In 1872, Samuel A. Weller founded Weller Pottery in Fultonham, Ohio, United States. Originally, his business consisted of a small cabin and one beehive kiln, and Weller produced flower pots, bowls, crocks, and vases. By 1905, Weller Pottery was the largest pottery in the country. It mass-produced art pottery until about 1920, and it produced commercial lines until the pottery closed in 1948.
Early period, 1872−1910
In 1872, when Samuel Augustus Weller was 21, he established and operated a one-man pottery in Fultonham in Muskingum County, Ohio. Between 1882−1890, he had expanded to Zanesville, with a factory on Pierce Street along the river. In 1893 he saw William Long's Lonhuda ware at the Chicago World's Fair, and Long joined Weller to produce this faience-glazed pottery line. When Long left Weller's employ after less than a year, Weller renamed the faience line Louwelsa after his daughter Louisa, who had been born in 1896. From 1895−1904, Charles Babcock Upjohn was Weller's head designer, developing the DickenswareI, DickenswareII, Eocean and Corleone lines. By 1897, Henry Schmidt designed Weller's Turada line, the first "squeeze-bag" pottery line in the Ohio valley. Decorators used squeeze-bags like cake decorators, squeezing the paint onto the ceramic rather than painting it on with brushes. From 1902−1907, Jacques Sicard and Henri Gellie worked at Weller's pottery to develop a metallic glaze, which had been introduced by Clement Massier in France by 1889, as Reflets Metalliques. The Sicardo line went into production in the fall of 1903, but the process was difficult, and only about 30% of the finished pots were marketable. In this same period, between 1902 and 1905, Weller had become the world's largest pottery and mass-producer of art pottery. In 1903 and 1904, Frederick Hurten Rhead worked for a short time at Weller Pottery, developing Jap Birdimal line in 1904. He left in 1904 to become Roseville Pottery's first art director, and later designed the very popular Fiesta line for Homer Laughlin China Company. At the St. Louis Exposition in 1904, Weller had huge display, including a vase, and a working studio, complete with a kiln. In 1908, Rudolph Lorber developed Dechiwo, which led to Burntwood, Claywood, and other similar lines.
Louwelsa 1896–1924 Dickensware I 1897–1898 Dickensware II 1900–1905 Dickensware III 1903–1904 Turada 1897–1898 Aurelian 1898–1910 Eocean 1898–1918 Sicard 1902–1907 Jap Birdimal 1903 Fru Russet 1904 Floretta 1904 Hunter 1904 Matt Floretta 1904 Perfecto 1904 Dresden 1905–1910 Etna 1906 Burntwood and Claywood 1910
Middle period, 1910−1932
From 1916−1929, Rudolph Lorbor developed Brighton birds, Muskota, Woodcraft, Forest, Glendale and other great naturalistic lines, ending with Coppertone in 1929. In 1917, Weller had introduced the family of Hudson lines. In this same period, Dorothy England Laughead created Silvertone, Chase, and the Garden Animals. John Lessell headed the decorating department from 1920−1924, developing luster−glaze lines including LaSa, Marengo, Cloudburst, Lamar, and others. On July 1, 1922, Weller Pottery incorporated as "S.A. Weller, Inc." Samuel Augustus Weller died on October 4, 1925. His nephew Harry Weller became president from 1925−1932, introducing continuous kiln operation. He consolidated the Weller plants in 1931 due to depression era economics, and died in auto crash in 1932. From 1930−1932, the last freehand decorated lines introduced at Weller were Stellar, Geode, Cretone, Raceme, and Bonito.
Middle period art ware and commercial lines
Cameo Jewel 1910 Souevo 1910 Camelot 1913 Clinton Ivory−before 1914 Roma 1914−late 1920s Muskota 1915 Teakwood 1915 Athens 1915 Blue Drapery 1915 Brighton 1915 Copra 1915 Creamware 1915 Fairfield 1915 Orris 1915 Baldin 1915–1920 Flemish mid teens−1928 Forrest mid teens−1928 Jewell approx. 1916 Dupont late teens Rosemont late teens−late 1920s Zona 1920
From 1932−1933, Sam Weller's son-in-law Frederic Grant was president for one year. When Grant divorced from Weller's daughter Ethel, Weller's other son-in-law, Irvin Smith, became president from 1933−1937. By 1935, freehand decoration had ended at Weller Pottery; from 1935−1948, Weller produced simplified embossed lines. From 1937−1948, Walter Hughes, a ceramic engineer and former employee at American Encaustic Tiling Company, was Weller Pottery's last president. During 1947−1948, Essex Wire Corporation acquired a controlling share in Weller, closing the pottery in 1948.
Late period commercial ware
Woodcraft 1920−1933 Hudson 1920's−mid 1930s Voile early 1920s−1938 Alvin 1928 Glendale through the 1920s Silvertone through the 1920s
