Paramount among Jordan L. Mott’s multitudinous inventions was his design for an anthracite coal-burning stove. When Mott was unable to engage a founder to produce his furnace, he did it himself, and it became a model for the industry. The J. L. Mott Iron Works, while principally known for its line of stoves, bathtubs, plumbing supplies, and stable fittings, also manufactured ornamental ironwork, including gates, railings, balconies, lamps and lampposts, fountains, furniture, and even aquariums. The company’s 1862 catalogue is the only one to picture the  Washington Vase. Essentially, it was a modified version of Mott’s Palo Alto Vase, to which a bust of George Washington framed within a laurel wreath was added.

Book excerpt: David B. Warren, Michael K. Brown, Elizabeth Ann Coleman, and Emily Ballew Neff. American Decorative Arts and Paintings in the Bayou Bend Collection. Houston: Princeton Univ. Press, 1998.