OBHS Freeholder Magazine Online: The Townsend Jug: Pattern, Portrait and Politics

The Townsend Jug: Pattern, Portrait and Politics:
A Remarkable Piece of Early Swinton Pearlware
by Claire Bellerjeau

In 1795 when Solomon Townsend received a beautiful pearlware jug from England complete with a face on the spout and a handwritten verse about his iron business underneath, the sentiments made perfect sense. It read:

Perhaps people commented on the lifelike quality of the face on the spout, and how it resembled Captain Townsend. They may have been impressed by the decorative images of cannons, anchors, weaponry and flags together with grapes and wheat. The poem's references to industry, commerce and politics were personal and in no way obscure. Even the rear panels were especially well done; the blue and white Chinese scene had been delicately highlighted with accents of brown, orange and yellow.

The jug may have occupied a place of honor in his house. We know it came to reside in his boyhood home in Oyster Bay, New York, and was kept there on display. That house is now Raynham Hall Museum, a twenty-two room house museum which interprets the history of the Townsend family of Oyster Bay, from the Colonial period through Victorian times. Over the course of more than two hundred years the jug was broken several times and rather poorly repaired with glue. It is currently kept in a case with several pieces of a Leeds service of monogrammed blue feather-edged dishes once owned by his sister, Audrey.

Because his name appeared beneath the verse and the poem mentioned his iron business, the jug was always properly identified as having belonged to Solomon Townsend, but its deeper meaning became lost. No longer did people think the face resembled his, as no image of him was on display in the museum. If the faintly incised mark on the base caught the eye of curators; they failed to make note of it; no maker was listed when the item was catalogued. The decoration was identified simply as both "Oriental and American"(1). The "we" who had sought in the poem to be remembered had been forgotten as well, and the reference to the ship Ohio no longer stirred the memory of historians.

While producing an audio tour for Raynham Hall Museum in 2003, I became intrigued, perhaps even obsessed, with this piece. The image of the face and the evocative verse brought forth more questions than answers, and a quest to unravel its mysteries ensued, whose end has not yet been reached. Many fascinating discoveries have been made however, which shed new light on the workmanship of a little known Yorkshire pottery works called Swinton, as well as the origins of the famous Willow pattern. References within the verse have taken me on a fascinating journey through the history of early American politics, with possible connections to John Jay, the Treaty of Amity, Navigation and Commerce, Thomas Paine, and his prototypical designs of iron bridges.

To discover the meaning of the jug, one must first understand the man for whom it was made. Solomon Townsend (1746-1811) was born in Oyster Bay, New York, the eldest son of Samuel Townsend, a wealthy shipping merchant and brother to Robert Townsend, one of George Washington's most important spies during the Revolutionary War.(2)

From an early age Solomon was educated in the intricacies of his father's shipping business, going to sea as a cabin boy at age fourteen and at age twenty becoming a ships captain, first for one of his father's merchant vessels, the brig Sally, and later for the Buchanan family as captain of the ship Glasgow. In 1778 the increasing hostilities of the American Revolution interrupted maritime trade and forced Solomon to rethink his career. All of Long Island was now occupied by British troops, including his family's house in Oyster Bay, which was being used as headquarters for The Queens Rangers. After eighteen years, Solomon brought to an end his life at sea. Landing in London, he gave up his command of the Glasgow, settled his accounts and traveled to Paris where he was sworn by Benjamin Franklin to be a subject of the United States.(3) He boarded the frigate Providence, bound for America, but upon arrival was unable to return to his home in Oyster Bay due to the occupation. Instead he lived with a cousin, Peter Townsend, in Orange County, New York. Peter Townsend owned the Sterling Ironworks which earlier that year had forged The Great Chain, an enormous wrought iron chain stretched across the Hudson River at West Point to block the passage of British warships.(4)

Solomon began working at the Sterling ironworks, and in 1783 married Peter's daughter Anne. He then became a successful ironmaster in his own right, establishing the Augusta Forge near Sterling along the Ramapo River, and two businesses in New York City; an ironmongery on Ferry Street and an anchor shop on Pearl Street.(5) Although he no longer went to sea, his iron businesses dealt primarily with the manufacture and sale of ship anchors. When, during the late 1790s the Department of War began the construction of a fleet of six frigates for the Navy, Solomon Townsend supplied the New York frigate, the President, with anchors and other ironwork. This commission led him to purchase another iron foundry on Long Island, at Riverhead. Solomon was serving in the New York State Legislature when he died in 1811 at the age of 65. Despite a successful life in the iron business, at his death there was little left. President Jefferson's embargo of 1807 had decimated Solomon Townsend's business; it was estimated to have cost him upwards of $70,000.(6) His widow, Anne and their children were forced to liquidate all his assets to settle his estate.(7)

