Tucker's 30 years of crock collecting

John Tucker, Burr Oak, has collected crocks for almost 30 years. His collection now totals 70 and more are expected to be added. John has all of his treasured finds displayed on shelving he constructed in the basement of his and wife Sue's home. As for why he decided to collect this crock-stoneware, he said, "because I became interested in them and like the sight of them." Among his collection are big and little crocks, jugs of all sizes, poultry waterers and even butter churns.

The items in his collection are no longer being made except for some souvenir pieces. In early days before refrigerators, the crocks and jugs were used for storing food and beverages. John believes the crocks were also used in pickling and in the making of sauerkraut. He added, "I also know some of the jugs were used for storing home brew."

Most of his collection was made by Red Wing and features the symbol of a red wing on the front of the crock or jug. He does have a few from the companies of Ruckels, Mason, Western, Turkey Drop and the Union Stoneware Company that became a division of Red Wing.

John doesn't have a favorite crock, but one of his recent finds is pretty special to him as they are hard to find. It is a five gallon "Waconda Springs" jug that once contained the mineral water from the famous resort and health spa which was shipped out all over. John was raised on a farm north of Ionia, not far from Waconda Springs. The springs were covered by Waconda Lake.

John's Waconda Springs jug was purchased at an auction in southeast Kansas. This treasured jug came with a full written history attached, telling about the history of Waconda Springs.

John and Sue's daughter, Carolyn, helps with auctions in the southeast Kansas area let her father know when a crock or jug comes available. One crock piece that Carolyn saw to be auctioned was a mystery to her as to what it was used for. When she showed John a photo of the piece, John quickly identified it as a "Canhardly." Carolyn marveled at the name of the piece, but John told her that you "can hardly tell what the piece is." John ended up purchasing it. Later, he found it was the bottom of a small poultry waterer, and a pint canning jar could be clamped on to it, and filled with water.

Another favorite crock piece is a larger poultry waterer that was given to him one Christmas by his father. Brother, Tom, was also given one that same Christmas. His father had purchased them new from Mullet's Hardware store in Superior. Another unusual crock was purchased at a local estate sale of Clarence Maag. It is a 30 gallon crock that John had to have help in getting the heavy pieced moved. A friend of the Tuckers and granddaughter of the Maags, Pat Boyles, told about memories of her grandmother using that large crock in making sauerkraut. Another of John's crocks was found in a local second hand store.

Another treasured crock gift came from a long time Burr Oak resident, Barbara Renner, who John would often help with various things. "She always insisted on me taking something for helping her but I'd always turn her down. She would win out providing me with something like candy or in this case an unmarked four quart crock," John said.

The five gallon crock butter churn was a surprise find. He spotted it sticking out of a junk pile and saved it from being destroyed.

John has a few stoneware bowls in his collection along with some stoneware souvenir pieces, including one from John's parents, Archie and Rosie Tucker. His brother and wife, visited the Red Wing factory a few years ago, and gave John and Sue a stoneware mug made there. Another gift came from Sue's aunt, LaVon Miller, when she gave Sue a crock beer jug.

John said the crocks have meant even more to him since the Red Wing factory closed. The Red Wing crock and stoneware history began in 1877 when the company was formed in Red Wing, Minnesota. The town was organized at the "sharpest navigable bend of the Mississippi River." Red Wing was named after a great chief of the Dakota Nation who welcomed the area's first European settlers. In 1861, a German immigrant name John Paul purchased land there and discovered a rich pocket of clay. Since he was a potter by trade, he used the clay to make the first Red Wing stoneware. When the Red Wing Company was established, the crocks and stoneware were much needed by the settlers to store their food and beverages. As the population grew and cities were established, the company began making ceramic sewer pipe.

Two other companies were formed at the turn of the century, Northstar Stoneware and Minnesota Stoneware. By 1906, one of the companies went out of business and the other one combined with Red Wing Company.

In 1913-1922, refrigerators came into use and the crocks and jugs were not in demand as they once were. So the company was renamed the Red Wing Union Stoneware Company and began making flower pots and vases, then luncheon plates and art pottery. In 1936, the company name was changed to Red Wing Potteries.

However by 1967, the less expensive, imported plates, flower pots and vases brought hard times for the company. The company began making quality hand thrown clay pots but by 2013, the future of the company became questionable. Even though another company came into the picture to partner with Red Wing, by 2019, the company decided after 142 years in the business, the doors would close.

Sue worked almost 30 years as secretary for the Burr Oak, White Rock and Rock Hills school districts. John worked 38 years at the grain facilities in Burr Oak and most all those years he was the manager with the companies that owned the facilities; Walker Grain, Koch Industries and Midway Co-op. After his retirement, he worked a 11 years for the Jewell County Road Department. John and Sue keep busy maintaining the Tucker family farm, fishing, doing their yard work and helping out where needed. John has served on several Burr Oak committees, town council positions and as a volunteer on the fire department. Besides their daughter, Carolyn, they have a son, Ed, and granddaughter, Chailyn.