1911 Encyclopædia Britannica/Potteries, The

POTTERIES, THE, a name popularly applied to a district of north Staffordshire, the principal seat of the china and earthenware industry in England. It lies in the valley of the Trent a little south of its source, and extends into tributary valleys and up the hills iianking them. For a distance of 9 m. from south-east to north-west, and about 3 m. from north-east to south-west, the district resembles one great town, but the chief centres are Burslem, Hanley, Longton, Stoke-on-Trent, Fenton and Tunstall. Under the “Potteries federation” scheme (1908) these towns were amalgamated in 1910 as one municipal borough under the name of Stoke-on-Trent. Newcastle-under-Lyme, though not sharing in the staple industry, may also be reckoned in the district. Among the lesser manufacturing centres Etruria, ranking as a suburb of Hanley, is well known for its connexion with Josiah Wedgwood, who founded works here in 1769. The Wedgwoods and the Mintons are the two most famous family names connected with the china industry of the district. Coal and coarse clay are the only local natural products necessary to the industry; the finer clay and other ingredients are brought from Cornwall and elsewhere. Ironstone is raised in the district. The North Staffordshire and London & North-Western railways and the Grand Trunk canal are the principal means of communication.