The name Village Green referred to both a line and a pattern. The Village Green pattern was introduced in 1952; other patterns using the same shapes were added in subsequent years. Thus Village Green also became the name for a line of dinnerware patterns.
Village Green Years: July 1952 – 1967
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Village Green sales remained strong and steady for many years, right up to the closing of the Potteries in 1967. It was probably the second best selling Red Wing pattern, and it continues to be popular with collectors today. The 1952 brochure that introduced Village Green referred to the “brown and green line originated in 1943”, demonstrating the company considered Village Green to be an updated version of Bakeware (Oomph). The colors were named Silver Pine and Rustic Brown in this and subsequent brochures. The 1952 brochure included sketches of metal trays and warming stands. It stated these metal pieces “with an attractive wrinkled green finish will be added to the line”, but this was apparently never done.
Later additions to the original 1952 Village Green lineup:
- Early 1950s: Water cooler, 1 gallon coffee server (without metal stand), 1 gallon bean pot, cereal bowl, sauce bowl, and casserole stands (plates with handles) in three sizes.
- 1953-1954: 1 gallon coffee server with protruding side knobs and metal pour stand.
- 1956-1957: Coffee mug (Town and Country mug)
- 1960: Gravy boat, 13″ oval platter, nappy (vegetable bowl)
Deletions:
Mid 1950s: Waffle dish with cover. The waffle dish was a mystery for years. Brochures do not provide a clear view of the plate. But a July 1952 Village Green brochure described the waffle dish as a “covered dinner plate”. While dinner plates are common, the cover is rare.
- 1955-1956: 1 gallon coffee server (without metal stand)
Miscellaneous:
All brochures from 1952 to 1967 show the Rim Soup bowl with green topside and brown bottom. Do these exist, or was the color changed to all green and the brochure photo left unchanged? The Colonial Deep Dish Pie Plate, Fondue Casserole and a round brown egg plate were glazed in Village Green colors but appeared only in giftware catalogs, not Village Green brochures. A spoon rest with a large support knob on the back has been found in Village Green colors (both green and brown, as well as white and beige fleck); also an individual size Village Green teapot (has the number 3 on the bottom). No documentation has been found for the spoon rest or teapot. Price lists dated 1958 and 1959 included a Village Green trivet, which is a rare item.
Delta Blue Years: 1954-1956
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The second pattern produced in the Village Green shape, Delta Blue, apparently did not sell well and was soon discontinued. Delta Blue pieces had a light blue background with dark blue teardrop-shaped decorations in groups of three. A 1954 brochure included the waffle dish and all Village Green pieces introduced by 1954 (including both 1 gallon coffee server styles). But the items added to the line after 1954 were never made in Delta Blue. Delta Blue water cooler covers are a bit of a mystery. The brochure showed the water cooler with a patterned cover, but most if not all known examples have white covers.
Picardy Years: 1960-1962
Two Step Years: 1960-1962
Neither of these two patterns sold well. Picardy was in many ways an update of the Brittany pattern, with a yellow rose and smaller blue flowers and brown leaves. Two Step had the beige fleck background with turquoise and brown half-circle whirls. While both patterns included most standard dinnerware items, numerous pieces available in the Village Green pattern were not made for Picardy or Two Step. These omissions included the coffee mug (Town & Country mug), beverage mug, medium 9″ salad bowl, 14″chop plate, casserole stands, small 4 cup pitcher, 1 gallon bean pot, marmite, handled marmite, syrup jug, 6″ baking dish, 12″ baking dish, 1 gallon coffee server with metal stand, and the water cooler.
Provincial Dinnerware Years: 1964?-1965
Provincial Bakeware Years: 1963-1967
Provincial was an attempt to blend Village Green-shaped dinnerware with a revival of a 1940s cookware set. Provincial dinnerware consisted of 15 Village Green pieces glazed in a rich rust color. A brochure named this color “bittersweet red”. The cover for the sugar bowl and the tops of the salt & pepper shakers were beige. Interestingly this brochure promoted a 10″ casserole stand as a handled dinner plate, which was not seen with other Village Green line patterns. Provincial Bakeware was an update of Provincial Cooking Ware from the early 1940s. It consisted of casseroles, pots and baking dishes. Exteriors of the Bakeware had a beige glaze while the interiors and the covers were bittersweet red to match the dinnerware. The rust colored dinnerware was made for only a year or two and is difficult to find today; Provincial Bakeware sold better but doesn’t attract much interest from collectors.
