If you like American manufacturing history and unusable dishware, there’s an event that you won’t want to miss this weekend. After a former Syracuse China factory closed in 2009, the building’s new owners hauled tens of thousands of unglazed dishware to a field behind the building, intending to haul it to a landfill eventually. Before they do that, members of the public will have the opportunity to haul off as much china as they like.
The Great Dish Haul is happening, as you might imagine, in my hometown of Syracuse, NY. Syracuse China still exists, as the foodservice dishware division of parent company and glass-maker Libbey. The former factory still stands, too, but not as a dish factory. Instead, on November 8 and 9, any random adult will be able to fill their vehicle with as many pieces of dishware as they can carry. The problem is that these dishes are unglazed, since no one bothered to run the kiln after the factory closed. Glaze is what keeps food residue and bacteria from soaking into the porcelain of your dishes; it’s why you can’t eat out of a clay pot. That means these dishes are not usable for food service–less so after sitting out in a field for three years.
The $10 will not go to the current owners of the building, even to help with their “take this junk to the dump” fund. Instead, it’s a fundraiser for the local neighborhood association and a nearby daycare, which are the organizations running the sale.
What is it good for? No one has condoned skeet shooting as a possible use, but some local art classes have used pieces for projects.
The Great Syracuse China Giveaway: 11 things to know [Syracuse Post-Standard]
by Laura Northrup via Consumerist
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