The Rare Bird Review

Cincinnati in the late 1800's is where the American Art Pottery Movement established its foundation. The Rookwood Pottery and later Rookwood Pottery Company, had a long tradition in the Cincinnati area as one of the most successful pottery companies in the United States in its time.

The Rookwood Pottery was founded by Maria Longworth Nichol, the granddaughter of Cincinnati real-estate millionaire, Nicholas Longworth. Longworth’s other claim to fame was as the father of the American wine industry. With the assistance of her father, Nichol established her own pottery in an old schoolhouse in 1880 and named it after their family vineyard. This particular piece was done in 1904 and hand painted by Lenore Asbury.

Near the turn of the century, pottery was considered an acceptable profession for socially prominent women. Nichol organized clubs of women who hand-painted pottery and attended the Rookwood School for Pottery.

Married with Nichol's personal interest in the development of pottery as an art form, was her belief that it could also be a commercially viable business In a few short years from the birth of the Rookwood Pottery, the success of the business grew. By 1881, the Rookwood Pottery had produced several thousand pieces and would be a dominating force in the pottery market. The pottery changed hands several times and after the early 1900's the quality of the product deteriorated. It remained an active pottery until 1960 when it was closed and converted into a restaurant.

The original Rookwood vineyard is now a city park in Cincinnati and the wine aging caves are still there. Here’s the closing verse of a poem by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow celebrating the wines produced in Cincinnati in the 1820's and beyond.

...And this Song of the Vine,
This greeting of mine,
The winds and the birds shall deliver
To the Queen of the West,
In her garlands dressed,
On the banks of the Beautiful River.

Fortunately, Mr. Longfellow’s poetry was much more refined than his taste in wine.