Tile has been a favorite building material in California since the early Spanish settled the area and brought with them the tradition of using brightly colored tiles in architecture. Helen Stiles, author of numerous books on the history of pottery, noted that
Spanish,
Mexican, and
Chinese design of the 17th and 18th centuries all influenced the decoration of tile and other pottery in California. As people moved into California after statehood in 1848, the demand for ceramic products grew exponentially. Buildings needed roofs, floors, and sewer pipes. The ceramic industry grew as the demand increased. The "Golden Era in tile making" The period around
World War II saw the greatest growth for the U.S. ceramic industry. With imports cut off from European and Asian markets, small family-owned and larger potteries stepped in to fill the need for ceramic giftware and tableware throughout the United States. By 1948, "the peak year for the industry, over eight hundred ceramic concerns were in operation throughout California." California potteries, from the 1930s to the 1960s in reference to the range of products and output, were
Vernon Kilns,
J.A. Bauer Pottery,
Metlox Potteries,
Pacific Clay Products, and
Gladding, McBean & Co. All of the "Big Five" potteries operated production facilities in the
Los Angeles Basin. Gladding, McBean & Co. grew from one factory manufacturing sewer pipe and architectural terra cotta in Lincoln, California, to factories throughout California and the
Pacific Northwest. Vernon Kilns closed in 1958, J.A. Bauer in 1962, and Metlox in 1988. The former Gladding, McBean & Co.'s Franciscan tableware and tile factory in Los Angeles was bought by
Wedgwood from the Interpace corporation in 1979. Wedgwood closed the Franciscan Ceramics plant in 1984, moving production of the Franciscan tableware brands to England. The former Gladding, McBean & Co.'s Lincoln factory was purchased by Pacific Coast Building Products in 1976 and continues to produce sewer pipe, architectural terra cotta, and terra cotta garden ware. Pacific Clay Products discontinued manufacturing tableware, art ware, and figurines in 1942. Pacific Clay Products continues to manufacture sewer pipe.
Big Five potteries table To use the sortable tables: click on the icons at the top of each column to sort that column in alphabetical order; click again for reverse alphabetical order. ==Potteries of California==