Tuesday, May 27, 2008

The Real McCoy






In 1910, J.W. McCoy formed a company in Roseville, Ohio with his son Nelson McCoy. The Nelson McCoy Sanitary Stoneware Company lasted through most of the twentieth century. McCoy hired artisans to to experiment with new and blended glazes.

Early designs by Walter Bauer reflected nature in the form of leaves and berries, and coloration was typically earth tone with browns, greens and creamy whites. In 1933, the company changed its name to the Nelson McCoy Pottery Company. The 1930s designs introduced some of McCoy's best known work beyond the floral themes of Walter Bauer, producing charming planters such as The Wishing Well, The Hunting Dog, and Down By the Old Mill Stream. Cookie jars, such as the original "Mammy" design, were produced in between 1940 and 1960 and remain extremely popular with collectors today.

In the 1960's, McCoy went into decline as cheaper overseas imports made profit increasingly difficult. McCoy was first sold to The Mount Clemens Pottery Company in 1967 and later to the Lancaster Colony Corporation in 1974, and all further production ceased in 1990 and the company went out of business.

WT surprised me with this old metal medical cabinet about 15 years ago. He brought it home from a hospital auction and it was a tad on the dented and rusty side. I had it painted with the electrolysis method, and  replaced the knobs. It's perfect for displaying my vintage matte white pottery. I like to keep an eye out for McCoy at garage sales and flea markets. It’s especially thrilling to find apiece that’s been in someone’s garage or basement for years with dirt still in it, for a dollar or two!

25 comments:

  1. Are you a fan of Antiques Road Show on PBS? One of the things I like about blogging is getting to know what makes a person "tick". What their interests are. We are truly unique and wonderfully made!!!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Oh I adore and covet your gorgeous pottery. I am a frustrated potter at heart and have done some over the years, but kilns are a rare thing out here!

    ReplyDelete
  3. You have a lovely collection Willow. It is beautifully displayed also.

    I have the same large white jar as you have in the second picture! I have it on display on a shelve in my entertainment center along with some other pottery. My favorite Homer Laughlin piece is a Orange Tree bowl in teal blue. It was my grandmother's bowl.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Willow, I love the metal cabinet. It's perfect for your collections!

    I have a McCoy Tea set that I'll have to send you a picture of.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Wow, what a beautiful (and extensive) collection. I love it. And your cabinet is gorgeous!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Impressive collection!

    Love the metal cabinet, too

    ReplyDelete
  7. Oh yea...I was hoping you would do a post about your wonderful collection! It's so beautiful...I know others will enjoy getting a glimpse of it!

    ReplyDelete
  8. What lovely pottery and I never knew that was where the expression came from. Oh, and I love that Wyeth painting of the crippled girl in the field. Do you know the one I mean? I am busy rethatching the house - a messy job. I'll post some pics this weekend. Love Eleanor

    ReplyDelete
  9. Oh how cool!! I love that cabinet!!
    You should do another post of the recent ghostly going's on at Willow Manor. I love hearing your stories!! I think the previous owner was trying to tell you something with the plant, and the door, I would have peed my pants if that happened to me!! If you're interested you might want to take a blank tape and get a little hand held recorder and see if you can pick up any EVP's in your house. Electronic Voice Phenomena. You should google it, it's pretty interesting. Keep me up to date!!
    ~Lady Em~

    ReplyDelete
  10. So impressive! Beautiful cabinet, how unique. Nice to see so much of your McCoy collection, its quite beautiful. The pieces are all so interesting. That cabinet is a real find...hubby had a good eye to spot it and see the potential.

    I may just have to pick up a McCoy piece myself, just to feel in the swing of things with my fellow bloggers. I wonder if there is alot of it in Canada?

    ReplyDelete
  11. Always interesting and educational Willow. I was forever too busy to really sit and enjoy the stories behind the paintings and other works of art. I am learning to appreciate the back stories more all the time. Thanks for the snippets. Pappy

    ReplyDelete
  12. Absolutely lovely, everything in your home appears to be both beautiful and well loved and how perfect is that. Very inspirational to me. thanks Willow ! xo, S.

    ReplyDelete
  13. Oh my Willow...I love your collection of McCoys..I've had the good fortune to come across a few of these now and then myself...but we had a small antique business for a while and unfortunately sold them..They are quite dear and collectible...Gorgeous old cabinet to display them in...you have such lovely taste....Dee Dee

    ReplyDelete
  14. I agree with Lady Em ~ tell more ghost stories! Funny how we adults can get all excited at the thought of a creepy story ~ just like kids telling silly ones at a sleepover. But your stories are real! ha-ha...even better!

    ReplyDelete
  15. Beautiful McCoy collection and that cabinet is perfect! I love that you re-purposed it this way. So creamy to match the pieces inside.

    ReplyDelete
  16. Willow,

    I am a friend of Strider's and found you via his blog. I love your photos, your quotes, and your passion for the arts, which I also share.

    I really enjoyed visiting your blog and will be back again soon!

    Grace,
    Madison Richards

    ReplyDelete
  17. What a fabulous collection and so beautifully displayed! And your peonies!!!!! Love visiting your blog, Willow.

    ReplyDelete
  18. You know, I think that pottery mixing bowl I painted awhile back may be a piece of McCoy stoneware!

    ReplyDelete
  19. Sharon, it probably was McCoy or possible Bauer.

    Some pieces are marked USA, some McCoy, some Nelson McCoy and some are completely unmarked.

    ReplyDelete
  20. Strider, yes! I absolutely love Antiques Road Show. Always very interesting. I love it when people find something at a garage sale for $5 and find out it's worth a quarter of a million dollars!
    .........................

    Britgal, my son does pottery and has a kiln. He's been so busy lately that he does throw pots as much as he would like.
    ............................

    Stevie, I know that Orange Tree pattern! It looks like it could be McCoy. It's beautiful. Don't you love pieces that where in the family? Special history there.
    .............................

    Rebecca, yes send it! I'd love to see it!

    ..............................

    Lady Em and Betsy, okay...I will have to post some ghost stories soon! ;)
    ...............................

    DeeDee, how fun that you had an antiques business! I would love that. I'll know who to ask now, if I have a question about vintage!

    ReplyDelete
  21. Beautiful cabinet. Who have ever guess its past? The pottery is lovely too. I didn't know anything about the McCoy collection but certainly do now.

    It's obvious from your posts and pictures over the months that you have good tastes.

    ReplyDelete
  22. I would love to see a close up shot of your pottery bust. I haven't ever seen one of those. Are they rare?

    ReplyDelete
  23. Stevie, that bust is actually an old metal lighter. She used to have an electrical gadget in her mouth that did the lighting. I love her patina!

    ReplyDelete
  24. I always wondered where the real mccoy phrase came from!!! Thanks!

    ReplyDelete
  25. Willow, I'm from Zanesville, Ohio..very near Roseville...our town is known world-wide as the Pottery Capital of the World. The McCoys just issued what will be their last Cookie Jar (ever) this year, a Christmas tree. They are selling it for $70, I hear it is going very quickly.
    Anyone who loves Roseville pottery or any of the other potteries from this area should really plan a trip to see all the shops and antique malls we have that are just filled to the brim with treasures!!

    ReplyDelete

Inject a few raisins of conversation into the tasteless dough of existence.
― O. Henry (and me)