East Liverpool Story Archives - West Virginia Public Broadcasting

Crockery City: The Famous Past And Creative Future Of East Liverpool, Ohio's Pottery Scene

East Liverpool, Ohio, sits on the banks of the Ohio River where West Virginia, Pennsylvania and Ohio meet. For decades, this small town was known as the pottery capital of the world after immigrants from Stafforshire, England settled there and brought their pottery-making expertise with them. By the beginning of the 20th century, more than half of all dinnerware in America was made here. Today, only two major dinnerware manufacturers are left. But pottery is still central to the town’s identity—so much so that even the school mascot is inspired by the industry.

At one time, East Liverpool was home to more than 200 pottery factories. Today, only two major dinnerware manufacturers are left. But pottery is still central to the town’s identity—so much so that even the school mascot is inspired by the industry. Potter Pete is actually a giant kiln with a face and feet.

Passing Down The Pottery Legacy

Some in the local community are committed to passing down the legacy of pottery-making to a new generation. That commitment is on display at the Museum of Ceramics.

Housed in a converted post office building, the museum serves as a cultural hub in East Liverpool. Not only does it boast a comprehensive collection of ceramics with a connection to the region, but it also hosts pottery making classes through the Clay Academy.

Run by the museum, the academy is a summer program for kids to learn about both the art form and the history of pottery making. Emma Rose Kurtz, 14, was a student in Clay Academy before the COVID-19 pandemic.

“I’ve been involved in everything as a little kid, you know, just making pottery and having a childhood where I grew up with pottery all around me,” Kurtz said. “My grandparents have a huge collection, one of the biggest collections that I know of.”

Kurtz’s grandparents, Donna and William Gray, have been collecting pottery since their honeymoon when they stumbled upon a gray colored teapot that happened to be made by Harker Pottery which once operated in East Liverpool. William Gray’s mother and grandmother both worked at Harker. That one teapot led to one of the largest East Liverpool ceramics collections in the United States, according to the Grays. And their collection also led to their granddaughter’s passion for pottery.

The teachers at Clay Academy also have a family connection to pottery. Barrie Archer has designed her classes to focus both on the history and the practical skill of pottery making. She grew up going to her family’s ceramics business, Taylor Smith and Taylor Pottery, with her father.

“As a child, if my mother was busy and it was a weekend and my dad had to leave and go over to the pottery, then he usually took us with him,” Archer said.

Preserving The Past To Invigorate The Future Of Pottery

Archer and Kurtz are representative of a community proud of their heritage, but also committed to building on the past to create a new future for East Liverpool.

While it may no longer be “Crockery City,” as it was once known, East Liverpool is now attracting a whole new group of pottery makers. In recent years, people like Kim Holhmayor have been moving to East Liverpool because of ceramics and the potential to grow the arts scene here.

Holhmayer plans to offer classes for children and adults at the Museum of Ceramics.

And, she has high hopes for the East Liverpool ceramics scene.

Hohlmayer said she wants to grow East Liverpool into an arts community like ones she has visited in other parts of Ohio.

“I would love to see something like that here. [W]e have so much to offer.”

Before COVID hit, East Liverpool was already on the path towards turning this industrial city into a place geared towards the arts. Galleries, a community theater and craft breweries were all popping up on the main street. Making ceramics is much more than what happens on the factory floor. It’s a creative process. And that creativity makes East Liverpool’s future as an arts hub much more than a dream.

This story is part of the Inside Appalachia Folkways Reporting Project, which is made possible in part with support from Margaret A. Cargill Philanthropies to the West Virginia Public Broadcasting Foundation. Subscribe to Inside Appalachia to hear more stories of Appalachian folklife, arts, and culture.

This Folkways story originally aired in the May 27, 2022 episode of Inside Appalachia.

5 Things To Know About the Chester Chemical Spill

On Friday, Jan. 15, emergency officials confirmed a chemical leak into the Ohio River in the area of Chester, West Virginia and East Liverpool, Ohio. The leak came from East Liverpool River-Rail Terminal Co.

1. Spill was caught by a company employee within moments of the spill.

Travis Orr is the terminal manager at East Liverpool River-Rail Terminal Co. He said he heard a crash early Friday morning around 8:15 a.m., moments after a tanker truck began loading the chemical styrene out of a tank at the facility. Upon exploring the scene, he discovered that valves weren’t properly in place and styrene, which Orr describes as a chemical that looks like liquid styrofoam, was spilling across the floor into facility storm drains. His employee was able to shut the operation down.

