Following the NIA National Show in New Kensington, PA, Jeanne & I took a leisurely drive back toward Missouri. The first leg of that trip went across the northern tip of West Virginia & along the Ohio River as far as Cincinnati. We planned on doing about 3 days of antiquing along that section.

After a short visit to the Fenton Glass factory in Williamstown, WV, we stopped at an antique mall nearby that we had visited on previous trips. We came out of there with several items, including a porcelain ashtray with a small porcelain insulator in the center. I already have one of these in my collection, but you just never pass up another piece like that if the price is right. While checking out, the owner of the mall started telling me about the "Dan Mercer" ashtray, as he called it. The other lady working there also called it by that name. According to him this ashtray was made in the 1920' s or 30's by Dan Mercer, a local potter from Parkersburg, WV.

Dan had worked for the A.P. Donaghho Pottery Company in Parkersburg. Alexander Polk Donaghho was a successful potter in Fredericktown, PA since 1855, and had moved to Parkersburg in about 1870 & started the A.P. Donaghho Pottery Co. Donaghho passed away in 1899 and the pottery company went out of business in 1903 or 1904. Donaghho is now very desirable & collectible pottery. We saw a few pieces for sale in various shops, and all were priced at premium prices.

According to all I could learn from talking to a few antique dealers from the area, after the Donaghho plant closed, or sometime around that period, Dan Mercer started his own business. We didn't take the time to investigate it any further. We did travel a few miles on south to Parkersburg & stopped at the only mall in town. We saw several Donaghho pieces..... .some with high prices & some not for sale.

The next day we hit all of the shops in Marrietta, OH (across the river from Williamstown). In one of the malls I saw 2 more ashtrays marked "Dan Mercer". They were very similar, except, instead of an insulator, one of them had a porcelain frog & the other one a porcelain butterfly in the center. After showing them to Jeanne, I passed them by. After another 30 minutes of searching, I saw an unusual looking lamp. I noticed from a distance that it was porcelain with a sponge finish, and since we collect sponge ware, it caught my attention. But it also appeared to be shaped like a capacitor bushing insulator. I looked at the tag, and guess what?......."Dan Mercer lamp". When I picked it up to check it out, I discovered something very interesting. The bottom was made from an insulator mold & has a triple petticoat base. This lamp appears to have been made by joining two different insulator molds together while green & then fired to make one piece. A groove was cut through the petticoats & a hole drilled for the cord to come out. The lamp was a little expensive, but of course we just had to have it.

It appears that Dan Mercer may have had some affiliation with one or more of the insulator plants in that area of the country. The insulator ashtrays may have been made for an insulator company for advertising purposes? If anyone knows any more about Dan Mercer or the making of these products, please contact us. Phone: (816) 364-1312 or Email: Dennisrweber@aol.com