After WWII, Gladding, McBean & Co. met the demand for consumer goods by adding and creating new earthenware and fine china patterns, shapes, and lines. In 1962, Gladding, McBean & Co. merged with Lock Joint Pipe Company forming the International Pipe and Ceramics corporation, later renamed Interpace.
Millard Sheets, the well-known California artist was hired as Interpace’s design advisor for Interpace’s dinnerware and tile Franciscan Ceramics Division. Sheets directed the hiring of ceramists to create innovative tableware, tile, and tile murals. Murals were created for Disneyland and Disney World. The largest tile murals were designed and created for the Hilton Rainbow Towers in Honolulu, Hawaii.
Interpace in the 1960s bought Shenango China, Castleton China, Mayer China, and Wallace China. Expanding internationally, Interpace bought Myott Son & Co. and Alfred Meakin (Tunstall) Limited in Staffordshire, England. After Sheets left Interpace in 1973, the recession and high inflation of the 1970s took their toll on the ceramics industry. Interpace sold their Franciscan Ceramics Division in Los Angeles to Wedgwood in 1979. In 1984, Wedgwood moved all production of Franciscan ceramics to England. All products were discontinued except for Franciscan Desert Rose, Apple, and Fresh Fruit. By 2013, all Franciscan branded products were discontinued.
Note #5: If you live in Ohio, we may be willing to do a local pick up or delivery. Depending on where the pick-up is, there may be a small fee. The pick-up fee is always less than the shipping cost. Please contact us before you pay for your order so that we can correct the listing to allow for pick-up.
If you want combined shipping, please purchase all your items in one order. If you purchase items in more than one order, send us a message so that we know about the additional items and box the orders together. (When items are bought in multiple orders, we do not always notice they were bought by the same person unless we are notified by the buyer.) We refund extra shipping charges when combined shipping is requested. If we ship items separately, we do not issue a shipping refund.
For our international customers: YES!! we do combine shipping. The most economical way for you to buy multiple items from us is for you to send us a list of the items you want to buy. Do not purchase them as they are listed!! (This leads to higher than necessary fees & shipping.) Send us a complete list of all the items you want. Then we will cancel the listings for the items and turn them into a special listing just for you (We'll send you the listing named before making it active). It will have your full purchase with the correct shipping box size and weight. This saves you on the international fees & shipping.