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HAVE YOU SEEN THIS RARE PRODUCTION PIECE OF McCOY?
By Craig Nissen
It
may be simple in design, but this Flower Holder
Planter is not short on desirability for any
McCoy Pottery collector that likes the early
1940’s
era of McCoy Pottery collecting! This is the only
example I have personally seen of this production
piece. However, that may be simply because it is
not well known, and because it is not marked McCoy
for easy identification. This just may mean there
are some examples out there, waiting to be discovered! |
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The
Planter, which I think looks more like a “Canoe” in
shape, is described as a No.K-25, Flower Holder,
on the catalog page. The “Canoe” Planter
is just over 7-inches long, and 2-inches wide. The
tip of the highest point on one end is about 2 1/8-inches
tall. The second photo of the Flower Holder is included
with the well-known Heart Vase from the same era
to help provide a good perspective of size.
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Pictured
in the third photo is the bottom of the piece
showing the “USA” marking.
If you look at the following catalog page, you
can see the Flower Holder “Canoe” Planter
included on this page from a 1941 catalog. What
adds additional interest is that a November 1941
issue of the 1941 pricing pages, does not include
this “K-25” Flower Holder Planter.
This would seem to add additional support to the
puzzle of why this seems to be such a scarce, production
piece. A likely scenario is that it was released
in 1941, but did not sell well. As a result, it
was dropped from the line later in the year as
supported by the lack of its inclusion in the November
1941 pricing. |
This particular example of the K-25
Flower
Holder Planter, has the production, gloss aqua
glaze coloring. It is likely the Planter was
also made in the variety of other glaze colors
as were the other three Flower Holders pictured
next to it on the catalog page. None of them
are easy finds either, but I think this “Canoe” Flower
Holder is by far the scarcest of the Group!
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I
hope this information was a bit fun as well as helpful
for you, and that just maybe, you might find one
yourself in your hunting for McCoy!! Good Luck!
PLANTING DISHES


CANDLEHOLDERS AND ORNAMENTAL
LAMPS
By Ima Potts
During
the early 1970’s,
when the Nelson McCoy
Pottery (NMP) was a subsidiary of the Mount
Clemens Pottery (MCP), the pottery introduced an
array of new type articles. One of these new items was
candleholders. Although from time to time over the years
Nelson McCoy had issued some candleholders, but there
were not very many. The MCP however, issued many styles
at one time. For example, in 1971 there were 15 different
styles, in three or four different colors.
In the mid-1970’s,
after the Lancaster Colony
Corporation (LCC) had purchased the Nelson McCoy
Pottery, the LCC continued the practice and produced
a wide assortment of them, but now they were called “Ornamental
Lamps”. Most of the ornamental lamps the LCC produced
featured glass globes, as shown on the Journal front
and rear covers.
The LCC featured ornamental lamps for a year or two, but
a large-scale production of them did not last. Following
the purchase of the pottery by Designer Accents in
1985, ornamental lamp production was resumed. Although many
of the lamps Nelson McCoy Ceramics (NMC), the pottery
name assigned by the new owner, produced used previously
existing molds, different decals were applied, and different
colors were used. A selection of NMC lamps is given below
and on the following page.
Due to the relatively
small number produced, none of the candleholders or
lamps shown here are easy to find. However, they would
all make a fine specialty collection, don’t you
think?




