Prolific David Drake, also known as Dave the Potter, was an enslaved artist born on a plantation in North Carolina in 1801. By this point Drake was recognized for his pottery creations by Dr. Abner Landrum, a plantation owner who also owned Landrums’ potteries. Between 1834 and 1866, David Drake, who had lost a foot from a train accident, had created at least 40,000 functional alkaline ceramic glaze pots, some of which could hold as many as 30 gallons. Dave the Potter, now known as David Drake, died in 1874 in the Edgefield District at the approximate age of 73. In 2016, 142 years after his death, David Drake was inducted into the South Carolina Hall of Fame.

Source: Washington Post October 11, 2023 15:05 UTC