9.25" H x 7" Diameter

Stamped "James Leask / Wholesale Dealer In Snuff / No 174 Young St Toronto" (note the misspelling of the street name "Yonge" in the address line). James Leask, born October 1825, first appears in Bowsell's 1850-51 Toronto Directory as operating a general store at the corner of Yonge & Queen Streets in Toronto. He's next listed as being a grocer at 121 Yonge St. (Lovell's 1857-58 Directory) and then a few years later, as a dealer in "snuff" and ginger wine with his business now located at 174 Yonge St. (see advertisements from Mitchell's 1862-63 Directory in the photo gallery). Manufacturing and selling ginger wine proved to be the more profitable venture of the two so following a brief stint in the snuff business, he devoted his attention to the production of wine and started up the Toronto Bottling Company. By 1869, he is listed as operating his business from a large facility at 55 Yonge St. Exhibits traces of overpaint, most notable in the script, and significant staining through the lower half and most of the back of the crock. Other than small surface blemishes that would have occurred during the firing, the crock is free of damage. Salt-glazed stoneware. Canadian. c1860. 9.25" H x 7" Diameter. CODE-POT