English Pottery Turned Out Large Quantities Of Dogs

Some of the pottery dogs made in the Staffordshire district of England may look peculiar to us today, because they were modeled after breeds of dogs that no longer exist. One such type is the “Comforter,” a lap dog similar to a cocker spaniel, that had been developed from the Maltese dog and the King Charles spaniel.

Poodles were very popular during the late 1800s. They were trimmed to leave curly hair around the face, on the shoulders and chest and on top of the tail. The dog ended up looking like a miniature lion, and this is the form duplicated by the Staffordshire potters.

Other favorites were pointers, foxhounds, sheepdogs, pugs and dalmatians. Altogether, over 200 different models of dogs were produced.

The figurines were usually made in pairs, meant to be displayed facing each other. At the time, they were used primarily as mantel decorations, called “chimney ornaments.”

They range in size from under six inches to over eighteen inches in height.  Their bodies may be solid or have separated legs. Some have gold chains with a locket or padlock.

Many of the dogs are depicted with baskets of flowers hanging from their mouths; some are fitted with slots, so they can be used as banks. And the whippets often carry a rabbit in their mouths.

The dogs were made by the carload and sold door-to-door, at county fairs, in open-air markets, and at tourist attractions for only a few cents. They were designed for the common folk who only had a small amount to spend.

Production of these dogs continued until World War I, but they gradually became cruder and less detailed. Those made after the beginning of the 20th century are definitely of inferior quality.

More recently, reproductions abound. The first of these came from England, Japan and Hong Kong. Old pieces tend to develop a crackling in the glaze, and this may be one indication of the authenticity of a piece. However, the crazing may be forced on a reproduction, also.

Several examples of dogs are included in Staffordshire Animals, by Adele Kenny (Schiffer Publishing.)

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International Language Had ‘Hope’ To Be International

Esperanto was an international language, hailed as the coming thing by educators in the early 1900s. In 1912, when the International Esperanto Convention was held in Portland, it was estimated that 4 million people had learned to speak Esperanto was an international language, hailed as the coming thing by educators in the early 1900s. In 1912, when the International Esperanto Convention was held in Portland, it was estimated that 4 million people had learned to speak Esperanto. Seventy-eight magazines or journals were devoted entirely to this language, including La Simbolo, published in Tacoma. The same year, a Portland Community Club booklet with the title which translated to “Oregon, Land of Promise” was published in Esperanto.

Esperanto was said to be an easy language that could be readily learned by anyone and could become an international tongue for all peoples to communicate. It was created by Dr. L.L. Zamen­ hof, a Polish oculist. There were four languages spoken in his native town of Bielostoh, and Zamenhof was very much aware of the need for a common language.

He published the first Esperanto grammar in 1889. The theory of Esperanto was that it had any words common to all languages, such as telefono, arto, muziko and telegrafo. It also had a large number of other words belonging to two or three languages, including blua, tempo, granda and inko. during the first 15 years after Esperanto was introduced, its progress was slow but steady, and by 1904 there were said to be 100,000 Esperantists.

Enthusiastic promoters of the new language declared that it would be a tremendous stride ahead when all people of each country had acquired, in addition to their native tongues, a practical and easy international language which would give them access to the whole world.

In the Northwest, many prominent educators and citizens took up the cause of Esperanto. Mr. and Mrs. J.C. Cooper of McMinnville, Oregon, were two of the most enthusiastic and it was through their efforts that the international Esperanto convention was brought to Portland.

At this convention, it was predicted that Esperanto would soon be a required course in all schools and  colleges and that everyone who studied it would be enthusiastic about the new language because it was absolutely phonetic and easy to learn. Nouns always ended in O, adjectives in A and adverbs in E.

Today, Esperanto is listed in the dictionary as an artificial language having a vocabulary based on words in the major European languages. While we certainly don’t hear it spoken in this area, it is still around, and actually used by some people around the world, and according to at least one web site, there are over a hundred periodicals regularly published in Esperanto.

Incidentally, the word Esperanto, in Esperanto, means “a person who is hoping.”eranto. Seventy-eight magazines or journals were devoted entirely to this language, including La Simbolo, published in Tacoma. The same year, a Portland Community Club booklet with the title which translated to “Oregon, Land of Promise” was published in Esperanto.

Esperanto was said to be an easy language that could be readily learned by anyone and could become an international tongue for all peoples to communicate. It was created by Dr. L.L. Zamen­ hof, a Polish oculist. There were four languages spoken in his native town of Bielostoh, and Zamenhof was very much aware of the need for a common language.

