My mom is a collector of Jewel Tea Autumn Leaf pattern dishes. She had a few pieces herself and inherited a few more when my grandmother passed away. They remind her of growing up and good memories.
The Jewel Tea company was actually a door to door sales venture when it first began. The dishes were premium items that customers could get. Most companies offered premium gifts in those days — you would earn a coupon with each sale and you could save them and later redeem them for premium gifts. What set the Jewel Tea Company apart in it’s early days was advancing the premium gift to the customer, upfront. This was a savvy marketing idea by Frank Ross, one of the founders.
A Little History…
The Autumn leaf pattern is highly collectible. The Hall China Company started supplying tea pots to the Jewel Tea Company in the 1920′s as premium gifts. In 1933, they entered into an agreement to produce Autumn Leaf patterned gifts. The first premium Hall made was a large, 9″ mixing bowl. It was so popular that later that year they added two smaller mixing bowls to create a 3 piece set. The original design didn’t even have a name until 1940′s when it was dubbed “Autumn Leaf”. Many attribute the original design to artist Arden Richards.
The mixing bowls were a huge hit with the housewife due to the quality and beauty of the design. It could stand up to being used everyday and still look great. They were so popular, the mixing bowls continued in production until 1976.
Some Autumn Leaf pieces are readily available on the secondary market while others that were discontinued early or had a short run are harder to find. Collectors take their Autumn Leaf items seriously and are highly sought after. Do you recognize or collect the Jewel Tea Autumn Leaf pattern?
All photos are of my mom’s collection and are the property of Vintage With A Twist.
What a tremendous collectible these are – and you provided some great history on them. Oops, I may have found something new to collect!