2. An estimated 50 or 60 gallons of styrene spilled.

The tank holds as much as 400,000 gallons of product, but Orr said it was almost empty Friday, Jan. 15, registering only about 22,675 gallons. He said it’s almost impossible to know exactly how much of the chemical was released but he and other responding officials guess it couldn’t have been more than 50 or 60 gallons – most of which never made it to the river.

East Liverpool Fire Department Chief Bill Jones explained that an earthen dike behind the facility was designed as secondary containment to hold any rainwater or spills until it could be tested and cleaned or released into the river. But a faulty valve allowed the the product to leak through into the Ohio.

The leak was downstream of both East Liverpool’s and Chester’s public water intakes. Water companies were notified and took precautionary measures, nevertheless.

3. 8 agencies responded.

Orr followed procedures after he found the leak. He called the National Response Center, the Coast Guard, and then Ohio’s Environmental Protection Agency. Area offices of emergency management were notified, which, in turn, notified local authorities.

East Liverpool Fire Chief Jones said the company put absorbent booms in the river but that they were inadequate. The fire department then used containment booms to keep the chemical from dispersing downstream.

Orr hired Weavertown Environmental Group to cleanup the mess. Vacuum trucks cleaned the sheen off the water, the storm drain, and cleaned the bank of the river.

Responding on the scene:

West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection
Ohio Environmental Protection Agency
U.S. Coast Guard
Hancock Office of Emergency Management
Columbiana County Office of Emergency Management
Chester City personnel
East Liverpool Fire Department’s regional HAZMAT team comprised of West Virginia and Ohio residents
Weavertown Environmental Group

4. Ramifications so far…

Orr said no citations were issued on site and he hasn’t received any so far. He said both his employee and the truck driver were negligent and responsible for the spill. The employee of the East Liverpool River-Rail Terminal Co. lost his job as a result.

Fire Chief Jones said while he had reservations about the company’s emergency plan – he was pleased at how well organizations worked together across state borders to contain and clean up the spill. Jones said he spoke with Orr at the company to modify emergency plans so that local authorities would be second on the call-list, and verified that a checklist for the procedure of loading chemicals into tankers would be reinstated at the facility.

5. What is styrene?

According to the Environmental Protection Agency, styrene is used to produce plastics and resins.

Health Effects:

Acute (short term) exposure in humans results in respiratory effects, such as mucous membrane irritation, eye irritation, and gastrointestinal effects. (1,2)
Tests involving acute exposure of rats and mice have shown styrene to have low to moderate toxicity by inhalation and oral exposure. (3)
Chronic exposure to styrene in humans results in effects on the CNS, with symptoms such as headache, fatigue, weakness, depression, CNS dysfunction (reaction time, memory, visuomotor speed and accuracy, intellectual function), and hearing loss, peripheral neuropathy, minor effects on some kidney enzyme functions and on the blood. (1–3)
Animal studies have reported effects on the CNS, liver, kidney, and eye and nasal irritation from inhalation exposure to styrene. (1)
Liver, blood, kidney, and stomach effects have been observed in animals following chronic oral exposure. (5)

Ohio is the sixth-largest chemical producing state in the country, and West Virginia the 24th, with a combined $8 billion in products sold to customers around the world, according to the American Chemistry Council.

Emergency Officials Confirm Chemical Leak in Ohio River

Emergency officials have confirmed a chemical leak into the Ohio River in the area of Chester, West Virginia and East Liverpool, Ohio.

City of Liverpool Assistant Fire Chief David Edgell said a regional HAZMAT team made up of his department and fire departments in West Virginia are responding to a “small release” of what they believe is Styrene into the river.

He said the leak was discovered at some point after 10 a.m. Friday and has since been contained.

Edgell said the leak originated from a bulk storage tank facility along the Ohio River in East Liverpool. He said it is unknown at this time who owns the facility. The leak was discovered in a dike within the facility’s containment area. Private contractors are now working to contain the spill.

Both Chester and East Liverpool have public water intakes upstream from the spill. Officials from each town say they are not worried about possible drinking water contamination.

“As soon as we found out about the situation we followed protocol to shut down the system,” said Chester’s water superintendent Jason Havens. But he said it was just an extra precaution that probably wasn’t needed since the intake is about a mile north of the spill.

According to the Environmental Protection Agency, styrene “is primarily used in the production of polystyrene plastics and resins. Acute (short-term) exposure to styrene in humans results in mucous membrane and eye irritation, and gastrointestinal effects.”