Pink Saturday ~ Rock Springs Park Souvenir Creamer

While I normally like to show very pink items for Pink Saturday, hosted by Beverly at How Sweet the Sound, this sweetie has just a hint of magenta pink roses on it...and it is adorable.


Last summer Dear Hubs came home from his travels with this sweet little pitcher/creamer.

Thank you, this has SOLD!

It surely looked old but at first glance, I didn't know exactly how old. On the bottom is a little piece of tape with this written on it:

"G. Grandma Byerly 1900"

Well that's pretty darn old in my book.

It also has "Rock Springs Park" printed on the side as though it were a souvenir.

Being the curious type....I did some research. I believe I have found where it came from.

Here is some history:

Rock Springs Park was an amusement park located in Chester, West Virginia, located just across the Ohio River from East Liverpool. (The town where many Ohio Pottery companies were located.) It operated from the late 1800s until the late 1970s when it was closed by a federal highway condemnation.





THE MERRY-GO-ROUND AND ROCK SPRINGS PARK

The Merry-Go-Round and the Cyclone were the two most popular rides at old historic Rock Springs Park which had its beginning as an amusement park in 1898 under the late Jim McDonald. Prior to that, the park had two different owners and was just used for picnics or family outings. The bridge construction moved the park forward swiftly.In 1900, C.A. Smith purchased the park and added many new rides. Mr. Smith purchased the horses for the Merry-Go-Round from a well-known company in Philadelphia. The carvings of these horses made them very valuable to antique dealers. Many people living here today can remember when as small children they tried to grab the brass ring to get a free ride. In addition to the large number of rides, the park had beautiful grounds, a swimming pool, a lake, a small zoo, and even live shows onthe midway.Rock Springs Park may be gone from the area but the memories of those happy visits to it will never be gone. There were often crowds of over 20,000 people at some of the larger picnics. People would come by excursion boats, trains, or automobiles. On special picnic days or important holidays, the park had giant fireworks displays. The Golden Star picnic was especially popular because ice cream was given away.





Here is a photo I found on a website about Ohio pottery....it is yet another souvenir !





I believe it was made by the same company TS&T that made my favorite dinnerware, LuRay. But I can't make out the marking on the bottom. It could be Homer Laughlin, another Ohio Pottery company. Either way, I discovered Taylor Smith and Taylor did make some of their souvenirs.




And the cool thing about that is.....the park and this company were in THE SAME TOWN!


TAYLOR, SMITH AND TAYLOR COMPANY:

The pottery was formed originally at Taylor, Lee and Smith in 1899. It began operations in 1900. Lee sold his interest to Taylor in 1903 and the Smiths purchased the Taylor interest in 1906. A West Virginia charter was granted to Smith in 1907. At one time,this pottery was the world's largest pottery under one roof. It had been expanded to 17 kilns by 1913 with over 400 employees and a payroll of over $140,000. At its peak, it employed over 800 workers. It soon became one of the leading dinnerware companies in the world. It was famous for many innovations it brought to the industry. The Smiths, both C. A. and W. L., upon retiring, passed the control to their sons who later passed it on to their sons. The Smiths sold the plant to Anchor Hocking Glass Company who operated it a very few years until it was closed and the property sold.

How cool is that? Not only did G. Grandma Byerly get to go the park and enjoy herself that day, she brought home a souvenir for us all to enjoy! (And she was somebody's mother....a Happy Mother's Day to all!)

I would love for it to find the home of a Rock Springs Park collector or someone who collects Ohio Pottery items. SO, the creamer is available for sale on my website,

Bella Rosa Antiques.