Crock
Maker
Hanteel Kemple
PeriodCirca 1770 - 1790
Place MadeEast Amwell, New Jersey, U.S.A.
MediumSalt glazed stoneware
Dimensions11 × 7.5 in. (27.9 × 19.1 cm)
ClassificationsStoneware
Credit LineGift of Mrs. J. Amory Haskell, 1936
Object number1979.508.50
DescriptionA stoneware crock with a thick rounded lip rim, ovoid bellied body, and a rounded foot. Two freestanding handles are applied to the shoulders of the crock. Molded ribs circle the crock below the rim and at the base. A coiled double spiral or "watchspring" motif in bright cobalt blue oxide decorates the upper portion of the crock between the handles, with additional blue floral motifs at each handle join.Curatorial RemarksIn 1936, Mrs. J. Amory Haskell, after restoring and furnishing the Taylor family property Marlpit Hall in Middletown, donated the historic site to the Monmouth County Historical Association. This stoneware crock was part of the original furnishings, and may be one of the "4 crocks, gray, with blue design, no name" listed in the house contents inventory.NotesIn 1746, John Peter Kemple bought 245 acres of land in the Ringoes area of East Amwell Township in Hunterdon County, New Jersey. It appears that the Kemple family made their primary living as farmers, running a small redware and stoneware pottery as a sideline. Archaeological surveys of the area uncovered both redware and stoneware fragments in a variety of utilitarian forms including crocks, jugs, pots, pans, plates, and even cups and collanders. After John Kemple's death in 1761, his son Phillip took over the family farm and with it the pottery. After Phillip's death in or around 1777, an inventory of his estate was made in 1778. It indicated an active pottery and listed a potter's mill and potter's wheel, as well as a great deal of clay, unbaked wares, glaze, and other equipment. The Kemple pottery was continued by Phillip's second son Hanteel (whose name appears as "Hantiel" or "Ontel" in various records). Phillip's first son, John, apparently was also a potter but moved to the New York City area to start his own pottery business. Hanteel Kemple died intestate (without a will) in 1798. Records relate that most of the family had relocated to Northumberland County in Pennyslvania. The remaining heirs renounced claim to Hanteel's estate, which was then sold by the state of New Jersey. Hanteel's estate inventory indicates that he was unmarried, as typical women's items such as looms, spinning wheels, and other textile production equipment did not appear.
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