Roseville Pottery Company History
Early History
The Roseville Pottery Company was founded by John F. Weaver in 1890 at Roseville, Ohio. By 1898 the company moved its operations to Zaneville, Ohio but kept the Roseville name. Many other pottery manufacturers such as Weller and Hull also saw the Zanesville area as ideal because of its rich clay deposits. Roseville Pottery production began in the old J.B. Owens Pottery facilities in Roseville, Ohio with homeware items such as flower pots and crocks. All of the early Roseville Pottery wares were unmarked. Roseville introduced its first art line in 1900 and was dubbed Rozane Ware after the pottery company name and manufacturing location (Roseville Pottery - Zanesville, Ohio). Rozane is some of the most highly prized Roseville Pottery lines today. George F. Young joined the company in 1892 as General Manager and he or other family members managed the company until 1954. An interesting note, all of Roseville's art pottery was made in the Zanesville plants and not at the Roseville locations.
Middle - Period
Shortly before 1920, Frank Ferrell became the art director and developed many of the multi-colored Roseville pieces with embossed or molded designs which we identify with Roseville Pottery today. Many of the most sought after Roseville lines were designed by Frank Ferrell such as Sunflower, Blackberry, Cherry Blossom, Wisteria, and Pinecone. Around 1930, under Ferrell, Roseville began producing patterns with the Roseville signature impressed or in relief on the bottom of each piece. The famous Pinecone line was first produced in 1935 and became Roseville's most commercially successful line. Pinecone is easy to identify in that they come in blue, brown and green colors with an embossed pine cone and pine needles on the pieces. Pinecone continues to be very highly sought after today. Quality varies on most Roseville pieces since artists decorated each piece by hand, so in a way each Roseville piece is unique.
Late Roseville
Like many Ohio pottery manufacturers, some of their later works were not up to the standards of their heyday pieces. Roseville Pottery ceased operations in 1954.
Major Roseville Lines (certainly not complete)
Roseville Azurean - 1902
Roseville Fujiama - 1906
Roseville Pauleo - 1914
Roseville Donatello - 1915
Roseville Rozane Ware - 1917
Roseville Futura - 1924
Roseville Thornapple - 1930
Roseville Poppy - 1930
Roseville Baneda - 1933
Roseville Falline - 1933
Roseville Wisteria - 1933
Roseville Ixia - 1933
Roseville Luffa - 1934
Roseville Morning Glory - 1935
Roseville Pinecone - 1935
Roseville Velmoss - 1935
Roseville Moss - 1936
Roseville Clemana - 1936
Roseville Fuchsia - 1938
Roseville Iris - 1939
Roseville Cosmos - 1939
Roseville Bleeding Heart - 1940
Roseville Bittersweet - 1940
Roseville Gardenia - 1940
Roseville Columbine - 1941
Roseville Foxglove - 1942
Roseville Peony - 1942
Roseville Magnolia - 1943
Roseville Clematis - 1944
Roseville Freesia - 1945
Roseville Water Lily - 1945
Roseville Zephyr Lily - 1946
Roseville Snowberry - 1946
Roseville White Rose - 1947
Roseville Apple Blossom - 1948
Roseville Bushberry - 1948
The above information has been assembled from many sources. I believe the information is generally accurate but I can not guarantee all of the facts and dates. There are many excellent Roseville guides and reference books available today. Most can be purchased via the internet. A guide or reference book is a must before purchasing pottery at auction or flea markets. There are many Roseville fakes out there and some are good enough to fool the unwary. If you're interested in other art pottery, please visit our Hull and Weller pages.
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