Ewenny Pottery
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Ewenny Pottery, founded in 1610 in the village of
Ewenny Ewenny ( cy, Ewenni) is a village and community (parish) on the River Ewenny in the Vale of Glamorgan, Wales. Over the years the village has grown into the neighbouring village of Corntown to such an extent that there is no longer a clear bound ...
, is the oldest working
pottery Pottery is the process and the products of forming vessels and other objects with clay and other ceramic materials, which are fired at high temperatures to give them a hard and durable form. Major types include earthenware, stoneware and ...
in
Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...
.


Background

The village of Ewenny is sited above all of the natural resources to make the local red earthenware pottery: clay deposited from the ice age; wood and coal for firing; glaze materials; and stone to build the
kilns A kiln is a thermally insulated chamber, a type of oven, that produces temperatures sufficient to complete some process, such as hardening, drying, or chemical changes. Kilns have been used for millennia to turn objects made from clay int ...
. Since 1427, there have been fifteen potteries in the Ewenny area at one time or another, all small family concerns.


Foundation

The Ewenny Pottery was founded in 1610, probably by farmers in the area looking to make commercial use of the clay. In the early 1800s Evan Jenkins married Mary, the daughter of then owner John Morgan, and so started the Jenkins family period of ownership that continues to this present day. The products at this time would have been mainly for agricultural and local use, plus occasional commissions. At this time, the number of potteries in the area was at its height, but quickly dwindled due to the onset of cheap
enamelware Vitreous enamel, also called porcelain enamel, is a material made by fusing powdered glass to a substrate by firing, usually between . The powder melts, flows, and then hardens to a smooth, durable vitreous coating. The word comes from the Latin ...
and china imports from the
Far East The ''Far East'' was a European term to refer to the geographical regions that includes East and Southeast Asia as well as the Russian Far East to a lesser extent. South Asia is sometimes also included for economic and cultural reasons. The t ...
.


Horace W Elliot

In 1883 at the height of the Arts and Crafts movement, Bayswater, London based designer and ceramics dealer Horace W Elliot was visiting country potteries looking for pieces to sell in his showrooms. Having struck up a friendship with the Jenkins brothers, he is particularly associated with Ewenny, but also with C.H. Brannam and Bourne Denby. Elliott made annual visits to Eweny until 1913, designing many pieces for the Jenkins brothers to make. His fleur-de-lys design mark was often applied to Ewenny and other wares, and as a proponent of the
Esperanto Esperanto ( or ) is the world's most widely spoken constructed international auxiliary language. Created by the Warsaw-based ophthalmologist L. L. Zamenhof in 1887, it was intended to be a universal second language for international communic ...
movement, sometimes inscribed his pots in that language.


David John Jenkins

In the early 1900s, David John Jenkins was born into the family business. After working with his father in the pottery and uncles at the claypits, he married Martha Arthur whose family had owned the Corntown Pottery, with whom he had seven children. After buying the Ewenny Pottery from his cousin Edwin II, he invented the classical mottled-glazing technique that is still used by the pottery today. The piece is firstly dipped completely in one glaze, and then splashed with a second glaze. David John Jenkins created the technique as he had noticed that thanks to the railways, there were many more visitors travelling into the countryside looking for a unique and original memento of their excursion. At the outbreak of
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
, all of his sons were called-up, and he could only fire the kiln when given permission by the
Air Raid Warden Air Raid Precautions (ARP) refers to a number of organisations and guidelines in the United Kingdom dedicated to the protection of civilians from the danger of air raids. Government consideration for air raid precautions increased in the 1920s an ...
. He was however regularly commissioned by
ROF Bridgend ROF Bridgend, (Filling Factory No. 2), located in Bridgend, South Wales, was one of the largest of sixteen World War II, UK government-owned, Royal Ordnance Factory munitions Filling Factories. Of great significance to the Britain's war effort, ...
to make one-off and commemorative pieces, with his son Dai given leave of absence on one occasion from the
Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) an ...
to help his father fire the kilns.


Post WW2

Post the war, and only Dai and Arthur returned to the business. With growth in the business, the partnership could no longer afford to dig its own clay, and so it consolidated to just being a pottery. After the death of David John Jenkins in 1961, the two brothers became co-owners. However, with mass-produced pottery now cheap, the business was in decline. In 1969, Arthur's eldest son Alun had graduated with a degree in Ceramics from Cardiff College of Art. Wishing to see the business continue, Alun and his wife Jayne started producing pieces in their garage, and then gained a large commission to produce commemorative mugs for the
Silver Jubilee of Elizabeth II The Silver Jubilee of Elizabeth II marked the 25th anniversary of the accession of Queen Elizabeth II on 6 February 1952. It was celebrated with large-scale parties and parades throughout the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth throughout 1977, ...
in 1977.


Present

Alun and Jayne Jenkins (7th generation) continue to produce pieces, together with their daughter Caitlin Jenkins (8th generation) who has a degree in ceramics from the University of Wales Institute Cardiff and a master's degree from the
Royal College of Art The Royal College of Art (RCA) is a public research university in London, United Kingdom, with campuses in South Kensington, Battersea and White City. It is the only entirely postgraduate art and design university in the United Kingdom. It ...
. The present pottery and showrooms are situated on the site of a former kiln, on the main road through the village of Ewenny.


References

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External links


Pottery website
Ceramics manufacturers of Wales 1610 establishments in England Bridgend 1610 in Wales Arts and Crafts movement Welsh pottery Tourist attractions in Bridgend County Borough Art pottery