We were able to find two letters written by William Woodward of Michigan City that mention Blair & Ransford. Below are partial excerpts from the letters.
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“…We have been very busy for the last week taking account of stock and have just got through with it. There has been a change in our concern, and henceforth it is to be Blair & Ransford. They have taken into the concern a clerk who was formerly with them, but has been managing one of our branches for the past year. He is one of the best fellows that the world produces. He is just my height. We are called the pony span—he the off, and I am the nigh one…”
Michigan City, March 5, 1848 (to his brother). -
“…Our firm has changed since I wrote to you, and there is no such firm as C. B. & L. Blair, it having changed to the name of Blair & Ransford. They have taken in as a young partner a young fellow from La Porte who has been at the head of the branch there. He is one of the best boys in the world, just my size, and we are called the pony span…”
Michigan City, March 19, 1848 (to his sister).
C. B. & L. Blair were Chauncey Buckley Blair and Lyman Blair. Since these two letters are dated 1848 and mention the name change after William Phelps Ransford entered into a partnership with the Blairs, we now know this stoneware can be dated no earlier than 1848.
So when did the business end?
According to Memorial Record of Distinguished Men of Indianapolis and Indiana (1912), Ransford was born on September 7, 1821, came to Michigan City at about 22 years of age from Norwich, New York, and worked in Mr. Blair’s general store. He remained there for three years as a clerk, after which Mr. Blair took him into the business as a partner. While the book doesn’t give a specific date for when the partnership ended, it does state that Ransford moved to other areas of the country, including Toledo and Des Moines, and then to Denver in 1858, where he went into the gold mining business.
Based on this information, it appears the Blair & Ransford partnership operated from circa 1848 into the 1850s.
There’s an INCREDIBLE amount of history on the Blairs and William Ransford, as they were all very prominent people, and it’s enough to fill a book. The Blairs played a huge role in the early days of Michigan City. If you’d like to read more, we can share some Google Books sources. For now, we want to keep this post focused on the stoneware itself and the Blair & Ransford business. Further reading can be found below.
Quick fact about Ransford: According to many of his 1902 obituaries, he once owned nearly all of the land where Denver, Colorado now stands. However, his title based on a squatter’s claim was considered invalid, and the land was later re allotted by the government. His obituary article can be found in the articles tab above.
The Blair Family of New England. (1900). United States: D. Clapp & son.
Sources:
1) Society of Indiana Pioneers (Indianapolis), Thompson, Charles N. (Charles Nebeker), 1861–1949. (1848 letters)
2) Memorial Record of Distinguished Men of Indianapolis and Indiana (1912) (William Ransford)