He published the first Esperanto grammar in 1889. The theory of Esperanto was that it had any words common to all languages, such as telefono, arto, muziko and telegrafo. It also had a large number of other words belonging to two or three languages, including blua, tempo, granda and inko. during the first 15 years after Esperanto was introduced, its progress was slow but steady, and by 1904 there were said to be 100,000 Esperantists.

Enthusiastic promoters of the new language declared that it would be a tremendous stride ahead when all people of each country had acquired, in addition to their native tongues, a practical and easy international language which would give them access to the whole world.

In the Northwest, many prominent educators and citizens took up the cause of Esperanto. Mr. and Mrs. J.C. Cooper of McMinnville, Oregon, were two of the most enthusiastic and it was through their efforts that the international Esperanto convention was brought to Portland.

At this convention, it was predicted that Esperanto would soon be a required course in all schools and  colleges and that everyone who studied it would be enthusiastic about the new language because it was absolutely phonetic and easy to learn. Nouns always ended in O, adjectives in A and adverbs in E.

Today, Esperanto is listed in the dictionary as an artificial language having a vocabulary based on words in the major European languages. While we certainly don’t hear it spoken in this area, it is still around, and actually used by some people around the world, and according to at least one web site, there are over a hundred periodicals regularly published in Esperanto.

Incidentally, the word Esperanto, in Esperanto, means “a person who is hoping.”

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Civil War Use Of Coffee Spurred Popularity Of Drink

That All-American starter, the morning cup of coffee, is something one can easily take for granted. We are now able to bypass the stages of roasting the coffee beans and then grinding them that used to be necessities. All of the processes of coffee making were time-consuming.

The first item of equipment needed was a coffee roaster, to cook the green coffee beans. In the late 1700s, these roasters were part of a tin peddler’s stock. One type was a cylinder of tin which was set on an iron rod and held over the hearth with a long wooden handle. Another type was a rectangular tin box with a lid, also on a long handle.

When cookstoves came into use in the early 1800s, coffee bean roasters were designed to use on top of the stove. Some had round bottoms to fit in the stove hole near the coals. All needed a handle of some type to turn to keep the beans moving.

Actually, during the early years of our country, coffee was not the popular drink it is now. It was expensive to import, making it very costly for general public to buy. A variety of nuts and grains were used instead.

The drink first entered the everyday market following the Civil War. During the war, the government had provided soldiers with coffee, to help them combat fatigue, and it became a popular drink. After the war, merchants and importers waged price wars and advertised extensively to promote the product with the public.

By the late 1800s, most home roasting was discontinued. By that time, in most places, it was possible to buy roasted coffee beans at the local general store, and special brands and blends were developed and advertised.

In 1858, for example, the Flint, Evans & Co. was  founded in St. Louis. They marketed Anchor Brand coffee, which could be purchased in bulk at the store from a coffee bin, which was a wooden box with a slanted lift-top lid. One of these bins would be a real find for a collector.

This company eventually became the David J. Evans Co. and produced Old Judge blend, one of the first coffees to be sold in vacuum sealed glass jars.

Chase & Sanborn, a pair of Boston coffee merchants, formed their special blend of coffee in 1878. Advertised as a “peaberry” blend (the coffee berry usually has two beans; a peaberry just has one,) they sold their roasted coffee in large wooden coffee barrels at the general store. One of these old barrels would be another real find.

After the coffee beans were roasted, they needed to be ground. For this purpose, a coffee grinder, or mill, was used. A coffee mill for home use was usually made of steel or brass, with an iron crank for grinding. These parts were all attached to a wooden box, which contained a drawer into which the ground coffee would drop.

Most models were designed to be operated on a table top. There were a variety of patents and modifications in effect by the mid-1800s, however.

Among the first was Parker’s Wall Mill, patented in 1860. (Parker coffee mills were still being sold as late as 1937.) Webb’s Patent Standard Coffee Mill, patented in 1881, had a fancy bronzed hopper cover. Another ingenious little mill, the Greenfield #91, ground coffee into a little tin pan attached to a swing-out door.

One of the more interesting models was called the New Telephone coffee mill. It looked like a wall telephone and was made of wood, with nickel trim.

Other models were made entirely of iron, and were replicas of the large coffee grinders used in the general store.

Even when the coffee was ready to use, the work wasn’t over. In Antiques From the Country Kitchen, the following directions are given for making delicious coffee. One needed to “Boil one measure of ground coffee in three measures of water. The pot in which the coffee was to be prepared was placed on hot ashes mixed with coals” and boiled until the coffee settled to the bottom. The coffee was then poured several times through folded flannel fabric before it was served.

Whatever would the coffee brewers of 100 years ago thought about a Starbucks coffee shop!

Donna Miller

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