Trenton Potteries Company (Empire Pottery)

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In operation    1892-1928

Wares

ElectricalSanitaryTableware

Earthen and chinaware (Industrial Directory 1901)

Pottery ware (Industrial Directory 1906)

Electrical porcelain (Industrial Directory 1909)

Sanitary earthenware (Industrial Directory 1912, 1918, 1927)

Notes

“In 1892, the Empire Pottery joined with four other potteries to create the Trenton Potteries Company. The combine concentrated on sanitary pottery and, along with Maddock, was a dominating factor in this phase of pottery production for many years.” 

— Goldberg, David J. 1998.  Preliminary Notes on the Pioneer Potters and Potteries of Trenton, N.J.: The First Thirty Years – 1852 – 1882 (And Beyond). Privately published, Trenton, New Jersey.

Selected References

The Trenton Potteries Company. c.1910.  The Bellemeade line: Vitreous China Lavatories.  Trenton, New Jersey.

The Trenton Potteries Company. 1913.  Catalogue Sanitary Pottery: Bathroom, Toilet, Kitchen and Laundry Fixtures.  S.H. Burbank & Co., Inc., Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

The Trenton Potteries Company. 1915.  The Blue Book of Plumbing. Catalogue N: Sanitary Pottery: Bathroom, Toilet, Kitchen, Laundry and Other Sanitary Fixtures.  S.H. Burbank & Co., Inc., Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

The Trenton Potteries Company. 1921.  The Blue Book of Plumbing. Catalogue R.  Trenton, New Jersey.

The Trenton Potteries Company. 1925.  Established 3500 B.C.: A Brief History of the Origin and Development of All Clay Plumbing Fixtures.  Trenton, New Jersey.

Trenton Magazine. 1925. “How the Trenton Potteries Company Manufactures ‘Tepeco’ All-Clay Plumbing Products: Showing Care Used in Selection of Materials and Explaining Modern Methods Used in the Manufacture of Sanitary Earthenware.” January.

The Trenton Potteries Company. 1927.  The Blue Book of Plumbing. Catalogue T.  S.H. Burbank & Co., Inc., Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Stern, Marc Jeffrey. 1994.  The Pottery Industry of Trenton: A Skilled Trade in Transition, 1850-1929.  Rutgers University Press, New Brunswick, New Jersey.

Goldberg, David J. 1998.  Preliminary Notes on the Pioneer Potters and Potteries of Trenton, N.J.: The First Thirty Years – 1852 – 1882 (And Beyond).  Privately published, Trenton, New Jersey.

Other firms at this site:

Other Names

Trenton Potteries Company Plant #3

Block and Lot:
39-1B/1

Historic Street Address:
Clinton Avenue on Belvidere and Delaware Railroad; Clinton Avenue on Perry Street; North Clinton Avenue corner of Ott Street

