Punxsutawney PA 1 Gallon Stoneware Cream Crock

Circa 1880: Signed "E. Bair. / Punxsutawney. PA.," this 8" tall cream jar was manufactured in southwestern Pennsylvania probably by one of the potters in Greensboro or New Geneva for general store merchant Ephraim Bair (1811-1898), one of Punxsutawney's first settlers. Bair ran the store from 1865 at the close of the Civil War until 1890, and his obituary notes that he was "Puxsutawney's oldest citizen, and one of the most exemplary men who ever lived anywhere." Merchant jars from the home of Groundhog Day's Punxsutawney Phil are scarce and desirable, indeed, and this one gallon cream crock has survived in essentially as made condition with only minor typical in use rim wear and light staining and no chips, cracks, or repairs.