Established in 1892 by John Meaders, the Meaders family pottery works is part of a longer tradition of Southern vernacular potteries whose production of face jugs and fantastical hollow ware forms dates to the mid-19th century. Variously employed until 1967, Lanier Meaders began making jugs, as well as other forms, in that year as a means of helping his family's business. His ash-glazed creations have been exhibited at the Smithsonian Festival of the Arts and the Smithsonian Festival of American Folklife.