Also in this issue...
ACL Corner – Foreigners
Bottles Dug in 2024: Digging a Digger’s Collection
The History of Bottles: Examined through one retailer over many decades in ten steps
American Poison Bottles –Who was DP Co?
W. H. Bovee – Coffee & Spice Maker and so much more!
The
Coming next issue or down the road:•The Magnificent Seven•The Saltsburg Glass Works•Privy Digger’s Dream•What Do You Collect?•A Clinton Physician Dr. Carl Gruber•M. A. Rue of Cranbury, New Jersey•Early Pittsburgh Glasshouses•Keystone Coffee Jar•All Bottled Up: The History of a Mill City as Told Through Its Bottles•Soda City’s Only Two Earliest Colored Sodas: H. Deming & Co. and C.C. Habenicht•Probst & Hilbs German Bitters Little Rock, Ark.•”Holy Grail” dig in the Trustee Garden•Whites Prairie Flower•Caswell Hazard Druggists•Peter Bisso Soda Water Manufacturer in Corsicana, Texas•Steamboat Arabia Museum•Williams & Severance–Gold Rush Bottlers•Smear Campaign: The Dead Drunk Doctor•Chasing Dr. Parker•ACL #19 More Indians•and so much more!
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Antique Bottle & Glass Collector (ISSN 1050-5598), Copyright © 2025 by the Federation of Historical Bottle Collectors, Inc., is published bi-monthly (6 issues per year) by the Federation of Historical Bottle Collectors, N8211 Smith Road, Brooklyn, WI 53521. Business and Editorial Offices: N8211 Smith Road, Brooklyn, WI 53521. Accounting and Circulation Offices: the Federation of Historical Bottle Collectors, Inc., N8211 Smith Road, Brooklyn, WI 53521. Call (608) 575-2922 to subscribe. Periodicals postage is paid at Stoughton, Wisconsin 53589, and additional mailing offices. Pub # 005062
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The Federation of Historical Bottle Collectors is a non-profit organization for collectors of historical bottles, glass and related collectible items. Our primary goal is educational as it relates to the history and manufacture of historical bottles and related artifacts.
FOHBC Officers 2024–2026
President: Michael Seeliger, N8211 Smith Road, Brooklyn, Wisconsin 53521, phone: 608.575.2922, email: mwseeliger@gmail.com
Vice-President: Position Open
Secretary: Alice Seeliger, N8211 Smith Road, Brooklyn, Wisconsin 53521, phone: 608.575.1128, email: AliceSecretaryFOHBC@gmail.com
Treasurer: Kathie Craig, 1037 Hazelwood Avenue, Campbell, California 95008, phone: 408.591.6511, email: kathie.fohbc@gmail.com
Business Manager: Position Open
Membership Director: Position Open. (Interim) Michael Seeliger, N8211 Smith Road, Brooklyn, Wisconsin 53521, phone: 608-575-2922, email: mwseeliger@gmail.com
Marketing Director: Craig Cassetta, 12 Marlin Court, Chico, California 95973, phone: 530.680.5226, email: ccassettafohbc@gmail.com
Special Projects Director: Doug Simms, 1317 Tullahoma Drive, Prattville, Alabama 36066, phone: 334.318.1965, dsimms@dnscs.com
Director-at-Large: Stephen R. Jackson, P.O. Box 3137, Suffolk, Virginia 23439, phone: 757.675.5642, email: sjackson@srjacksonlaw.com
Director-at-Large: John O’Neill, 1805 Ralston Avenue, Belmont, California 94002, phone: 650.619.8209, email: Joneill@risk-strategies.com
Director-at-Large: Richard Siri, PO Box 3818, Santa Rosa, California 95402, phone: 707.542.6438, email: rtsiri@sbcglobal.net
Northeast Region Director: Charles Martin Jr., 5 John Hall Cartway, Yarmouth Port, Massachusetts 02675, phone: 781.248.8620, email: cemartinjr@comcast.net
Midwest Region Director: Henry Hecker, W298 S10655 Phantom Woods Road, Mukwonago, Wisconsin 53149, phone: 262.844.5751, email: phantomhah@gmail.com