Village Brown Years: 1964 – 1965
Village Brown was not a full dinnerware pattern. It was a color option that replaced the solid green pieces of Village Green with solid brown pieces. Village Brown was included on the 1965 price list and a 1964 Village Green brochure. The brochure stated the following all-brown Village Brown pieces were available: 6″, 8″ and 10″ plates, saucer, four bowls (vegetable serving dish, rim soup, cereal, sauce/fruit), and 13″ and 15″ platters. Village Brown may have been established as a means to sell finished pieces remaining after the relationship with Ernest Sohn ended (see below).
Village Wheat Years: July 1952 – 1954
Village Wheat was similar to Village Brown in that it was not a full dinnerware pattern but rather a color option. In this case the standard Rustic Brown was replaced by a tan or wheat color. Thus Village Wheat pieces were a combination of green and tan. A July 1952 Village Green brochure describes this color combination as “wheat and silver pine”. The Wheat color option was discontinued sometime before 1955. Known Wheat pieces include 4 and 10 cup pitchers, teapot, salt & pepper shakers, 6″ salad bowl, beverage mug, handled marmite, casseroles, large salad bowl, divided vegetable dish, covered coffee pot, and large warmer (water cooler stand).
Matte Green and Matte Pink casseroles
No documentation has been found to explain the existence of Matte Green and Matte Pink 2 quart casseroles in the Village Green shape. The entire casserole, including the cover and the interior, was glazed in solid green or pink. Enough examples have been found to be convinced these were made by Red Wing Potteries rather than by a hobby shop using an old Red Wing mold. Most likely these were made for a custom order, but who placed the order? Some speculate the pink casseroles were made for Mary Kay Cosmetics to be used as a reward or sales incentive for their sales staff. But no documentation to support that theory has been seen.
Ernest Sohn
See all 62 Village Green Shape photos ►
Ernest Sohn was a well-known designer who contracted with various businesses to make products for his sales company. His dealings with Red Wing were not well documented, but at least two lines of dinnerware items were produced for Sohn. “Butter Mold” is the better known of the two. It consisted of serving pieces such as pitchers, teapots, casseroles, bowls, platters, etc. The pieces had a ribbed effect in the glaze, similar to Village Green. Most Butter Mold pieces were dark brown, dark green, or yellow (uncommon). Each piece was marked with a design taken from a vintage butter mold. The design featured a fern and leaves enclosed by 5 rings, and included the letters ” E.S. USA”. Production years are uncertain but most likely fall between the late 1950s and early 1960s. An ad for Sohn’s Butter Mold line appeared in a February 1961 magazine.
Red Wing also produced all-brown pieces in Village Green shapes for Sohn. Sohn’s brown glaze tended to be darker than Village Green’s Rustic Brown. All-brown Village Green-shaped pitchers, coffee servers, beverage servers, syrup jugs, beverage mugs, salt & peppers, sugar bowl, and Village Brown dinner plate with Sohn features have been found. These Sohn features included the all-brown glaze, handles wrapped with rattan, a triangular silver label that stated “Oven Proof China Designed by Ernest Sohn”, non-Village Green covers, and unusual bottom markings. Sohn’s covered pieces did not use standard Village Green covers. Two different covers were made; one was brown-glazed pottery with a large round knob, the other was a copper metal cover with a large round wood knob. On some bottom-marked Sohn pieces the Red Wing name had been scratched out, leaving only “USA”. Molds for other pieces were made to imprint only “USA”, which may indicate the “USA” molds were made specifically for Sohn. Production years again are uncertain. But an internal company document dated June 1962 titled “Discontinued Glaze Inventory” includes Sohn Green and Sohn Brown with the word “dump” written after the glaze name. This would imply the relationship with Sohn likely ended sometime after the February 1961 Butter Mold ad but before June 1962.
