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by Linda Romberg
Mar 2008
SHAWNEE TALES
Well, hoping we are back on track this month, I appreciate the response to
Doug's request for participation - it has been refreshing! It was a difficult time for me as my brother was murdered in early December, it is beyond description what the family has gone through. I just couldn't focus on the newsletter or much of anything.
Just a few days ago I was sorry to learn of the passing of a collector friend, Sue Slater when her brother Kevin emailed Doug and I - so many of us are spread across the states and our paths cross from time to time creating friendships along the way. This crazy pottery has brought so many of us together. I'd like to share parts of Kevin's email and the memories of collecting -
"I bought a tulip vase and a bow knot wall pocket from Doug a few years ago.
My late sister bought a pair of Dutch boy and girl gold trim range size salt
and peppers from Linda a few years ago. She enjoyed corresponding with Linda
at that time. Her name is Susan Slater.
I enjoy the newsletter and wish I could contribute. We have a lot of Shawnee
we have collected, mostly planters and vases. We're also big fans of
American Bisque because they are so cute and well done and more affordable than
Shawnee. Other interests are Ceramic Arts Studio, Royal Copley, Hull, Regal
China, Brush, etc. We have ~90 cookie jars, about 15 are Shawnee.
I figured that planter from mckoy4u2 would get a rise out of Doug. I didn't
notice until after the auction was over that it was poor Larry".
"Kevin,
I did a page on his cornware and sunflower shakers, didn't give much
thought to the planter since it wasn't gold trimmed. Now that I've look
in the book I see what the deal may be. this piece, I would says exists
in limited numbers, again - maybe, but the fact this one comes to us
from slick Larry I would say probably another Larry lie. I would have
been less suspicious if he had not mentioned the part about fired vs
glued - sounds to me like the jerk ratted himself out! That dog shows up
on the dog house planter with some regularity. I've never tried it, but
I think with a dremel tool it could be removed without damage.
well it worked, you got me going ;-) I think you've earned your spot in
the newsletter"
Item number:
"Keep up the good work, I enjoy the newsletter. I'm always looking at Flea
Markets in my area (DeKalb, IL) for more bargains."
Follow up email:
"My sister died from cancer in April of 2006. We miss her every day.
I remember talking to her about you, she loved talking with you about
Shawnee and trusted you. She was always willing to pay a little more for something from you because she knew you could be trusted. She told me about your brother and I remember reading about your quest for a Shamrock Smiley w/ red hair because he reminded you of your brother if I'm not mistaken.
My sister and I were always close, but collecting pottery, especially Shawnee
brought us even closer. My wife (Kim) and I started hanging out with some
friends that collected antiques and we kind of just went along for awhile
because it was fun and waited to see what would catch our fancy. In the
meantime, my sister had collected a few cookie jars over the years and my
wife and I kind of settled on pottery eventually. Of course we knew about the
cookie jars my sister had and it turned out she was pretty knowledgeable on Shawnee especially. After getting a load of the prices we saw on Shawnee cookie jars, we decided to reset our sights on their beautiful planters, salt and peppers, teapots (esp. the hand painted ones), wall pockets, etc. As the years went on, we did end up with several Shawnee cookie jars also. We have Smiley
Shamrock, Smiley Chrysanthemum, 2 little chefs, Dutch Boy w/striped pants, Great Northern Dutch Girl, PnB long tail, PnB short tail, and GT PnB short tail.
Some we bought on ebay, others at flea markets and antique stores. Probably
the best bargains were the GT PnB and Smiley Chrysanthemum for $90 each.
We also collected cookie jars, mostly American Bisque. We've gotten a lot of
bargains on those and from other manufacturers, I figure because they aren't
as widely known or collected.
We have the three major Shawnee books, the American Bisque book, pig bank, several cookie jar books etc.for resources. I also managed to get a few
newsletters off of ebay that Pam Curran was putting out at the time.
Back to my sister: After getting interested in Shawnee especially, my sister,
wife and I would go antiquing a lot. Many of the times, it was just me and my
sister. What really got my sister started was the old Puss n Boots cookie jar my Mom had from our childhood. My sister got it out of the basement from my Mom. I don't really remember it from my childhood, my Mom probably knew to keep it safe from me and my younger brother. Sue kept it in a place of honor on top of her fridge. We now have the 3 aforementioned cookie jars, the cream, the white and the multicolored creamers, and several sets of salt and peppers including one gold trim set on top of our fridge. Anyway, after my bad influence, my sister finally had a partner in crime for collecting Shawnee and other pottery( her husband wasn't interested in the slightest, but he didn't mind or discourage it). Both of our collections exploded. We've bought a few pieces from her husband since she passed, but we don't feel right paying less than she did and I know what she paid for most of her stuff. The favorite thing I've bought is the elephant teapot, the cream one with underglaze paint. She found it on ebay as a "McCoy creamer". I egged her on and she bought it for $105 + shipping. It's beautiful and in mint condition. I think of her every time I look at it.
We have 2 other brothers, one in the area and one from Houston Texas. The
brother from Texas would come at the end of September and the 4 of us would
get together and do a day road trip a couple of times during the week he was
here. We had so much fun, and one of my other brothers has collected some Shawnee also. Look what a Puss' n Boots cookie jar started.
Sorry to ramble so much, but it has been somewhat therapeutic for me and
brought back some fond memories. If you wish to use any of this for your
newsletter, feel free to do so.
I will try to contribute to the newsletter occasionally if I can. Maybe someday I could send a few pictures, but you have already done a great job on education and pictures. I know it must be a struggle to keep the newsletter going, but I would be heartbroken to see it go. I have a lot of respect for you and Doug for your work and what little dealings we have had in the past. I was glad to see Doug and you collaborate."
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