“I made this Jar, all of cross

If, you don’t repent, you will be, lost =”

This is the last surviving jar Dave inscribed, May 3, 1862.

My granddaughter needed a project for her class. She’s 10. Her mom is a potter. This book hit home with her because she was so familiar with the process. Then again it wasn’t familiar. In Dave the Potter, Dave is a slave on a South Carolina plantation. One of his poems says he belongs to Mr. Miles. Dave had to find his own clay and add enough water to make it the right consistency to form a pot. He, unlike most potters, had a gift of making pots more than 20 gallons! These were storage pots for grain and cured meats. He also made many smaller pots. On some, he simply wrote his name. On others, he wrote poems similar to haiku. As a slave, he wasn’t suppose to know how to read or write. We’re not sure why he signed some, wrote his own poems on others, and most he simply made a pot.

This book has beautiful illustrations by Bryan Collier. The darkness of the pictures sets the tone of the dark slave quarters where Dave would have worked. He had no last name, as that was another thing forbidden for slaves. The author, Laban Hill, clearly explains the process of finding and making clay. He also describes the making of the giant pots with a kick wheel. Then he describes the process of adding coils.

Later in life Dave lost his leg. He could no longer kick the wheel but he had a crippled friend who aided him in making the pots spin. Mr. Hill includes so many fascinating details it will be easy for students to research the history of slaves as skilled laborers, the history of pottery, as well as writing poetry. The pictures may inspire students to create their own pottery or clay sculptures. I’m surprised how Dave was allowed to get a friend’s help. I’d also like to know how he learned to throw pots. These questions are probably lost to history. His last poem also leaves me wondering just what message he was trying to leave to those who would use his pot. History always leaves us a mystery.

I’d like to visit Edgefield, SC, specifically Pottersville, to visit a potter there who displays one of Dave’s pots.

Gail Cartee is wondering what other mysteries and histories lie within my state.

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