Christopher Webber Fenton joined the established firm of Norton Pottery of Bennington, Vermont, in about 1839. When the firm dissolved in 1847, Fenton went on to establish Lyman, Fenton & Co. in 1848 or 1849. This later became the United States Pottery Company, which remained in business until 1858. 

This pitcher’s pattern name, “Paul and Virginia,” refers to a popular French novel of innocent young love first published in the late 1700s. Much of the story is set on the tropical island of Mauritius, which was then under French control and called Isle de France.