HOW I CAME TO LOVE MCCOY POTTERY
By
Ruthann Chapin
I’m
a little intimidated in writing my story, as there are
so many of you that are so much more knowledgeable than
I could ever hope to be. However, here is my story.
My love of McCoy, and other pottery, was by accident.
It is something that crept up on me like a thief in the
night. Before I knew it I was, as my dear husband says,
obsessed.
My husband and
I love gardening and we spend many a spring and summer
afternoon planting, weeding, mowing, and general yard
work. Wal-Mart, Lowe’s, etc. is where I used
to purchase all my planters. Then I discovered eBay, but
best of all I discovered "pottery", what I call
the good stuff! No more imported junk for me.
Unexpectedly one
day my beloved Mother was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. It soon became impossible
to leave her alone. During this period, I had to make decisions
that affected us financially. Refusing to put mother in
a nursing home, I became her full-time caregiver. In an
attempt to bring in a few dollars here and there, I began
selling on eBay, which led me to visit garage sales, estate
sales, and a few auctions. My activities yielded a little
additional money, and planters galore of all colors, sizes,
and makes. I soon had a vase here, a planter there, and
both everywhere. In turn, this led me to wonder, "What
do these letters, numbers, and other marks mean on the
underside of them".
I started out knowing
absolutely nothing about pottery, but thank goodness
for the Internet. I soon began to identify a few of
them, but I am still in the learning process, and,
I guess, I will be for a very long time. As my knowledge
grew I auctioned more and more on eBay, and I did okay,
but my heart was not in auctioning. I knew I had discovered
my niche’,
although now I had a dilemma.
What in
the world was I going to do with all of the vases, planters,
and whatever that I was accumulating? We had moved into
an old house, and had been slowly making progress with
renovations and updating. I had decided to keep the cornices
(window treatments), and it dawned upon me that this
would be a perfect setting for my cherished planters -
so viola, that problem was solved for what now just seems
like a minute. To make a long story short I have planters
and vases everywhere. They line my steps going upstairs;
they are in and on cabinets, shelves, and anywhere else
that I can fit them. However, as I have said, I do not
have a handle on the identity of all of them yet. I know
who made some of them, but there are others that I do not
have a clue. Nevertheless, it does not matter - I love
them all.
With most of the space in my house taken, I developed
a new policy. From time to time, especially during the
summer months, I decide what I want to keep and what to
auction. I procrastinate with these decisions, and each
piece I give up makes me a little sad, but I have to let
go.
This is not the only thing that makes me sad. With my
three cats, and my little Beagle girl, accidents happen.
I truly hate having a piece of history destroyed by their
antics, but it does happen. I keep the shards and I am
designing a mosaic tabletop that I hope to get started
on this spring. Once these accidents started taking place
was when I realized it was time to downsize.
As a seller on
eBay, I believe it is important to correctly identify
the items you are selling. Even with my limited knowledge,
I see seller’s
list items as being made by McCoy that even I knew were
improperly identified. I have even emailed a few sellers
to let them know their item was not made by McCoy, and
have been both ignored, and thanked for taking the time
to contact them. It seems everyone wants their pottery
to be made by McCoy, Haeger, Roseville, or other noted
pottery manufacturer.
One little example
I can give is about my infamous Chick-A-Dee pitcher.
I had it for a while, trying to identify its origin.
On and off, I checked the eBay listings, and other
online sites. Finally, I found one listed on eBay,
and it was identified as being a McCoy. I contacted
the seller to see if they would share with me how they
made this determination, but they never responded to
me. A little later I decided that I was going to sell
it. I was getting ready to list this little pitcher,
when I received my first McCoy Journal. My little Chick-A-Dee
pitcher was right there, listed in the "fakes" section. I was so appreciative that
I had not listed this little creamer as a McCoy. I decided
that I’d keep the little Chick-A-Dee, as I think
it is sort of nice to own a known McCoy fake or misidentified
McCoy.
My favorite McCoy piece is the brown with gold trimmed squirrel
planter. Mr. Squirrel has a job. He sits and watches over
my indoor plants and greenery, and I will probably keep him
forever. Another favorite is my blue Harmony vase. I also
have a little yellow, basket-weave planter that was my first
McCoy piece. This one will always be with me too. I look
around and know that even though I have pottery from lots
of manufacturers, my McCoy will always hold a special place
in my heart.

MY PINK POPPY STORY
By
Lynn Broussard
I
just wanted to share a very nice story with the Society.
I live in Louisiana, and my sisters and I are avid McCoy
collectors. A few weeks ago, we went to one of our regular
antique spots here in New Orleans, and to our surprise,
the shop had a McCoy Poppy.
The most shocking part about this was the selling
price. The poppy is in mint condition; all the colors
are bright and vibrant. The sale price was $50.00!
So, with out thinking any more about it, my sister
snapped it up.
When she got to the counter, as all serious collectors
do, she asked if $50.00 was the rock bottom price!
The sales person thought for a minute, and then she
said she would take $10.00 off! Long story short,
my sister got a mint, Pink Poppy planter for $43.00
including tax!
My other sister and I are so jealous, but we both had
to admit, what a find! |
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UNCOMMON NELSON McCOY PIECES
| The Cereal
Bowl shown here is ivory, with brown flecks, and
has a pattern of swirls around the lip that is
in alternating colors of turquoise and brown. The
bowl has diameter of 5½-inches and is two
inches tall. It is marked “McCoy U.S.A.” This
flecked bowl was first produced without decorations
in 1958. |
 |
 |
To the
left is a round planter with a 7-inch diameter.
It is 5-inches tall. The name of the decal pattern
is Red Antique Rose. The planter is marked with
a “McCoy
U.S.A.” |
| The mixing
bowl shown here has a golden brown glaze with a
lighter, golden colored foamy band around the lip.
The bowl has an 8-inch diameter and is 4½ -
inches tall. The bottom is marked “McCoy U.S.A.
Oven Proof”. This bowl was first issued in different
colors in 1957, and it has been re-issued many times
in different colors since then. |
 |
 |
The 22 ounce
pitcher shown to the left is style number 150.
It was produced for a number of years, but it was
first issued in 1955. It came in three sizes, 22
oz, 48 oz, and 64 oz. The colors were red, green, or
brown, all with a frosty white over-drip. The pitcher
has an embossed “McCoy USA” mark. |
| Here is a
common Nelson McCoy mug with an unusual decoration.
This shape mug was first issued in 1977 in the
Canyon Line of kitchenware. Obviously the mug to
the right was made under contract, possibly to
the name on the decal. The decal reads, “UKRAINE
Crafts The Pier St. Petersburg, FLA.” |
 |

