Home » Home & Style » Antiques & Collectibles » Stangl Pottery, an American Original

Stangl Pottery, an American Original

© Barbara Bell

One of the most popular American pottery manufacturers in the first part of the 20th century was Stangl Pottery. Its colorful, simple designs made its dinnerware lines a casual alternative to more formal styles, while its art pottery lines competed successfully with more expensive and sophisticated ware.

Stangl Pottery's early history goes back to 1814 when it started as Hill Pottery in Flemington, New Jersey. Drain pipes, storage crocks and jars were made from the red earth clay in the area. Abram Fulper purchased the company in the 1860s, focusing on stoneware rather than earthenware. By 1909, Fulper Pottery had moved into art pottery production with its well-known Vasekraft line.

In 1910, ceramic engineer Martin Stangl went to work for Fulper to develop new shapes and glazes. Stangl left Fulper's employ in 1914 to go to Haeger where he created its new art pottery line, borrowing many of Fulper's styles and glazes. The mottled green glaze which he used at Haeger was borrowed from Fulper, and later imitated by other potteries. Much unmarked art pottery from the period imitates this glaze and can be variously confused as Haeger, Fulper or even Grueby or Rookwood.

Stangl rejoined Fulper in 1919, where his continued success led to his becoming vice-president in 1924, when he introduced the first open stock solid-color dinnerware. The company's facilities had expanded to three production factories, though when the original factory in Flemington burned in 1929, production was transferred into the two remaining ones. It was in 1929 that Stangl purchased Fulper and changed the company's name to Stangl Pottery. In 1935, the smaller facility was turned into a retail showroom, in effect becoming the first "factory outlet".

In the earlier years, the Fulper art pottery lines were widely admired because of their Arts and Crafts designs. However, as interest in the style declined, the company directed its designs toward simpler forms and more muted glazes, with oriental motifs. In the 1930s and 1940s, Stangl Pottery introduced a line of bird figurines which were enormously popular and are still very much coveted by collectors. These bird designs were very accurately presented, and were hand-painted and signed by their artists. A porcelain line based on Audubon studies was briefly produced during World War II, but was discontinued after a few years.

Stangl took care to mark all of its pieces and proudly boasted of this in its advertising. A number of marks were used over the years. As many as three identifying marks might appear on a bird figurine, for example: the company's mark, the carver's initials, and the painter's.

Stanglcharger1.jpg

Stanglcardinal1.jpg

The copyright of the article Stangl Pottery, an American Original in Antiques & Collectibles is owned by . Permission to republish Stangl Pottery, an American Original in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.