This jug's mark was written longhand in the wet clay of the base before firing. The bluish glaze pooled in the deeper incisions, making some words more visible that others. Pronounced crazing in the glaze contributes to the difficulty in reading the mark today. Most visible is the date 1795 written along the top edge, and the word Pottery roughly in the middle of the base. Fainter words become visible when viewing the base under strong halogen light, turning it at different angles. This technique produced the tracing (shown above), which reads: 1795, Swinton Pottery, Yorkshire.

Though most know this ceramics manufactory by its later name, Rockingham, as early as 1745 earthenware was produced under the name Swinton Pottery in the town of Rotherham in Yorkshire, England. In the years before the Townsend Jug was made, ownership of the factory changed hands frequently, though always with the support of their landlords and royal patrons, the Marquises of Rockingham and their heirs, the Earls Fitzwilliam.(8) In 1787 members of the Green family, who owned the larger and more prosperous Leeds factory, became partners with Thomas Bingley at Swinton, trading under the name Greens, Bingley & Company until 1806.(9)

Maker's marks resembling those found on the Townsend jug cannot be found in any books on English ceramics. The earliest known mark for Swinton wares shows the embossed initials W. M, for William Malpass, who owned the works from 1765 to 1768. These initials appear within two or three circles on large slipware dishes, most examples of which are broken shards, excavated from the Swinton site by noted Rockingham experts, Alwyn and Angela Cox.(10) Early nineteenth century marks contained the word BRAMELD, for part owners John and William Brameld, either impressed in capital letters or embossed within an oval with a floral border. In 1826 the name of the works was changed to Rockingham, to honor their patron, the 2nd Earl Fitzwilliam, who was the nephew of the 2nd Marquis of Rockingham. Consequently, the mark changed to include the word Rockingham and also sometimes a griffin, which was a symbol from the Marquis' crest.(11) The Townsend jug is believed to be the only known 18th century marked piece, besides the W.M. marked slip wares, and the only known mark from the period when Swinton was associated with Leeds.(12) Additionally, only one other Swinton/Rockingham piece is known to include the word Yorkshire within the mark; a bust of George IV in biscuit porcelain, circa 1826.(13)

The handwriting in the mark provides another interesting link with the Leeds factory. The first letter in the word Swinton more closely resembles a cursive letter L. Tracings from a Leeds Pattern book reprinted in Donald Towner's book, English Cream-Coloured Earthenware(14), which Towner dates between 1778 and 1792 reveal the word Swinton hand written twice in almost exactly the same way seen on the Townsend jug. This may even indicate that the author of that particular Leeds Pattern Book personally marked the Townsend jug.

Handwriting plays another key role concerning authentication and attribution. In Alwyn and Angela Cox's book, Rockingham: 1745-1842,(15)six pieces are shown on page 69, consisting of three two-handled cups, two teapots and a jug, all unmarked but believed to be from the Swinton Pottery and linked by the same distinctive handwriting of a particular artist. This artist appears to have done the lettering on the Townsend jug as well. Designs painted around the dates also match those found on the Townsend jug's date and a decorative element on the handles of several of the pieces matches one on the Townsend jug above the verse. The Townsend jug also has on its base a matching motif called String of Hearts.(16) Because the Townsend Jug is clearly marked as having been made at the Swinton Pottery works, now these six pieces and others like them can also be unquestionably attributed to Swinton.

