Mercer Tiles

Earlier this year we included several Mercer tiles in the masonry trim of a clients fireplace. Here are some pictures of the tiles along with the history related to their creator Henry Chapman Mercer, whose influence is so evident in Doylestown, Pennsylvania. 

Henry Chapman Mercer was historian, archaeologist, collector and ceramist -- a Renaissance man of the early 20th century. He was born in Doylestown, Pennsylvania, at the heart of historic Bucks County on June 24, 1856. His one-man building boom, leaving a legacy of three structures on the National Historic Landmark register, began when he was 52. Mercer traveled the world on the largess of a devoted aunt and studied law and ancient history. He graduated from Harvard with a law-degree (although he never practiced) and was curator of American and Pre-historic Archaeology at the Museum of the University of Pennsvlvania from 1894 to 1897. Mercer conducted site excavations in the Yucatan Peninsula and in the Delaware, Ohio and Tennessee River valleys. Leaving his position with the Museum in the late 1890s, Mercer devoted himself to finding old American artifacts and learning about German pottery.

In 1897, while searching for fireplace tools in a junk dealer's barn, Mercer found a jumble of objects made obsolete by the Industrial Revolution. He realized these pre-1850 work related implements might one day be the prized findings of future archaeologists. Mercer seized upon this priceless opportunity to preserve the endangered artifacts and display them in their diversity. Mercer himself went to work on his collection, which he called "The Tools of the Nation Maker. " He pledged it would be "worth its weight in gold in a hundred years hence. "

 
Mercer believed that American society was being destroyed by industrialism, which inspired his search for American artifacts. Mercer founded Moravian Pottery and Tile Works in 1898 after apprenticing himself to a Pennsylvania German potter. Mercer was also influenced by the American Arts and Crafts Movement. Mercer is well known for his research and books about ancient tool making, his ceramic tile creations, and his engineering and architecture. He wrote extensively on his interests, which included archeology, early tool making, German stove plates, and ceramics. He assembled the collection of early American tools now housed in the Mercer Museum.

The Moravian Pottery & Tile Works is a history museum located in Doylestown, Pennsylvania. The museum is included in a National Historic Landmark District along with the Mercer Museum and Fonthill. These three structures are the only poured-in-place concrete structures built by Mercer. Handmade tiles are still produced in a manner similar to that developed by the pottery's founder and builder, Henry Chapman Mercer. Tile designs are reissues of original designs. Mercer was a major proponent of the Arts and Crafts movement in America. He directed the work at the pottery from 1898 until his death in 1930. Mercer generally did not affix a potter's mark to tiles made while he directed the work. Following his death, there were several marks used to indicate that a tile had originated there. When the Bucks County Department of Parks and Recreation took over the Tile Works as a working museum, all tiles made by the museum were impressed on the obverse with a stylized "MOR", the words "Bucks County" and the year of manufacture. The reproduction tiles made today are made using Mercer's original molds, clay that is obtained locally and has properties similar to those of Mercer's original source, slips and glazes that follow Mercer's final formulations, although some have been modified to reduce the lead and heavy metal content to less toxic levels.

Mercer's tiles are used in the floor of the Pennsylvania State Capitol Building in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania and in many other noteworthy buildings and houses. In the Pennsylvania State Capitol, Mercer created a series of mosaic images for the floor of the building. The series of four hundred mosaics trace the history of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania from prehistoric times. The Pennsylvania State Capitol is the largest single collection of Mercer's tiles. Other collections of tiles by Mercer can be found at Rockefeller's New York estate, Grauman's Chinese Theater, the casino at Monte Carlo, and the St. Louis Public Library.

The Tile Works is one of three poured-in-place concrete structures built by Mercer. The others include Fonthill, which is located on the same property and served as his home; and the Mercer Museum, located approximately one mile away. The Bucks County Historical Society now owns Fonthill, which is open to the public, and the Mercer Museum. The Moravian Pottery and Tile Works is owned and operated by the Bucks County Department of Parks & Recreation. These three buildings make up "the Mercer Mile". All three buildings were designed and constructed by Henry Mercer in the early part of the 20th century using reinforced concrete. Henry Mercer had a boundless collection of early American every day objects and ancient artifacts at the dawn of the 20th century. In a stroke of genius, he built the Mercer Museum to contain it, preserving the past in timeless fashion. The Mercer Museum's expanding collection contains more than 50,000 tools and artifacts. It represents the soul of early America and the heritage of Bucks County, while hinting at the men and women who experienced the era.
 
The architecturally significant building completed between 1913 and 1916 by Mercer, eight laborers and "Lucy" the horse is a National Historic Landmark. Rising seven stories and constructed entirely of reinforced concrete, its towers, gables and parapets announce the diversity inside. You will find more than 60 Early American trades represented, including a wealth of woodworking, metalworking, agricultural, textile and dairy tools. The oldest artifacts in the museum are Native American implements dating from 6,000 B.C. to 8,000 B.C.

The Spruance Library, located in the Mercer Museum, is a research library containing primary source material for historians, genealogists and students of Bucks County history. More than 20,000 volumes of books, periodicals, pamphlets, maps, prints and photographs are preserved in the library, including the papers of Henry C. Mercer. The Mercer collection - and the period of history it preserves - embodies the character that created the nation: ingenuity, vision and hard work. Henry Ford stated that the Mercer museum was the only museum worth visiting in the United States, and the Mercer Museum was apparently Henry Ford's inspiration for his own museum. The Mercer Museum houses over forty thousand artifacts from early American society.

 
Mercer died on March 2, 1930 at Fonthill, the home he designed and constructed.
(All information collected via web-search and re-assembled for clarity)