Thomas Chandler (1810-1854) was perhaps the most skillful potter to work in Edgefield. Born in Drummondtown, Virginia, he is believed to have been a descendant of John Chandler of Fulham, England, who in the 1690s became one one of Britain's first stoneware potters.
Chandler was the principal turner at the Phoenix Factory, a pottery factory in Edgefield that opened in 1840. Chandler would later operate and be the principle turner at the Trapp-Chandler pottery factory. He produced stoneware products from milk pans, pitchers, and chamber pots, to jugs and storage jars. These vessels ranged in size from one-half gallon up to ten gallons.