A NON-PRODUCTION QUADRUPLE BULB
BOWL
Reported by B. J. Steins
Collectors
of Nelson McCoy pottery are familiar with a piece called
the Triple Bulb Bowl. Well, recently surfaced is this non-production,
Quadruple Bulb Bowl.
The quadruple bowl is 11-inches long, nine inches wide,
and five inches tall. It found in a farmhouse in Alamance
County, North Carolina .
The four-colored bowl begins with dark green near the
base, merging to a pale green, then to a creamy white,
and finally to a pale pink at the top.
The bowl has four
feet, and on bottom of three of them, there are worker
notations scratched into the bisque. On one foot there
is “111U”, another has “640
pink”, and on the third foot there is “tpot
green”. In the center of the bowl bottom is an embossed
McCoy, with a perpendicular USA.
For some reason
a decision was made not to produce the quadruple bulb
bowl, but produce a triangular version instead. Apparently,
the quad bowl was a forerunner to the 1950’s
Triple Bulb Bowl.
So, from the way things look, we all need to remain on
our toes while shopping, because it is clear that everything
that the McCoy pottery made has not been found yet.


ONE DAY AT THE ALEXANDER HOUSE
By
Ed Alexander
Recently,
I was just having a “nothing special
day”, when suddenly, my phone rings. I answered it
saying “Hello”, and here is what came next.
“Hello Ed?”
“Yes.”
“This is Nelson McCoy - I’m from Ohio and
used to own the…”
“For goodness sake Nelson, I know exactly who you
are - I’m just trying to catch my breath and formulate
some words to speak to you.”
I was shocked.
The “Man”,
Nelson McCoy, was actually calling me! It was lunchtime
and the restaurant was a bit noisy, and not recognizing
the area code, I went outside to take the call. One can
only imagine. I have only been collecting McCoy pottery
for about 10 years, and at the beginning, I thought the
one book that I had found in a bookstore was all that
there was. Well, that was wrong.
If you collect McCoy pottery I swear I believe it multiplies
inside the covers of the collector books. I see something
different every time I peruse the pages, or get one of
our collector periodicals. It is amazing. In addition,
I am way out of space (sound familiar?).
However, I digress.
Nelson told me that he and Billie were in Wilmington
visiting their daughter, and he had received my phone number
from the collector of all collectors, Chiquita Prestwood,
a name that I had seen in books so many times in my first
efforts to find McCoy.
We talked for a little bit, and then I found out that
Nelson and Billie actually wanted to come by and visit
with Tony and me at our home. I was totally beside myself.
It was as if a rock star was coming by. I guessed that
my collection must have reached their ears. Why, after
seeing all the McCoy ever made, would they really want
to see my stuff while they were on vacation of all things?
Anyway, they came by and the two hours of looking and
visiting went by so quickly, actually too quickly for me.
After they left, and after I had reflected on all the conversation,
and after it seemed that they looked at my entire collection
piece by piece, I realized that Nelson and Billie do so
much for all of us. They are genuinely interested in what
we do as collectors. They promote what we do by calling
on collectors. They are real people, warm and friendly.
As they were leaving,
Nelson said, “Billie
and I hope you and Tony will call on us the next time
you are in Ohio.”
“Nelson and
Billie, you can count on it”
“Thanks for
dropping by.”
In telling you the story of what happened one day at
my house, I wanted to include a few snapshots that were
taken during the visit of the Daddy and Momma of the pottery
I love to collect.
The following snapshots have become an important part
of my McCoy collection, and they are a special memento
of a special visit by two special people.

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