Portland Observatory Pitcher
Probably Herculaneum Pottery
Liverpool, England, 1807
Creamware with hand-enamel painting and transfer printing
Courtesy of Maine Historical Society, Bequest of
Charlotte Fenton, 1920
Souvenir ware, such as these plates [75-80], were popular mementos for visitors and locals alike at the turn of the nineteenth century. The pictures adorning the plates are either photographic transfers or reproductions of original drawings. Local Portland merchants, such as the dry-good firm of Oren Hooper's Sons or John M. Conway, commissioned souvenir plates for sale in their stores. The selection displayed here were manufactured in England, Germany and Austria between 1900 and 1920 and is part of an extensive collection of ceramics decorated with views compiled by Kenneth E. Thompson Jr.
Oren Hooper’s Sons
Portland Observatory, Portland, Maine
Portland, c. 1910
John M. Conway
Union Station, Portland, Maine
Portland, c. 1900
Soldier’s Monument, Monument Square, Portland, Me.
(J.W. Peterson, Portland, c. 1900)
Views of Portland, Maine
(England, c. 1915)
Includes Soldiers and Sailors Monument, Longfellow’s Home,
Portland Head Light, Riverton Casino, Spring Point Light,
and Longfellow’s Birthplace
T.F. Foss & Sons
Longfellow’s Early Home
Portland, c. 1905
Includes Longfellow’s Birthplace, Longfellow, Portland Head Light,
Deering’s Woods, Stephen Longfellow, and Longfellow Monument
Souvenir of Portland, Maine
(unmarked, c. 1910)
Includes Miller Building, Longfellow Mansion,
Portland Head Light,Armory, Casino and Cape Shore,
Soldiers’ Monument, and Riverton Park and Casino