Belle Camp Blog

Occasionally guests ask about the history of china they have come across with images of Bellingrath Gardens. Gayfers’ Department Store once carried large plates with scenes of Bellingrath Gardens. These were produced for that retailer by Vernon Kilns, a California manufacturer in operation from 1931 until 1953.

In 1957 Bellingrath Gardens contracted with one of England’s oldest potteries to produce souvenir china for sale in the gift shop which was operating out of the Lodge near the Bellingrath Home.

The Adams line of potters in Staffordshire created several different pieces for that purpose. There were dinner plates, salad plates and small butter pats as well as coffee cups and saucers and two sizes of mugs. Pictured here is what was marketed as a “Leeds Pitcher” so named for its distinctive shape.

The china was produced in three color patterns: dark blue, cranberry or multi-color as the pitcher shown here. While the front of this piece depicts the Grotto, the dinner plates were centered with the Grotto but surrounded by a view of the Home courtyard, the Monolith, Rebecca at the Well and the iconic bridge over Mirror Lake. Also in the border were camellias, a nod no doubt to the recently opened Camellia Arboretum behind Mirror Lake.

In the mid-1960’s, following the construction of the South Terrace, a dinner plate with a scene of the Bellingrath Home was added to the choices. This one was finished in shades of brown rather than the earlier color palettes. By this time, the china was being sold in the newly completed Gift Shop adjoining the parking lot.

In 1970 a Bellingrath newsletter announced the end of “the Bellingrath Gardens Commemorative Plate and its accessory items.” Spiraling labor costs in England along with a scarcity of skilled potters was the blame for the end of the tradition. Today these items remain a fun collector’s item occasionally found in antique shops and on EBay.