Municipality:
City of Trenton

Image Gallery

Empire Pottery, 1900 Industrial Trenton (Wolf p.71)
Two Vases, vitreous china, made by Trenton Art China/Trenton Potteries Company, ca. 1935-1942, L 8 in H, R 6.25 in H. During the Great Depression, when there was little home or institutional building, Trenton Potteries made up for the slow sanitary market by making stylish vases for florists and home décor. The Orbit Vase (L) was designed by G. McStay Jackson. Collection of the New Jersey State Museum, CH1981.48 and CH1988.26.1
Bathroom Sink, cast porcelain, Norwich model, made by Crane/Trenton Potteries Company, circa 1930, 24 in W. The sink was removed from the New Jersey State House during renovations in 2017. Collection of the New Jersey State Museum, CH2018.4.6
Presentation Chamber Pot, ironstone, made by Trenton Potteries and hand-painted at Lenox China, 1909, 8 in H with cover. Made for Edmund D. Cook, President of the Trenton Chamber of Commerce. The makers have turned a common chamber pot into a ceremonial object. The use of three handles, where there would otherwise be one, is meant to suggest a tyg, an ancient communal drinking vessel that is passed around in a group for the purposes of celebration. The painted scenes show the Cook family's industrial, financial, political and social interests in Trenton. Collection of the New Jersey State Museum, CH1980.38.68a,b
CH1980.38.68 a,bCultural HistoryChamber Pot1909Trenton Potteries CompanyIronstone chamber pot decorated with Trenton businesses
Presentation Chamber Pot, ironstone, made by Trenton Potteries and hand-painted at Lenox China, 1909, 8 in H with cover. Made for Edmund D. Cook, President of the Trenton Chamber of Commerce. The makers have turned a common chamber pot into a ceremonial object. The use of three handles, where there would otherwise be one, is meant to suggest a tyg, an ancient communal drinking vessel that is passed around in a group for the purposes of celebration. The painted scenes show the Cook family's industrial, financial, political and social interests in Trenton. Collection of the New Jersey State Museum, CH1980.38.68a,b
Presentation Chamber Pot, ironstone, made by Trenton Potteries and hand-painted at Lenox China, 1909, 8 in H with cover. Made for Edmund D. Cook, President of the Trenton Chamber of Commerce. The makers have turned a common chamber pot into a ceremonial object. The use of three handles, where there would otherwise be one, is meant to suggest a tyg, an ancient communal drinking vessel that is passed around in a group for the purposes of celebration. The painted scenes show the Cook family's industrial, financial, political and social interests in Trenton. Collection of the New Jersey State Museum, CH1980.38.68a,b
Presentation Chamber Pot, ironstone, made by Trenton Potteries and hand-painted at Lenox China, 1909, 8 in H with cover. Made for Edmund D. Cook, President of the Trenton Chamber of Commerce. The makers have turned a common chamber pot into a ceremonial object. The use of three handles, where there would otherwise be one, is meant to suggest a tyg, an ancient communal drinking vessel that is passed around in a group for the purposes of celebration. The painted scenes show the Cook family's industrial, financial, political and social interests in Trenton. Collection of the New Jersey State Museum, CH1980.38.68a,b
Presentation Chamber Pot, ironstone, made by Trenton Potteries and hand-painted at Lenox China, 1909, 8 in H with cover. Made for Edmund D. Cook, President of the Trenton Chamber of Commerce. The makers have turned a common chamber pot into a ceremonial object. The use of three handles, where there would otherwise be one, is meant to suggest a tyg, an ancient communal drinking vessel that is passed around in a group for the purposes of celebration. The painted scenes show the Cook family's industrial, financial, political and social interests in Trenton. Collection of the New Jersey State Museum, CH1980.38.68a,b
Presentation Chamber Pot, ironstone, made by Trenton Potteries and hand-painted at Lenox China, 1909, 8 in H with cover. Made for Edmund D. Cook, President of the Trenton Chamber of Commerce. The makers have turned a common chamber pot into a ceremonial object. The use of three handles, where there would otherwise be one, is meant to suggest a tyg, an ancient communal drinking vessel that is passed around in a group for the purposes of celebration. The painted scenes show the Cook family's industrial, financial, political and social interests in Trenton. Collection of the New Jersey State Museum, CH1980.38.68a,b
Presentation Chamber Pot, ironstone, made by Trenton Potteries and hand-painted at Lenox China, 1909, 8 in H with cover. Made for Edmund D. Cook, President of the Trenton Chamber of Commerce. The makers have turned a common chamber pot into a ceremonial object. The use of three handles, where there would otherwise be one, is meant to suggest a tyg, an ancient communal drinking vessel that is passed around in a group for the purposes of celebration. The painted scenes show the Cook family's industrial, financial, political and social interests in Trenton. Collection of the New Jersey State Museum, CH1980.38.68a,b

Map Gallery

Empire Pottery, 1905 Lathrop
Empire Pottery, 1908 Sanborn Map
Empire Pottery, 1927 Sanborn Map
Map References

Lathrop, J. M. 1905.   Atlas of the City of Trenton and Borough of Princeton. A.H. Mueller & Company, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.  (Plate 9: shown as “Empire Pottery Trenton Potteries Co.”)

Sanborn Map Company.  1908.  Insurance Maps of the City of Trenton, Mercer County, New Jersey, Volume 1. Sanborn Map Company, New York, New York.  (Vol.1, plate 37: shown as “Empire”)

Sanborn Map Company.  1927.  Insurance Maps of the City of Trenton, Mercer County, New Jersey. Sanborn Map Company, New York, New York.   (Vol. 1, plate 53: shown as “Trenton Potteries Co. Plant #3”)