Cheever & Arie Meaders Pottery, ca. 1958

Appraised on: June 25, 2005

Appraised in: Tampa, Florida

Appraised by: J. Garrison Stradling

Category: Pottery & Porcelain

Episode Info: Tampa, Hour 3 (#1003)

Originally Aired: January 23, 2006

IMAGE: 1 of 1  

Appraisal Video: (3:00)

GUEST: I bought it at a garage sale about three months ago. I saw it and I said to myself, "I'm not going to pay over ten dollars for that, but I really like it." So I asked the lady what it cost, and she said, "Give me three dollars." I said, "Sold."

APPRAISER: Well, you knew it had some little damages around...

GUEST: Yes, I did. But I thought the artwork was so beautiful-- the grapes, the leaves.

APPRAISER: Well, it's got some marks on the bottom of it. The initials are "C.M." and "A.M." for Cheever Meaders and Arie Meaders-- M-e-a-d-e-r-s. Does that name mean anything to you?

GUEST: No.

APPRAISER: Well, the Meaders family of Mossy Creek, Georgia, is probably one of the most prominent folk art families in the country and certainly the most prominent in Georgia. Cheever Meaders' father, John Meaders, founded the pottery in Mossy Creek in White County, northeast Georgia, in 1892. He started the pottery, actually, with hired help, because he wasn't a potter himself. And then he had them teach his sons how to pot. And Cheever eventually took over the pottery in 1920. And Cheever went through the whole Depression selling pottery there in Mossy Creek. Now, what happened was a highway put through right next to the pottery and he started getting tourist business. So, he had one of these journeymen potters teach him how to make face jugs. And he knew they weren't usable, but he found he made more money off of face jugs. His wife, Arie, joined him in the shop. Now, one of their sons' name was Lanier Meaders. The Smithsonian did a documentary film in the 1960s on Lanier and his pottery, and suddenly the pottery became famous. Cheever died in 1967, and Arie kept going, and these grapes are one of Arie's signatures that she did. It has a Bristol glaze, which probably has a little tin in it to opacify it. It's basically stoneware, though. And because of the fact that it's got both of their names on it, despite the damages-- and it has got damages-- right here. Some of them have actually been filled with plaster. Nonetheless, this particular vase is worth between $2,000 and $3,000,maybe $3,500 to $4,000 on a good day in a Georgia auction.

GUEST: Oh, my goodness.

APPRAISER: You don't want to get it out of the state, though. You want to keep it down there. And it is really, really a superb pot. I loved it. I haven't seen one like this in many, many years. Thanks so much for bringing it in to ROADSHOW.

GUEST: Fantastic. Thank you so much. Oh, wow.