Historic Bonaparte Pottery - Bonaparte, Iowa

Archeologists return to
couple�s barn that housed
1870�s pottery plant

By Bob Hansen
Hawkeye Correspondent

Bonaparte � Marilyn Thomas suspected she and her husband were acquiring an important archeological site when the couple purchased the old Bonaparte Lumberyard in 1992.

At the time, her husband, Donnie, was only looking for a good place to go fishing.

Just how important the abandoned yard on the Des Moines River is to Iowa�s history became clear only when the river jumped it�s banks and inundated the site in 1993.

Now the public has an opportunity to share the Thomases� sense of discovery when the fourth annual Bonaparte Potter Tour is offered in the Van Buren County town this Saturday.

Marilyn radiates enthusiasm for the old Parker and Hanback pottery plant as she gives a tour through the rambling brick and fir structure built in the 1870s.

She explained their fascination with the building�s history began when she and Donnie moved into their riverside home in May 1993, only to be flooded out in July.

Once the waters receded, the Thomases found themselves caught up in the paperwork chase to recover a portion of their considerable financial loss. It was then they were told by a county official that their building was known as the Bonaparte Pottery.

That confirmed Marilyn�s suspicions, for she remembered years earlier she and a friend would occasionally dig in the lumber yard�s basement for Parker and Hanback stoneware pottery the friend collected.

Later that year, the Thomases were contacted by the State Historical Society and the State Archeological Office at Iowa City seeking the couple�s permission for an archeological �dig� on the property.

Maria Schroeder with the State Archeological Office said the Bonaparte site is especially important because it�s the only one of its kind still existing in Iowa.

�It is significant because it is the only standing pottery manufacturing site remaining in the state.� She said. �The major building that was built in 1876 is there and is in a remarkable state of preservation. We can even see remains of the old kilns � including a 30-foot-high beehive kiln � used to fire the stoneware pottery.�

Stoneware pottery was an important facet of everyday life in the 19^th century, long before plastic and paper packaging. Stoneware was shaped into a variety of utilitarian uses as diverse as drain tile and pickle jars, and is now highly prized by collectors.

Marilyn quickly gave her approval for the excavation, and the digs began in 1994. But Donnie was somewhat . . . . . 18 min more cautious.

�I bought this place because I always wanted to be by the river, and my plans were for al lot of fishing,� he recalls.� So I wasn�t too enthusiastic about having a bunch of people from Iowa City digging up my yard.

That skepticism proved well founded, for when Donnie returned from a week at work on the road, he was shocked to find his driveway blocked and gaping holes in his yard. The same scene of desolation greeted him each time he returned, but the Iowa City crew were never available over the weekend to hear his complaints.

�Finally, I asked by boss for time off and I came home and had it out with the archeologists. I told them they had to clean up the mess and they only responded with an �Oh, sure.� Next week when I came home, the mess was even worse, so I gave up at that point.�

Donnie should be used to the craters that appear in his landscaped riverbank yard by now, for archeologists have been on the site again this summer, and one of the pits they created will be shown during the tour.

The hole measures about 5-by-8-feet and is seven feet deep. The walls appear to be lined with cut block, but on closer inspection, the block is actually thousands of pieces of pottery shards.

The Thomases� property is one giant potter mine, and their occasional freelance digging produces rare unbroken pots and crocks that were discarded by the manufacturer. An unexcavated area measuring 150 feet square is believed to be filled with the remains of the pottery manufacturing.

But it is the old pottery building that makes the tour most interesting. The building is a German Fachweck design structure and believed to be one of only two in the state. It�s so well preserved that it appears the workmen only yesterday left their stations, although the pottery closed in 1895.

Fingerprints of the workmen�s clay-stained hands can still be seen on the walls, and there are pencil scribblings stating the production of an 1890 afternoon and the crew that fueled the giant kilns.

In the basement, the Thomases unearthed evidence of a �pug mill� � a horse-powered mill that provided power to the manufacturing processes. There are also stacks of the old clay molds and even tools that a bored workman decorated with a 19^th-century version of a �happy face.�

Donnie Thomas is now retired, but he laments he has yet to wet a fishing line this year in the nearby river. Instead, he and Marilyn spend their time digging and uncovering the rich treasure their property contains.

Tours of the site will be conducted by the Thomases and by volunteers from the State Archeological Office and will begin at 11:30 a.m. There also will be a gathering at the site of stoneware collectors from throughout the Midwest for a buy-sell-and-swap meet.

This story was written several years ago and much has happened since then. Be sure to check our entire web site for current happenings and for upcoming events. We look forward to your visiting us! - Marilyn Thomas

Pottery For Sale - Following the loss of my husband and partner Donnie, is with a great deal of disappointment that I have come to the decision that I must turn this wonderful adventure over to other individuals who can devote the time, energy and resources to the pottery project that it deserves. Those who may be interested and who would like more information are invited to call Marilyn Thomas at (319) 592-3620.