Catherine G. Hennessey

For most people on PEI, the name Catherine G. Hennessey is immediately associated with preservation of the built environment. Both a tireless heritage advocate and historian, Catherine produced a small book on the Prince Edward Island Pottery Co. and is an avid collector of Island pottery.

Among her collection is a piece that she created in clay during the time she was employed at Holland College School of Visual Arts in the mid 1980's.

The clay house is a model of Atwell House a stone house located in New Haven, PEI, which Canada's Historic Places describes it as:

The Atwell House is notable for its use of Island sandstone in its construction. It is one of only 8 remaining sandstone homes built in 19th Century PEI. The property that Atwell House now sits on was originally glebe land. In 1837, this land was given to Ambrose Lane by his father-in-law, Lt. Governor C.D. Smith. Lane had a varied and influential career as an army and militia officer, politician, and judge. Lane sold the land to Thomas Kickham in 1840. It is believed the house was built in 1842 using proceeds from the sale of the adjacent farm. Kickham called the property the Dog River Farm for the river running below it, later to be renamed the Clyde. 

Local tradition maintains that the stone for the house was taken from the farm property, and construction was undertaken by local stone masons, Thomas and John Heartz. It is also believed that the finish work carpentry was done with timber sent from the Island to England and then returned for installation, arriving by ship at a dock formerly on the property. 

In 1843, Ambrose Lane re-acquired the property and used it as a hunting lodge. After his death in 1853, it saw a number of owners and became known variously as Sherwood Farm and later Atwell House, after the family who owned it in the 1970s. 

Island Stoneware - Perry Niessen Studios Inc.

For information on Right Off The Batt Pottery which was founded and became Island Stoneware -  under the ownership of Cindy & Darryl Lentz see Pottery Marks of Prince Edward Island - Island Stoneware.

As Island Stoneware was sold in 2016 to Chris Palmer who in November 2017 sold the operation to Perry Niessen Studios Inc. this blog post will focus on Perry Niessen Studios.

Perry Niessen Studios combines the surnames of the owners Randy Perry and Jamie Niessen.

Their website indicates:

Island Stoneware pottery is made by Perry Niessen Studios Inc., owned and operated by Randy Perry and Jamie Niessen, two business professionals with a shared passion for arts and craft. We are aspiring potters at this point, and the remarkable handcrafting of all the Island Stoneware pottery is done by our team of talented artisans. We started in 2008 as Right Off the Batt pottery and changed our name to Island Stoneware. We recently re-located our studio to Summerside from Borden-Carleton.

The address is:
664B Water St E, Summerside, PE C1N 4J1

An article in the Journal-Pioneer gives an introduction to the new owners:

Island Stoneware relocates to Summerside, looking for to hire new staffers

The Journal Pioneer
Published: Jan 16, (2019 likely) at 1:53 p.m.
Updated: Jan 18 at 6 a.m.

Tunde Szarka, is shown hand building a custom mug at Island Stoneware studios. Szarka has worked with Island Stoneware for five years.  - Contributed to the Journal-Pioneer

SUMMERSIDE, P.E.I. – A popular Island pottery business has found new site for its production studio.

Perry Niessen Studios Inc., makers of Island Stoneware handcrafted pottery, recently moved to a Summerside location which offers more space, improved access to skilled talent and better shipping service for the studio’s wholesale business.

The move is happening in correlation with Summerside native Randy Perry’s return home.

“About two years ago we were living in Toronto and it struck us, as much as we love the things a big city had to offer, we were ready for more space and less pace,” said Perry, co-owner of Island Stoneware.

“We started looking at opportunities to start up or buy a business on the Island and quite quickly we found Island Stoneware to be a great fit for our skills and interest.”

“About two years ago we were living in Toronto and it struck us, as much as we love the things a big city had to offer, we were ready for more space and less pace.”
-Randy Perry

Within seven months of the initial idea to move home, Perry and his spouse, Jamie Niessen, bought a home in Summerside. The couple took ownership of the business in November 2017. Before the move, Island Stoneware was located in Borden-Carleton. The company’s primary business is as a manufacturing wholesaler, selling its Island-made pottery to retailers across Canada and the United States.

“Within three weeks of announcing our move to Summerside, we found a skilled potter to join our team,” said Perry. “We’re also looking to add a new hand builder to the team.”

A hand builder makes pottery from slab, rather than on a wheel and adds designs elements to those pieces.

Perry works full time as a database developer for a Calgary-based software company.

Niessen, originally from Alberta, is responsible for the day-to-day operations of the studio.

“We’ve been home for about a year-and-a-half now,” said Perry. “We still marvel at how easy it is to get places, like how quickly we can to get to the beach or enjoy a dog walk on the boardwalk. Owning a business takes a lot of effort but, on P.E.I., we have so much more time to live, not just work.”

newsroom@journalpioneer.com