Now You Know--Louisville Ky Famous Potteries

Owing to the abundance of ancient clay deposits in the region, Louisville has been a center of pottery-making for generations.

John B. Taylor--founded 1815 sold 1970 to Louisville Stoneware

Louisville Pottery which became Louisville Stoneware--founded 1815 still exists

M A Hadley Pottery--inception 1940--storefront 1944 still exists

This and the following photos just show some of the variety that we have available.


I only listed three of the many known potteries established thru the years in the Louisville area because these are the ones I'm asked the most questions about. Many do not realize for example that John B Taylor was bought out by Louisville Stoneware or that Mary Alice Hadley worked for John B Taylor prior to branching out on her own.  Another confusing issue for some is the fact that Louisville Stoneware produced some of the same pattern designs originated by John B Taylor.

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 John B Taylor

The JB Taylor Company was founded in 1815 in Louisville, Kentucky. But it was not owned by John B. Taylor until 1938. In 1970 the company was sold and became known as Louisville Stoneware.  Some of the old patterns are still in production as well as many new designs.

Some of the oldest patterns include Harvest and Vintage. In the earlier days, the artists were likely to experiment with different designs and you can occasionally find a unique treasure in antique/consignment shops.  Because Louisville Stoneware still uses the original designs today, to identify the oldest it has to be marked  John B Taylor.  Some collectors prefer only John B Taylor pieces, so you should expect to pay more for the pieces marked/identified as John B Taylor.

John B Taylor pieces

One of the better known potters to work for John B. Taylor was MA Hadley (Mary Alice Hadley), who started a company of her own. MA Hadley is very collectible and highly sought after for their varied and creative hand painted patterns.

M A Hadley

By the late 1930’s Mary Alice Hadley began melding her artistic talent with her knowledge of clay ware. In 1939, Mrs. Hadley made dishes for her houseboat on the Ohio River. The creative result was a set of a custom dishes that caused such a stir among her friends and acquaintances that the idea for a business was born. Supplying those early requests provided wide circulation for her hand-crafted pottery and soon orders began to arrive from across the country. With the help of her husband, George, the Hadley Pottery Company was formed early in 1940.

In 1944, George Hadley purchased a building in the Butchertown area of Louisville as a birthday present for Mary Alice. The building, constructed in 1848, has been home to a wool mill, a candle factory and a cordage mill and for 65 years has served as the production location, factory salesroom and offices of Hadley Pottery Company. Many pieces of original art created by Mary Alice Hadley are still on display at the historic structure on Story Avenue, including several wall murals all hand-painted by Mary Alice herself. She worked at the Pottery until her death in 1965. George Hadley continued to run the business until it was sold in 1979 to Louisville natives, Mr. and Mrs. Kenneth W. Moore. In September 2009, new partners joined the Hadley Pottery ownership group, but operations remain largely the same as they were when the company was started. The creative inspiration that Mary Alice Hadley brought to the ware still lives today. 

                                           M A Hadley pieces

Louisville Stoneware

Louisville Stoneware is located in the Highlands section of Louisville.  Founded in 1815 as Louisville Pottery and then becoming Louisville Stoneware, is known for creating fanciful stoneware that is nationally renowned. It specializes in decorating its pottery with  Kentucky Derby  and Christmas themes, but it has other themes as well: Noah's Ark, Primrose, Pear etc being examples. You can also request specialties or go to their location to decorate your own.
Items from Louisville Stoneware are in the Smithsonian Institution and White House.  In addition, Queen Elizabeth II was presented a  music box made by Louisville Stoneware, given by the wife of Kentucky's governor Ernie Fletcher, that played My Old Kentucky Home when the Queen visited Churchill Downs for the Kentucky Derby in 2007..

Louisville Stoneware pieces