Vernon Kilns
| Industry | Ceramic manufacturing |
|---|---|
| Fate | Dissolved |
| Predecessor | Poxon China |
| Founded | 1931 |
| Founder | Faye G. Bennison |
| Defunct | 1958 |
| Headquarters | Vernon, California, United States |
| Products | Ceramic art ware and dinnerware |
Vernon Kilns was an American ceramic company in Vernon, California. In July 1931, Faye G. Bennison purchased the former Poxon China pottery renaming the company Vernon Kilns. Poxon China was located at 2300 East 52nd Street. Vernon produced ceramic tableware, art ware, giftware, and figurines. The company closed its doors in 1958.
Vernon Kilns was one of the "Big Five"California potteries. The other "Big Five" potteries were Metlox Manufacturing Company, Pacific Clay Products, Gladding, McBean & Co., and J.A. Bauer Pottery.
After the purchase of Poxon China in 1931, Vernon Kilns under Faye Bennison's direction continued to sell and produce Poxon China's patterns, using decals for the surface patterns. Vernon/Poxon pottery is notable for its heavier weight, and features embossed and scalloped rims. Vernon continued to produce a number of original Poxon patterns until 1933 when an earthquake destroyed most of the remaining Vernon/Poxon China ware stock. As a result, Vernon Kilns took the opportunity to create a new set of dinnerware molds: The result was the pottery company’s first original dinnerware shape, Montecito. In 1935, Vernon introduced their first solid color dinnerware line, Early California, to complete with the other solid color dinnerware offerings popularized by potteries such as J.A. Bauer Pottery and Pacific Clay Products. In the approximately 15 years that Early California was manufactured, it was produced in 11 high-gloss glazes, including yellow, turquoise, green, brown, dark blue, light blue, ivory, orange, pink, white and maroon.
In the mid-1930s, Vernon established an art ware department, but suspended production of their art ware lines in 1937 due to poor economic conditions. In 1935, Gale Turnbull was hired as the art director, and under the direction of Faye Bennison, hired a series of contract designers and artists to create tableware and art ware. The roster of artists included May & Vieve Hamilton, who joined Vernon from 1936 to 1937 to create a series of vases, figurines, plaques as well as two dinnerware lines: Rippled and Rythmic. Designer Harry Bird came on board during the same period and using his patented “inlaid glaze” process, produced a variety of decorated dinnerware patterns in animal, floral and bird motifs on the Montecito shape. Jane Bennison, daughter of Faye Bennison, worked summers at the pottery and contributed art ware designs, and is credited with the design of the distinctive upside-down handle on the Ultra dinnerware shape of the 1940s.
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