Gypsy Trail Casserole / Bean Pots | Red Wing Collectors Society | Red Wing Pottery, Union Stoneware, North Star, Art Pottery, Dinnerware

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Question:
I recently purchased 4 bean pots from a local thrift store. They are about 4″ high and about 5″ in diameter. Each is a different color: Blue, Yellow, Orange and Turquoise. Only the blue pot is marked “REDWING” on the bottom and it is very faint. They appear as if they have never been used. They yellow pot’s glaze has some minor crazing. Attached is a picture, can you please tell me about them?
I’d also be curious about “bean pots” in general. It’s odd, these pots are so attractive but I almost passed as they almost look like individual casseroles which on first glance I assumed were made in China. I know that back then portions were quite a bit smaller and perhaps beans in general were quite a bit more popular. I’m guessing if mine are 32 oz.. then that’s 4 servings of 8 oz., which still seems ample. If someone has the time, a bit of history about bean pots would be interesting.
Thank you.

Answer:
These are actually considered a dinnerware piece. These bean pots are from the Gypsy Trail dinnerware line. They were made three sizes (15oz, 23oz and 32oz) in the late 1930s or early 1940s. I believe your bean pots are the medium size. Turquoise, Yellow, Blue and Orange are four of the five original Gypsy Trail colors; Ivory is the fifth color. The RED WING mark on the bottom of one of the pots was place there by lettering in the mold that formed the pot. As a mold was reused over and over again, the lettering in the mold wore down and became increasingly faint to the point that no mark was placed on the bean pot. It is also possible some molds did not include the lettering. These Gypsy Trail bean pots are rather scarce but not rare. Values for these bean pots would be in the $25-35 range, assuming excellent condition.

Bean pots were a staple of Red Wing stoneware production from the company’s beginnings in 1878. They were made by potters long before Red Wing came on the scene but I don’t know the history of them beyond Red Wing. Gypsy Trail was Red Wing’s first dinnerware line, so this gentleman’s bean pots were the first dinnerware bean pots made by Red Wing. Bean pots were also made for the later Labriego, Village Green and DuoTone dinnerware lines and for three different sets of bakeware. But most Red Wing dinnerware lines did not include a bean pot.

As stated earlier these Gypsy Trail bean pots were made in three sizes, and I believe these bean pots are the middle size. I don’t have measurements of these pots so I can’t be sure. My guess is the smallest size was for an individual serving while the two larger sizes were for group servings. But that’s just a guess and of course the owner could use the pot for any desired purpose. The Gypsy Trail line included at least a dozen different styles of individual casseroles (marmites), so it’s unlike the bean pots were intended to be used as casseroles. Hard to say about portion sizes because during the same time period as Gypsy Trail Red Wing made stoneware bean pots in half, one and two gallon sizes. The dinnerware bean pots were probably made smaller to fit on the dinner table and be proportional to the other serving pieces.

Larry