The origins of the American oyster jar date to 17th century London where small wooden kegs of pickled oysters were shared among gentlemen associated with the Royal Navy. Men like Samuel Pepys, a naval administrator in the 1660’s, writes of receiving “barrels” of oysters along with wine or other gifts from captains seeking to curry favor.

“…the captain’s boy brought me four barrels of Mallows oysters, which Captain Tatnell had sent me...” Samuel Pepys, May 21, 1660

When the British took control of Manhattan from the Dutch in 1664, officers of the Royal Navy brought this tradition to our shores. For a time, coopers in New York likely reproduced similar wooden kegs (see below), but eventually ceramic jars came to replaced the wood for the single-serving sized containers.

“They pickle the oysters in small casks, and send them to Barbados and the other islands.” Jasper Dankaertz, New York, 1680

While wood was used likely used until the end of the 17th century, the transition to clay probably occurred soon after 1720 when German stoneware potters arrived in New York. These men would have been eager to meet the needs of this growing and vibrant seaport and oysters were an important and abundant export commodity.

Despite the transition to the ceramic containers for small volumes, wooden kegs continued to be used to ship pickled oysters in volumes of 1-gallon or more for another 150years, as ceramics containers would have been prohibitively heavy and fragile.