Thomas Maddock was an innovative pioneer in the Trenton pottery industry. Born in England in 1818 and apprenticed there as a potter, he came to the United States in 1847 to establish his own decorating business. In 1873, Maddock joined Richard Millington and John Astbury in operating the Carroll Street Pottery. The firm produced dinnerware, but Maddock was more interested in producing good quality sanitary ware, and as he gained control of the business, he shifted production from table ware to sanitary ware. By 1891 almost all of the sanitary ware sold in the United States originated in Trenton, but a labor dispute that year resulted in the city losing its grip on the industry. Even so, Thomas Maddock’s Sons continued to produce sanitary ware into the 1920s. In 1929 the company was purchased by American Standard, Inc.