Trenton Terra-Cotta Works

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The types of wares made appear below the pottery name in the left-hand column, followed by the references that informed these classifications.

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Notes include a variety of information compiled from many standard sources and are presented as miscellaneous tidbits.

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In operation    1867-1895

Wares

BricksGardenOtherTerra-cotta

Bricks, terra cotta (Webb & Fitzgerald 1865)

Drainpipes, chimney tops and chimney flues (Everts & Stewart 1875)

Notes

“This company manufactures all varieties of fire-brick, salt-glazed, drain- and sewer-pipe, chimney tops and flues, and garden ornaments. Seventy-five men are employed here, and twenty-five thousand dollars are annually paid for labor. Two thousand five hundred tons of coal and six thousand tons of clay are annually consumed, and one million fire-brick, thirty thousand saggers, and a large variety of terra-cotta ware are annually produced.  The officers of the company are Joseph McPherson, president; O.O. Bowman, treasurer and manager; and G.W. McPherson, secretary.”

— Woodward, E.M. and John F. Hageman. 1883.  History of Burlington and Mercer Counties.  Everts and Peck, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Selected References

Everts & Stewart. 1875. “Various Enterprises.” Combination Atlas, Map of Mercer County. P. XII. Everts & Stewart, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Woodward, E.M. and John F. Hageman. 1883.  History of Burlington and Mercer Counties.  Everts and Peck, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Harney, W.J. 1929. “Trenton’s First Potteries.” Sunday Times Advertiser, July 7, 14, 21 and 28, 1929.

“History of the Bowmans: O.O. Bowman and His Sons.” 1940. Bulletin of the American Ceramic Society 19:175.

 

Other firms at this site:

Other Names

O.O. Bowman & Company; O.O. Bowman's Trenton Terracotta Works; Trenton Terra-Cotta Company

Block and Lot:
75B

Historic Street Address:
Third Street and Landing Street; Third Street on Second Street; Davies Street corner of Lalor Street

Municipality:
City of Trenton

Image Gallery

1887 Trenton-Terra-Cotta Works (Quarter Century's Progress p. 275)
Trenton Terra Cotta Works (1875 Everts and Stewart p. 53)
1871 Trenton Fire Brick and Terra-Cotta Works

Map Gallery

Trenton Terra-Cotta Works, 1870 Beers
Trenton Terra Cotta Works, 1875 Everts & Stewart Map
Trenton Terra Cotta Works, 1881 Robinson
Trenton Terra Cotta Works, 1882 Haven Map
Trenton Terra-Cotta Works,1886 Sanborn
Trenton Terra-Cotta Works, 1890 Scarlett & Scarlett
Trenton Terra Cotta Works, 1890 Sanborn Map
Map References

Beers, F. W. 1870  Map of the City of Trenton, New Jersey. F.W. Beers & Company, New York, New York.   (Shown as “Terra Cotta Wks. O.O. Bowman & Co.”)

Everts & Stewart.  1875  Combination Atlas Map of Mercer County. Everts and Stewart, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.   (Shown as “O.O. Bowman’s Terra Cotta Works”)

Robinson, E., and R. H. Pidgeon. 1881. Atlas of the City of Trenton and Suburbs New Jersey: From Actual Surveys and Official Records.  E. Robinson, New York, New York.   (Plate J: shown as “Trenton Terra Cotta Works”)

Haven, C. C.  1882.   A New Real Estate and Insurance Map of the City of Trenton Including Chambersburg, Millham, and Parts of Ewing, Lawrence, and Hamilton Townships, Mercer County. E.P. Noll & Co., Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.  (Shown as “Trenton Terracotta Works”)

Sanborn, D. A. 1874.   Insurance Diagrams of Trenton. Corrected to 1886.  D.A. Sanborn, New York, New York.   (Plate 4: shown as “Trenton Terra Cotta Co.”)

Sanborn‑Perris Map Company.  1890.   Insurance Maps of the City of Trenton, Mercer County, New Jersey. Sanborn‑Perris Map Company, New York, New York.   (Plate 38: shown as “Trenton Terracotta Works”)

Scarlett & Scarlett.  1890.   Scarlett & Scarlett’s Fire Insurance Map of Mercer County.  Scarlett & Scarlett, Newark, New Jersey.   (Plate 29: shown as “Trenton Terra Cotta Co.”)