More importantly, these shared decorative elements give us glimpses into the unique nature of Swinton wares during its association with Leeds. Alwyn and Angela Cox, in reference to the Townsend jug, write,

One of the most striking visual elements of the Townsend jug is the face on the spout. Two other mask lip jugs survive from this period at Swinton. The earlier of the two is a 7.5" creamware jug, inscribed Michael Kemp/ From Goldthorpe/Yeoman 1771.(18) This jug is the earliest dated piece of Swinton pottery known, and its spout is the "mould from an earlier period" referred to in the above quote. The face on this jug is very similar to that on the Townsend jug, though unpainted and less detailed. The other mask lip jug is also creamware, circa 1780, and has a very different face from the Townsend jug's, but is similar in design, with the mask placed beneath an upper spout.(19) Before I learned of the Kemp jug, realistic details in the face on the Townsend jug, in both the painting and modeling, as well as the one-of-a-kind nature of the piece, had led me believe the face might be a depiction of Solomon Townsend. Unfortunately, Raynham Hall Museum knew of no image of Solomon, except for a silhouette cut in 1778. After many months of scouring the archives, I found mention of a portrait of Solomon in the scrapbook of his son, Dr. Peter Townsend, which read:

This led to the discovery of a listing in the Raynham Hall Museum archives of a photograph of that portrait, previously unknown to the Museum staff. After an exhaustive search, the photograph was located. It was sepia toned, faded and badly damaged, and had been broken in half and repaired with tape. Although the original portrait may have once hung in the parlor of Raynham Hall, (21) its current location remains a mystery.

This image of Solomon's face at age twenty six could now be compared with the face on the jug, which if his, would have been forty nine years old. When placed side by side, the portrait and the mask share many facial characteristics, especially the mouth, chin and eyes. Did the potter, using the earlier mold, add details to make it more resemble Solomon Townsend, or did he simply add more detail and color to make the piece more decorative? Without a picture of Solomon at age forty-nine, we cannot know for sure.

Whether portrait or not, with its subtle modeling and painting details, this jug demonstrates the high quality of workmanship being done at the Swinton Pottery works in 1795. If the mask was designed to be a portrait of Solomon, and the poem was written specifically for him as well, what event or circumstances would precipitate the giving of such an elaborate gift? For clues to that mystery I turned to the commemorative verse and its unusual border.

Footnotes:
1. Raynham Hall Museum archives. The description reads, "Earthenware pitcher. Mask form impressed under spout. Transfer-printed decoration in blue on white body. Gold and green glazes also used. Decorative motifs used are Oriental and American." return to article
2. Geoffrey Rossano and Joan Baldwin, "From Quarterdeck to Blast Furnace: The Revolutionary Career of Captain Solomon Townsend" in The Log of Mystic Seaport 37, no.2 (Summer 1985): 43-61. return to article
3. Rossano and Baldwin, 55. return to article
4. Diamant, Lincoln. Chaining the Hudson: The Fight for the River in the American Revolution (New York: Carol Publishing Group, 1989), 145-158. return to article
5. Rossano and Baldwin, 57. return to article
6. Rossano and Baldwin, 59. return to article
7. Solomon Townsend, Account Book, 1811-1812 , Raynham Hall Museum. return to article
8. Cox, Alwyn and Angela. Rockingham: 1745 - 1842 (Woodbridge, England: Antique Collectors' Club, 2001), 13. return to article
9. Cox, 15. return to article
10. Cox, 24. return to article
11. Cox, 384-385. return to article
12. Alwyn and Angela Cox, letter to author, 7 July, 2004. return to article
13. Cox, 340. return to article
14. Donald C. Towner. English Cream-Coloured Earthenware (London: Faber and Faber, 1978), 85. return to article
15. Cox, 69. return to article
16. Cox, 66. return to article
17. Alwyn and Angela Cox, letter to author, 7 July, 2004. return to article
18. Cox, 37. return to article
19. Cox, 50. return to article
20. Peter Townsend, Scrapbook, Raynham Hall Museum Archives. Additionally, letters written from Solomon to his father Samuel, located in the Raynham Hall Museum archives, show that Solomon Townsend traveled to Lisbon in 1773 as captain of his father's ship, the brig Sally. return to article
21. A mention of the missing portrait can be found in a pamphlet on the history of Raynham Hall, written in 1961 by Town Historian, Dorothy McGee. An account of Samuel Townsend's arrest by British forces in 1776 at Raynham Hall reads: "He (the British soldier) then noticed the portrait of Samuel's son, Captain Solomon Townsend, in the parlor and regretted that he could not be taken too, as he was abroad in command of a ship..." (Dorothy Horton McGee, Raynham Hall, (Town of Oyster Bay, 1961), 8. return to article