LesperanceTile

L’esperance Tile Works was founded by Linda Ellett, who spent her life “playing in the mud.” Brimming with creative energy, she honed her talents at Alfred University and apprenticed at the Moravian Pottery and Tile Works in Doylestown, PA. She founded L’esperance Tile Works in 1979, where she produced art tiles of her own designs. In 1979 she started her business with a small inheritance from her Grandmother, Elizabeth Hope Collopy. Her great grandparents had come from Canada and anglicized their name to Hope from L’esperance. Grandmother Collopy was an entrepreneur and Linda was inspired by her strength and determination.

Linda married Don Shore in 1983. With his interest in urban planning and Main Street revitalization, Don became an enthusiastic partner — in life and in business. He inspired the transition of the Tile Works toward larger projects focusing on tile restoration in historic buildings. Don likes to say that in more than 30 years together he served the longest ceramic apprenticeship in history. If Linda was the creative engine, Don was the production guru — developing new ways to make historically accurate tiles by hand. Through the years Don and Linda have produced tiles for the Mark Twain House, the State Capitols in New York and Ohio. Their tiles have shown up on movie sets and in the houses of celebrities and lovers of historic tile as far away as Australia.

Sadly, Linda passed away in early 2016 after a courageous battle with cancer. Her spirit lives on in the extensive library of hand carved moulds and carefully recorded glaze formulations. Don is committed to continuing the legacy of L’Esperance in her memory.