Preview
Creation Date
1905
Description
In this lantern slide, workers can be seen making pottery at the Noted Pottery Center in Trenton, New Jersey. Trenton was famous for its pottery industry, with the first pottery shops opening in 1850. By 1900, over fifty pottery manufacturers were in operation within the city, being ideally placed for easily acquiring raw materials as well as being close to markets and transportation networks. The city also allowed interactions between entrepreneurs and potters, embraced industrialization in multiple industries, and possessed a significant fund and labor pool that all contributed to the pottery industry’s growth. At its peak, Trenton produced pottery ranging from terracotta to porcelain, and numerous other types of earthenware products. The pottery industry ultimately died out in the city following the Great Depression and World War II as the Depression resulted in resource and market shortages while the Second World War promoted the growth of labor-saving technology and plastics, replacing the need for earthenware products and skilled manufacturers.
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
