W.T. Copeland & Sons, who made the toy ware seen in illustration 8, had a well-established position in the Canadian market not just in eastern Canada, where Copeland wares were advertised from early Victorian days, but also in the far Northwest. In 1835, when W.T. Copeland, one of the most important of all the British potters, was in partnership with Thomas Garrett, the firm became the commissioned suppliers of the Hudson's Bay Company. Posts and sale shops were stocked with Copeland & Garrett products. After Copeland & Garrett dissolved their partnership in 1847, Copeland (working alone and then, from 1867, in partnership with his sons) continued his arrangement with the Company. One pattern of printed earthenware which has been found on the site of such Hudson's Bay posts as Lower Fort Garry and Rocky Mountain House is seen on this serving dish from an earthenware dessert service of the Copeland & Garrett period. This particular service had hand-applied colour added over a brown-printed outline, but the pattern was also available in underglaze blue printing alone. Known as the "Seasons", it was continued in the Copeland period.
Courtesy: National Museum of Man, National Museums of Canada (S81-5)
