Sentimental Sunday The Teapot

Have you ever ‘inherited’ objects that belonged to your ancestors?  Perhaps it was something you just liked or it just reminded you of someone special?  Perhaps it was an item you admired but never really knew the story behind it? Join me as I try to discover the ‘roots’ of a teapot that I inherited from my grandparents Olin and Agnes (King) Warner…

I am a tea drinker and over the years have collected teapots from various locations I have visited and received them as thoughtful gifts.  Growing up I remember this teapot being in my grandparent’s house in a curio cabinet.  After their deaths and that of my Aunt, Gloria Warner Farrell,  my cousins were tasked with cleaning out their house.  As they were sorting through things I asked for this teapot.  I knew nothing about it but for as long as I can remember it was in my grandparent’s house.  I brought the teapot with me as I moved over the years and casually asked others if anyone knew the history of the teapot.  I also asked a cousin on my paternal grandmother’s side to see if this was a King family treasure but no, it was believed to be from the Warner side.  That helped me narrow the family line.

Recently, while transcribing Carrie’s Letters Carrie talked about buying dishes, etc. after she married.  That got me thinking, hmmm… could this old teapot in my curio cabinet have been my great-grandmother’s?  How do I figure that out?
I started by removing the teapot and looking for any identifying marks on the teapot.  I found the following imprint on the bottom

It was hard to make out the letters on the imprint or the image but I thought I could read ADAMS.  Then I did what my son always tells me to do “Google it, Mom!”
When I googled

I found the following                                                 

That led me to

Now that I had something to compare the imprint to I could varify that the rest of the letters around the image were indeed ‘Warranted-Staffordshire Adams’ and the image was of an eagle. Which also gave me a date of when the teapot was made

Next, to try and figure out who it might have belonged to.  So, I knew that the teapot was not originally John and Carrie (Terry) Warner’s.  They were married in September 1885.  I then looked at the other Warner’s wedding dates figuring that this might have been a gift or part of a new household.  I also looked at Carrie Terry Warner’s line for similar dates.  The date that made the most sense was the wedding of Daniel and Eleanor (Howell) Warner’s in October 1841.

So, my guess is that the teapot originally belonged to Daniel and Eleanor, my great-great grandparents.  I believe that after their deaths in 1895 it would make sense that one of their sons (my great-grandfather John), who lived a few houses down the road would have inherited the teapot.  Carrie predeceased John and upon his death in 1920 his household was disolved and it’s a strong possiblity that my grandfather- Olin, Sr. (still at home at the time) might have kept this as a family treasure.

There is no way that I can ever prove where the teapot came from.  I am hoping that I have made a good guess by doing my research.  The researching proved interesting and informative and I know a lot now about Adams Staffordshire pottery.  The teapot has been cracked/broken and repaired over the years, so, I doubt it has any monetary value but the sentimental value is priceless!  I also now know that this is the OLDEST teapot I own.  What a journey!

If you have any information or a similar story to share please let me know.
Enjoy the journey,
Debby