Ext. Rare Vermillion Brothers 2 Gallon Crock White Hall, Illinois Stoneware

  

This is a very rare piece of Midwestern utilitarian stoneware made in White Hall, Illinois. The jar (crock) is about 2 gallons in size, measuring 10.25" tall and about 9.5" across. It has a white glaze with a cobalt blue rectangular border with Vermillion Bros.

Condition wise, it is very good. I hesitate to call anything mint, but this crock doesn't look like it was used much, if at all. There are no major chips or chipping. You can see the turning marks from being hand thrown on the inside.

At one time, the small town of White Hall, Illinois, located between St. Louis, MO and Springfield, IL was one of the largest producers of stoneware and sewer tile in the midwest. The vast deposits of clay and coal, along with steamboat travel (from the nearby Illinois River) and rail lines stretching from St. Louis, Alton, to Jacksonville, Springfield and beyond helped to support the rapid growth of pottery and stoneware in the region. From "The Potteries of White Hall" - Mounce, Walthall, McGuire wrote.

The slip used in producing this glaze was a combination of Brandywine feldspar and Tennessee ball clay. This was the first time such a combination had been used in White Hall. Previous to this, Hill & Prindle and A. Ruckel & Son had used pure Albany slip, producing a fine, rich, dark ware.

In 1897 Vermillion Brothers turned the largest jug ever made in the world. The dimensions were as follows: Height 61 inches, diameter 36 inches, circumference 9 feet 5 inches. This jug had a capacity of 175 gallons. It was turned by hand on an old fashioned kick wheel.

Louis Post-Dispatch published an account of the making of this jug at the time. In the same year a river convention was held in New Orleans, and the Post-Dispatch published in their account of the convention a statement that a liquor dealer in New Orleans had this same big jug in his cellar full of imported Rhine wine. Morrow, who continued to operate it as a stoneware plant until 1905... The brothers were William, Lincoln, John, Joseph, and Richard. 1900 - the Vermillion Brothers introduce the first white glaze stoneware ever made in White Hall.

Previous to this, the potteries of Hill & Prindle and A. Ruckel had used only Albany (dark brown) slip. While not a collector of blue white or Illinois pottery, I've only seen one other piece sell publicly over the last 25 years.

I've seen photos of three others. This could truly be a once in a lifetime piece for some collectors. Rare Vermillion Brothers 2 Gallon Crock White Hall, Illinois Stoneware" is in sale since Sunday, June 30, 2019.

This item is in the category "Antiques\Decorative Arts\Ceramics & Porcelain\Crocks". The seller is "icollectfruitjars" and is located in Collinsville, Illinois. This item can be shipped to United States. 120 years

Color: Bristol

Country/Region of Origin: U.