The Potbank Dictionary - here are those strange and special terms, such as saggar makers bottom knocker, wedging, and ginneter that were, at one time, very common in the north Staffordshire Potteries. There's also the special dialect of the district.

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With over 10,000 terms, the Potbank Dictionary explains and demystifies the peculiar words and phrases collected during a lifetime in potbanks. Some are specific to a particular factory, others are quite common and some are quite technical. Much of the language is dying out as potbanks (pottery factories) are closed, skills are lost and manufacturing methods change. 

This is not a particularly academic work but it is factual and is rather quirky on places! Established in 1976 by Terry Woolliscroft and constantly updated. This site was archived for preservation by the British Library.

The film below gives thay a grate start un sums eat owe up. Thay wonst give eat a goo, duck 😉 An if theyst gorrany werds wattle goo well ear send em t' may wut? 👉 terrywoolliscroft [at] gmail.com 

https://youtu.be/N6DJu1Ti5Kg

What is a POTBANK?

A place where pottery is made. 

It is the entire pottery factory including all the buildings and the yards involved in the potting process, from sliphouse to warehouse. According to the late Robert Copeland: “The term Potbank has been used for generations ... I believe that it derives from the days when Josiah Wedgwood was unable to meet the demand for his creamwares so he sub-contracted to other potters to make his shapes in the body of his specification, and to hold these stocks in their own warehouses for him to call upon as he required them. These warehouses were called banks. The term does not imply that the pottery was on a hillside nor by a canal or river.”  More here>

"Five Towns. An introduction to the glorious heritage of the Staffordshire Potteries"

Britain on Film. Directed by Terry Bishop. 26 mins. The five towns of the Staffordshire Potteries region are passionately described in the film. As well as lovingly detailing the area’s famed production techniques, the documentary also looks at the challenges of post-war reconstruction in the region.