Lawshe, who worked for Mr. Lee, was Weller Pottery and the Cambridge Art Lewis, William Liebeknecht, Molly Merlino, George Miller, Brenda Spring made the Treasurer and Secretary of Pottery as a designer and modeler, sted, Rebecca White. Newsletter Editor: the company, and his son, Charles, and who organized the ill-fated C.B. Patn"cin Madrigal eventually became Trent's Superinten- (Continued on page 2) Page 2 Trenton Potteries Volume 4 Issue 4 Trent Tile Company Left: Figure 1a Right: Figure 1b (Continuedjrompage 1) Figure I.e: Grooved tile back with im Upjohn Pottery of Zanesville Ohio, pressed maker's marks. This is an joined the Trent Tile Company.s early tile back and is reminiscent of Trent's specialty in the 1890s were the tile backs ofthe J. & J. G. Low Art "dull-finished or 'Trent finished' tiles in Tile Works of Chelsea, MA. alto-relievo, which...[were] treated by Both figures 1.a and l.b have this tile the sand blast process after being back. glazed. The effect ...[was] a soft, satin like finish...." Trent also made a variety Figure 2.a: A 6" square, low and me-' of glazed and enameled art tiles includ diurn molded relief tile in blue glaze. ing 6" x 18" panels, 12" x 24" panels and soda-water fountains. In addition, Figure 2.b: The back of this tile has Gallimore modeled a large coat-of-arrns eleven alternately raised and recessed of the State of New Jersey for Trent.6 bars that extend from edge to edge. Tile companies used a variety of key "lRENT" in raised letters is in a re- 7 patterns and manufacturer's markings (Continued on page 3) on the backs of tiles, which canhelp the - I tile historian or collector identify the tile j maker. Trent was no exception, and I have included a number of illustrations ; TRENT TILE of these key patterns and manufac I i 1 I I turer's marks below:s ! ! TRE NTOI'J, N.~. Figure 1. a: A 6" square, low molded re I; lief and intaglio tile in green glaze. U. S.A. Figure l.b: A 6" square, low molded re lief and intaglio portrait tile, marked "Broome" in the lower left comer. Figure Ie Trenton Potteries Volume 4 Issue 4 Page 3 Trent Tile Company Left: Figure 2a Right: Figure 2b . • . TRENT (Continuedfrom page 2) cessed bar. Figure 3 Figure 3: 2" and 3" square, dust pressed,9 molded relief tiles. Raised mark in one of three recessed" bars". 1 1 Figure 4: 6" square, dust-pressed, molded relief tile, c.1885. Raised marks in four recessed bars. ITRENT I Figure 5: Trent made many stove tiles, marked and unmarked, with one, two or no notches. This stove tile has one notch and a raised ring border sur II rounding a central concave area. The (Continued on page 4) Left: Figure 4 Right: Figure 5 1l'f.,,'f ~,,~u ;'\1.._1' ~1I'lU- Page 4 Trenton Potteries Volume 4 Issue 4 Trent Tile Company Left: Figure 6a Right: Figure 6b straight lines.. (Continuedfrom page 3) mark is raised. Figure B.a: A 4 1/4" square, dust pressed, molded relief tile. Figure 6.a: A 3" square, dust-pressed, molded relief tile of a dragon. Figure B.b: Tile back ofFigure 8.a. Two thin recessed rings surrounding Figure 6.b: The back of the dragon tile. a wide raised ring. Raised, cursive Left: Figure 7 An octagonal raised border with two "Trent" on a raised central area. Center: Figure 8a raised internal bars. "TRENT" is Right: Figure 8b raised in one of three recessed areas. Figure 9.a: A 6" x 3" dust-pressed, The comers are recessed. molded relief border tile. Figure 7: A 3" x 6" molded relief bor Figure 9.b: The back of Figure 9.a. Im der tile. Impressed cursive "Trent" pressed decorative grooved lines and and impressed, decorative, curved and markings. Figure 8a Figure 8b Trenton Potteries Volume 4 Issue 4 Page 5 Trent Tile Company (Continuedfrom page 4) Top: Figure 9a Bottom: Figure 9b Figure 10: A framed, three tile, molded relief panel from a fireplace surround attributed to Gallimore. Figures lla and llb: Two patented "grip backs" on dust-pressed, mono glazed wall tiles. Most tile companies survived on the production of white and mono-glazed wall and floor tiles. Many companies, such as Trent, pat TRENT TILE ented the key patterns on the backs of TRENTON HtJ USA their tiles. Some of Trent's relief molded tiles were also manufactured by other tile companies, illustrating that tile Americana, Watkins Glen, NY, 1971 molds or models may have been sold reprint of the 1893 edition, p. 363. or brought from one factory to an other. A case in point is Isaac 2Norman Karlson, American Art Tile Broome's 6" square "Michelangelo" 1876-1941 , Rizzoli International Publi portrait tile, which has been identified cations, New York, 1998, p. 40. as a Trent tile by both Barnard!O and Kovelll (Figure 12.a.) This same tile 3Dick Sigafoose, American Art Pottery was manufactured in England be A Collection ofPottery, Tiles, and Memo- Figure 10 tween 1894-1905 and marked rabilia 1880-1950, Collector Books, Pa "Flaxman".J2 Another Michelangelo ducah, KY, 1998, p. 218. tile was manufactured in California by either the Pacific Art Tile Company or 4American Ceramic Society, Ceramic the California Tile and Terra Cotta Abstracts and the Bulletin, May 15, 1943, Company, a subsidiary of the Western Volume 22, Number 5, pp. 129-130. Art Tile Company. Joseph Kirkham, a principal of the Providential Tile SBarber, Gp. Cit., p. 362, 363 and 365. Works of Trenton, NJ, may have brought Broome's models to Califor 6Paul Evans, Art Pottery of the United nia. Kirkham's first tile factory in States, Second Edition, Feingold & California appears to have been the Lewis Publishing Corp., New York, Pacific Art Tile Company.13 (Figure 1987, p. 292. 12.b is the back of this California Michelangelo tile. The mark is raised "Barber, Gp. Cit., p. 362, 363 and 365. in one of four recessed "bars".) 8Key patterns are the raised and/or Notes: recessed areas on the backs of tiles that !Edwin Atlee Barber, Pottery and Porce help keep the tile in place when lain ofthe United States, Century House (Continued on page 6) Page 6 Trenton Potteries Volume 4 Issue 4 Trent Tile Company Top left; Figure lla ,, Bottom left: Figure lIb I I ....IP"" I Top right: Figure 12a Bottom right: Figure 12b TRENT ( ) I "eAC\(, I \.