by We made a visit to the Moravian Pottery and Tile Works in Doylestown, PA, on a chilly April morning. The Tile Works are a cast-in-place (crazy!) concrete structure built by Henry Chapman Mercer in 1911-1912; he basically drew a vision and then improvised as he went along (“cast-in-place”). Mercer was a major proponent of the Arts and Crafts movement, and was tightly focused on preserving the history and methods of handmade clay tiles. He won many awards and had many prestigious projects, including flooring and mosaics in the Pennsylvania State Capitol.
We took the Tile Works Tour, which included a 17-minute film and a self-guided tour through the building. We got to see a tile-maker at work on this labor-intensive process. The Tile Works still makes handmade tiles using Mercer’s original designs and formulas, though the glazing has been reformulated to be less toxic. The red clay he discovered continues to be locally sourced today as the pottery is still a producer of tiles and other products, including replicas of original works, pieces inspired by original works, and custom commissions. The tiles were beautiful and intricate, some really popping with color. They also offer a tour in which you can make your own tile!
Mercer’s home, Fonthill Castle, is another cast-in-place concrete structure, located across the parking lot; we toured it years ago, and it’s definitely worth a visit. Both Fonthill and the Tile Works are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
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