Hadley Pottery

Hadley Pottery had its inception in 1939, when Mary Alice Hadley made a custom set of dishware for a cruiser she and her husband George Hadley had on the Ohio River.{{cite journal |last1=Kleber |first1=John E. |title=Hadley, Mary Alice (Hale) |journal=The Encyclopedia of Kentucky |date=2014 |pages=397 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CcceBgAAQBAJ&dq=mary+alice+hadley&pg=PA397 |publisher=University Press of Kentucky|isbn=9780813159010 }} She created her own design with a nautical flag motif{{cite web |title=Mary Alice Hadley and Her Pottery |url=https://www.speedmuseum.org/collections/plate-1986-3-102/ |website=Speed Art Museum |access-date=2021-03-01}} and painted it on unfired blanks that she fired at the Louisville Pottery Co.{{cite book |last1=Payne |first1=Warren |title=Clear as Mud |date=2010 |publisher=Cane Ridge Publishing |location=Paris, KY |isbn=9780615310930 |pages=78}} When friends saw the design of her dishes, they were interested in purchasing dishes of their own, so Hadley created a few more at the Louisville Pottery Co.{{cite book |last1=Payne |first1=Warren |title=Clear as Mud |date=2010 |publisher=Cane Ridge Publishing |location=Paris, KY |isbn=9780615310930 |pages=78}}

With more interest and demand, the Hadleys finally purchased what became the Hadley Pottery building at 1570 Story Ave. in Louisville in October 1944 as a birthday present for Mrs. Hadley.{{cite web|title=Hadley Pottery Company|url=https://insiderlouisville.com/holiday-gift-guide/hand-made-stoneware-gifts-from-hadley-pottery/|website=Insider Louisville|access-date=2020-05-14|archive-date=2017-08-23|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170823211002/https://insiderlouisville.com/holiday-gift-guide/hand-made-stoneware-gifts-from-hadley-pottery/|url-status=usurped}} Mrs. Hadley painted all of the murals on the walls of the building{{cite web |title=Hadley Pottery History |url=http://hadleypottery.com/history |website=Hadley Pottery |access-date=2020-05-14}} and the Hadley Pottery opened for business in 1945.{{cite book |last1=Payne |first1=Warren |title=Clear as Mud |date=2010 |publisher=Cane Ridge Publishing |location=Paris, KY |isbn=9780615310930 |pages=79}} Hadley created a wide range of designs for the company, often inspired by Louisville motifs such as the fleur-de-lis.{{cite web |title=Mary Alice Hadley and Her Pottery |url=https://www.speedmuseum.org/collections/plate-1986-3-102/ |website=Speed Art Museum |access-date=2021-03-01}}

After Mary Alice Hadley died in 1965, nine painters continued to hand-paint pieces which are still signed "M.A. Hadley".{{Cite news |date=2001-07-01 |title=Precious pottery |pages=23 |work=Globe-Gazette |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/99951193/precious-pottery/ |access-date=2022-04-18}} In 1979 Kenneth Moore bought Hadley Pottery, and then in 2018 Jerry Day purchased the business and opened up a stash of over 6000 pieces which date to the period when Mary Alice Hadley was still alive.{{Cite news |last=Menderski |first=Maggie |date=2018-06-15 |title=A taste of history |pages=[https://www.newspapers.com/clip/99954662/a-taste-of-history/],[https://www.newspapers.com/clip/99954816/] |work=The Courier-Journal |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/99954662/a-taste-of-history/ |access-date=2022-04-18}} In 2022, the business announced it would close, but later announced that the business would indeed stay open. {{Cite web |last=Aulbach |first=Lucas |date=March 29, 2022 |title=After more than 80 years in business, a historic Louisville pottery shop is closing |url=https://www.courier-journal.com/story/news/local/2022/03/29/hadley-pottery-iconic-louisville-stoneware-shop-closing-2022/7206501001/ |access-date=2022-04-18 |website=The Courier-Journal |language=en-US}}

Hadley Pottery was exhibited by the American Craftsmen's Educational Council in 1947, and at the Ceramic National Exhibit at the Syracuse Museum of Fine Arts.{{cite book |last1=Payne |first1=Warren |title=Clear as Mud |date=2010 |publisher=Cane Ridge Publishing |location=Paris, KY |isbn=9780615310930 |pages=80}} In 1952, Mary Alice Hadley received an award from the Museum of Modern Art's Good Design program{{cite web |title=Mary Alice Hadley profile |url=https://www.artprice.com/artist/201536/mary-alice-hadley/biography |website=artprice.com |access-date=2020-05-14}} and her winning design, "Brown Dot" (or "Hot Brown Fleck"), was exhibited in New York and Chicago.{{cite book |last1=Payne |first1=Warren |title=Clear as Mud |date=2010 |publisher=Cane Ridge Publishing |location=Paris, KY |isbn=9780615310930 |pages=80}}

• Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology, Terre Haute, Indiana
• Speed Art Museum, Louisville, Kentucky

File:Mary alice hadley per hadley pottery, piatti, 1952-55, 01 faccia.jpg|Mary Alice Hadley Ceramics at the Speed Art Museum

File:Mary alice hadley per hadley pottery, piatti, 1952-55, 02.jpg|Mary Alice Hadley Ceramics at the Speed Art Museum

{{Reflist}}

• [http://hadleypottery.com/ Official company website]
• [https://www.speedmuseum.org/collections/plate-1986-3-102/ An example of the "Brown Fleck" design in the Speed Museum collection]
• [https://www.cflouisville.org/grants-partnerships/prize-for-visual-art/ The Mary Alice Hadley Prize for Visual Art]
• [https://www.newspapers.com/image/?clipping_id=18290265&fcfToken=eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJmcmVlLXZpZXctaWQiOjEwOTE1NjU3MiwiaWF0IjoxNTc4MzY2NzU0LCJleHAiOjE1Nzg0NTMxNTR9.mxK0Der_MP7LWvgJKlEWo4d_B9pYNNU2Gg1eqVjoV20 Mary Alice Hadley Obituary, Louisville, Courier-Journal]

• Louisville Stoneware

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Category:Tourist attractions in Louisville, Kentucky

Category:Ceramics manufacturers of the United States

Category:Manufacturing companies based in Louisville, Kentucky

Category:1939 establishments in Kentucky

Category:Manufacturing companies established in 1939