19th century enslaved potter, 'Dave the potter,' celebrated at the Aiken County Historical Museum

Feb. 10—Several families arrived at the Aiken County Historical Museum on Saturday morning for an educational and hands-on learning experience: a brief lesson on David Drake, an enslaved Black potter from South Carolina, followed by a pottery-making session.

David Drake, commonly known as Dave, was born around 1800 and created pots within the pottery factories of several slave-owning families in Edgefield County. One thing that sets Dave's handiwork apart is that he was known to inscribe on his pieces brief poems that he'd written himself — a notable fact, considering that slaves at this time had very limited literacy.

Did You Know?

Dave the Potter identified himself as David Drake in the 1870 census. The last name probably came from an early slave owner.

Leading the exhibit was Linda Johnson, docent of the museum for the past nine years.

"Before the civil war, a lot of the people didn't let slaves learn how to read and write. They didn't even let them learn the alphabet," Johnson said as she addressed a small audience of curious children.

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Young listeners and their families had a chance to look at 200-year-old pottery pieces by Dave on display at the museum.

"We are so lucky today that we still have some of [these] pots," said Johnson, who noted that Dave's work is on display in larger institutions, including the Smithsonian in Washington D.C.

One parent in attendance, Angela Clifford, talked about the importance of bringing children to these kinds of events.

"It's ... important that they know about Dave the Potter, that this is someone local," said Clifford. "They need to know the history behind it, they need to know that some of our history's not comfortable."

Another parent, Sadie Gomillion, said, "I think it's important for the children of mixed heritage to participate ... Sometimes kids don't feel like they fit in because they're mixed race. But here they can fit in and learn."

"History tells us so much, not just about the past but about where we are today and our future, so it's important to understand it," said Johnson.

As for the young kids who participate, are they really absorbing this information? Johnson says yes.

"I had two young kids, and I [dragged] them to museums over and over, badgered them about this kind of stuff, and now they're adults who remember and do care about this history," she said. "You get them involved in something fun like this, making pots, and they'll start caring about history ... and grow up to be adults who appreciate history."

If You Go

The Aiken County Historical Museum is located at 433 Newberry St. S.W. in Aiken, and has three floors of exhibits. Entry is free and the museum is open to the public seven days of the week. You can contact the museum by calling 803-642-1500.