Cowan Pottery

Side A: At this location, in 1913, R. Guy Cowan opened Northeast Ohio’s only art pottery, the Cowan Pottery Studio (known first as the Cleveland Pottery and Tile Company). Cowan began molding Lakewood’s clay into sculptural forms covered with unique glazes. Cowan’s venture depended on the commercial success of his tiles, which adorned homes and community institutions throughout greater Cleveland. By 1917, his Lakewood Ware had achieved international recognition with an ward from the Art Institute of Chicago. After his World War I service, Cowan returned to Lakewood, where a drained gas well prompted the pottery’s relocation to Rocky River. Until the pottery closed in 1931, a casualty of the Great Depression, its artists produced elegant household wares and limited-edition ceramic sculptures that were sold throughout the United States and Canada. Side B: Same