In 1917 the Carolina, Clinchfield and Ohio Railroad founded Clinchfield Pottery in Erwin, Tennessee. Potters were imported from Ohio and welcomed by a throng of Erwin's 300 residents. In 1920 the Clinchfield Pottery became Southern Potteries, Inc. (S.P.I.). By 1938 S.P.I. had evolved a product line which was marked Blue Ridge Pottery. Each fresh, colorful piece was hand painted by a team of local women. Most patterns featured colorful arrays of flowers or fruit.

Blue Ridge became quite popular. In its heyday, S.P.I. employed around 1,000 people, producing some 24 million pieces annually in somewhere between 2,500 to 3,000 patterns. But by 1957 Southern Potteries found itself fighting for market share with competition from plastic dinnerware and Japanese imports. The stockholders voted to close the factory down.

Many people know Blue Ridge because of its Quaker Apple pattern (bottom right photo), a premium that could be ordered from Quaker Oats boxes. Even the boxes with the Quaker Apple offer are sought after by today’s Blue Ridge collectors. Blue Ridge patterns were also available from both Sears, Roebuck and Montgomery Ward catalogs. They even did a set of dishes as a promotional reward for successful Avon saleswomen.

Today Blue Ridge is a popular collectible. Among the most collectible Blue Ridge pieces are their children's sets, demitasse pieces, their turkey platters and patterns with roosters (such as Cock o' the Walk and Chanticleer) and their provincial lines such as French Peasant (a direct descendant of the French Quimper) and Brittany.

Many Blue Ridge Pottery items are available in our auctions and in our eBay store. We're always happy to answer general Blue Ridge questions. Visit our eBay store by following this link: Blue Ridge Jan's General Store

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