It may not be much to look at now, but in or about 1916, the Clinchfield Railroad helped establish a pottery factory at this site, in order to increase rail freight business. Although the building has since been demolished, you can still see the concrete footprint of the building. The factory was chartered in 1920 as Southern Potteries, Inc. Kaolinite and Feldspar from the surrounding mountains were made into dinnerware that was decorated using a hand-painted underglaze technique that was more appealing than relatively dull, decal-decorated competing products. In the 1930s, the pottery began stamping dishware with the “Blue Ridge” label. These pieces became popular because of the durability of the underglaze technique and the fact that with hand-painted designs, each piece was unique. At its peak, the pottery employed more than 1,000, and turned out more hand-painted pottery than any other U.S. producer. For decades, Southern Potteries served along with the railroad as the economic lifeblood of the town.
In the 1950s, the advent of plastic dinnerware spelled the end of Southern Potteries, which closed in 1957 and sold the facilities to a casket company. Today the Town of Erwin operates a Public Works facility on the site.
Since the 1950s, though, Blue Ridge dinnerware has become a runaway success among collectors, with prices running to several thousand dollars for the most exceptional pieces. Prices for more modest pieces are much more affordable, though. Examples spanning the entire range can be seen in person in antique shops in Erwin and nearby towns. Many collectors’ societies have arisen, the chief of which is based in Erwin and which stages an annual show at the Erwin’s National Guard Armory each fall, coinciding with the Unicoi County Apple Festival.
The cache may be an easy find, even a park-and-grab for moderately experienced geocachers, but perhaps less obvious for novices. The cache size is near the official threshold between “small” and “regular” size, so it’s either a small “regular” or a large “small.” Either way, there is room for trade items and trackables. Muggles are not usually much of a problem, but if necessary, please wait for a muggle-free moment to find and replace the cache. If you do have to wait, it might be fun to imagine you’re back in the 30’s or 40’s and you’ve arrived to meet your beloved when they finish their shift at the factory.
Special thanks to my daughter, geocacher "xoyika." who decorated the container. She wanted me to note that her efforts were also applied to the bottom of the container, since that might be missed otherwise.
At the time of placement, this cache contains an extraordinary FTF prize, related to the cache's theme.
This should be an easy cache, but it’s possible that wasps, spiders or other creatures may find this an attractive spot, and as always, the cache owner disclaims all liability for any risks associated with this cache, which are assumed by the cache-seeker. It should be obvious, but please DO NOT venture past the fence onto the enclosed property.
Explicit permission for this cache placement was obtained from the town of Erwin, which owns the site, so please be mindful that we are here at their discretion. The unused road spur extending from Holston Ave. seems like a good parking spot, but one cacher was turned away by police for parking there, so it may be better to park somewhere else until and unless I can figure out the best way to advise the police that the town has given permission for this placement.
FTF: congratulations to antbedy!