Buffalo Pottery

Named after the city in which it was founded, The Buffalo Pottery Company, later renamed Buffalo China in 1956, began as a division of the Larkin Soap Company, which was housed in a building designed by Frank Lloyd Wright. The Larkin Soap Company needed to boost soap sales in 1901, so the company put certificates on soap packages good for soap dishes in return for the coupons. It succeeded mainly because of the design and quality of the pottery. Ceramics engineer William Rea, who created the dish model, continued with a line of ceramics including an olive green mix that produced gradations of color in the finished product, unlike existing pottery. As the soap dish giveaway slowed, in 1903 the Buffalo... more.