Jerry Brown - 9th generation traditional potter

Jerry Brown carries forward an unbroken tradition of Southern stoneware pottery that has been in his family for nine generations. Adolphus Brown, Jerry's great grandfather, operated a pottery shop in the 1920's here in Cleveland, GA. A brother of his great grandfather worked for "Daddy Bill" Dorsey and Cheever Meaders at this time, where they were paid two cents a gallon for turning ware. In the early 1930's his father, Horace "Jug" Brown, moved to Lamar County, Alabama, a region rich in clay for pottery making and opened a pottery shop in 1941. Jerry and his brother were put to work in their father's shop before they were old enough to go to school. Jerry was 22 when his father turned the shop over to his sons.

Mixing the clay at the Pug Mill

Jerry and and wife, Sandra, run a small scale family operation. He still uses a mule to power his clay mill. He continues to use the old glazes - Albany slip, Bristol and ash plus producing many of the old traditional shapes, including churns, pitchers and the face jugs that the Brown family has been making since the turn of the century. His work is a testimony to the vitality and continuity of the Southern pottery tradition.
Jerry was awarded the National Heritage Fellowship in 1992, as well as receiving numerous merit awards. 

Most recently Jerry has had a festival named in his honor.  The Jerry Brown Arts Festival - also called the JBAF. The JBAF is a juried event that attracts high-quality artist working in various mediums.  The event features high-quality original visual art from across the South, local Echota Indian presentations, bluegrass music from bands around the country, storytellers, a Kid's Station for arts education, food vendors and... well, lots of fun.

The festival is a two-day event that is hosted by the Northwest Alabama Arts Council, Inc., serving Franklin, Lamar, Marion, and Winston counties.

JERRY BROWN ARTS FESTIVAL - JBAF

Jerry Brown Arts Festival - www.jbaf.org
Northwest Alabama Arts Council, Inc - www.nwaarts.org

Email: staff@nwaarts.org
Contact: Marla Avery Minter, or Ed Minter
Tele: 205-921.3632
POB 694 | Hamilton, AL 35570