Spode Museum facts for kids

The Spode Museum is a special place in Stoke-on-Trent, England. It's where Josiah Spode started his famous pottery business way back in 1774. Josiah Spode was a big part of the Industrial Revolution. The museum has a huge collection of Spode ceramics. These pieces show 200 years of Spode's amazing work. You can see everything from fancy items made for kings and queens to simple dishes for everyday homes.

Spode's Story: A Look Back

Josiah Spode made some big changes in pottery. He created Bone China, which became the top type of china in England. He also made transfer printing much better. This method let factories print beautiful designs onto ceramic items quickly. It meant many more people could afford decorated dishes.

The Spode Factory Grows

By the early 1820s, Spode's factory was huge. His son, Josiah Spode II, and his partner, William Copeland, ran it. About 2,000 people worked there. The factory had 22 large bottle ovens, which were used to bake the pottery. It was the biggest factory in Stoke at that time.

A Long History of Making Pottery

The Spode factory made pottery non-stop from 1774 until 2008. That's a very long time! Even though the original factory closed, the Spode brand is still alive. Another company, Portmeirion, bought the brand. They still make Spode items at their own factory in Stoke.

The Spode factory was very large, covering about 9 acres. It had around 90 buildings. Because there was so much space, many items that might have been thrown away were just stored. Over 200 years, a huge amount of old papers and objects piled up.

Protecting the Collection

In 1987, the Spode company realized how important its old records and collection were. They set up the Spode Museum Trust. This is a special charity that took over everything. This was done to keep the collection safe forever. It meant the collection would be protected, no matter what happened to the Spode company.

Recent Events at the Museum

In April 2018, a car crashed into the museum. It damaged some items in the museum shop. But the museum found a creative way to deal with it! In 2022, they held an art show. The art was made from the damaged items.

Amazing Collections at the Museum

The Spode Museum has the biggest and most varied collection of Spode pottery in the world. It's truly unique!

What You Can See

The museum also has a "paper" archive. This means it has about 250,000 old documents and photos. One of the most important parts is 70,000 hand-painted pictures. These are drawings of every pattern Spode made since about 1800.

There are also 25,000 engraved copper plates. These plates were used to print designs onto the pottery. They date back to the 1790s and are the largest collection of their kind anywhere. You can also see old tools and machines that potters used. Some of these are from before 1800!

Visiting the Museum Today

After 2008, most of the collection was put into storage. But with help from the Heritage Lottery Fund, the Spode Museum Trust opened the Spode Works Visitor Centre in 2012. It's located in part of the historic Spode factory.