Hand-painted pottery bowl, produced in Sao Miguel, Azores, Portugal

CERAMICA LEITE, S. Miguel, Açores

Manuel Leite Pereira, a native of Peso da Régua, and a friend founded Ceramic Leite in 1872.  He began using clay imported from England, getting it delivered by boats that came to the island to take back cargoes of oranges. He produced commemorative pieces for a Royal visit and exhibited at National and International Exhibitions. 

Manuel Leite Pereira and his wife had two daughters, Virginia and Maria dos Anjos Viuvo.  After his death, his younger daughter and her husband João Moniz Pacheco de Bettencourt, inherited the Cerâmica, in 1914. The couple managed the factory, at a time when the demand for pottery was great. Maria's husband João died of Spanish flu in October 1918 leaving his wife a young widow with three children and a ceramic factory to manage.  She subsequently married Manuel da Costa Lima in 1920 and from then until 1964 the factory was called Cerâmica Lima. After the death of Manuel da Costa Lima in 1964 the factory was inherited by Maria's son, grandson of the founder, João Leite Bettencourt, who renamed it “Fábrica de Cerâmica Leite”.

Cerâmica Leite participated in the 1st Agro-Industrial Exhibition in the Municipality of Lagoa, in October 1964, receiving an Honorable Mention.  However, with the death of João Leite de Bettencourt in March 1973 a century of family ownership of the ceramic factory came to an end.  (edited from http://juntarosario.org/turismo/patrimonio-cultura-e-ciencia/ceramica-leite/)