James Roark was the son-in-law of Denton County, Texas, potter John Cranston. After working for his in-laws, he established his own shop not long after John Cranston’s death. Like his father-in-law, he sometimes used cobalt slip to decorate his pots, a technique common in the Northeast and Midwest, but rare in Texas. His products can be difficult to distinguish from Cranston’s.

This jar features an unusually narrow neck.