Southern Region Director: Tom Lines, 1647 Olivia Way, Auburn, Alabama 36830, phone: 205.410.2191, email: Bluecrab1949@hotmail.com
Western Region Director: Eric McGuire, 1732 Inverness Drive, Petaluma, California 94954, phone: 707.481.9145, email: etmcguire@comcast.net
FOHBC Virtual Museum
Alan DeMaison, 1605 Clipper Cove, Painesville, Ohio 44077, phone: 440.358.1223, email: a.demaison@sbcglobal.net
Ferdinand Meyer V (sabbatical), P.O. Box 1825, Brookshire, Texas 77423, email: fmeyer@fmgdesign.com
Doug Simms, 1317 Tullahoma Drive, Prattville, Alabama 36066, phone: 334.318.1965, dsimms@dnscs.com
Richard Siri, PO Box 3818, Santa Rosa, California 95402, phone: 707.542.6438, email: rtsiri@sbcglobal.net
Antique Bottle & Glass Collector
Publication: Peachridge Collections, LLC, Ferdinand Meyer V and Elizabeth Meyer, P.O. Box 1825, Brookshire, Texas 77423, email: fmeyer@fmgdesign.com
Proofreader: Alice Seeliger
Featured Writers: Mike Dickman, Ralph Finch and Andy Rapoza
FOHBC ADDRESS CHANGE: Mail should no longer be addressed to the Post Office Box in Brookshire, Texas. Address all mail to: FOHBC c/o Michael Seeliger N8211 Smith Road Brooklyn, Wisconsin 53521-9789
Michael Seeliger
President Federation of Historical Bottle Collectors
N8211 Smith Road, Brooklyn, Wisconsin 53521
608.575.2922
mwseeliger@gmail.com
We just returned from the FOHBC Reno 25 National Antique Bottle & Glass Convention. It was a great success for sellers, buyers, attendees, and the Federation. Multiple Facebook posts report acquisitions of long-pursued bottles, glass, and go withs. With 125 tables—a sellout— there was certainly a great selection from which to choose.
Richard, Craig, Bev, DeAnna, and Helmut did a great job putting this all together. The early admissions were well over 100 and they walked out of the sales floor with some great finds. Saturday’s admissions kept dealers busy and, while much quieter on Sunday, there were a few deals made then too.
The seminars were well-attended and the banquet sold out all tickets but we managed to seat a few more. We’ll have the seminars on the website by the time you read this. Contest winners will be announced in the November–December 2025 issue of AB&GC where we will give a full report enhanced by Gina Pellegrini-Ott’s beautiful photography.
The “Reno Red” Drake’s commemorative bottles looked spectacular in the lighted display case crafted by Mike Craig, and purchasers could select their favorite from three or four choices. We have a limited number of Drake’s available on a first-come, first-served basis. Contact me or Richard Siri for details. It’s a beautiful bottle alongside the cobalt Drake’s produced for the Houston 2024 Expo.
Members attending Reno 25 were awed by the first look at the new, easier-to-navigate website. An announcement will be made, but you should be seeing the results of Doug Simms’ website creation by the time you receive this issue. The addition of a map of club locations will be a very helpful feature and you’ll be able to search by name, location, and collecting interests. Soon after, we will add another feature where members can create personal profiles and share.
tion from around the world. Try it...Google a bottle and you’ll see that the first resources that pop up are FOHBC.org and FOHBCVirtualMuseum.org.
Upping our social media presence, Craig Cassetta posted almost daily on the new Reno 25 Facebook page and Doug Simms kept the FOHBC Facebook page interesting with lots of comments posted by readers. We were amazed to see the number of people who visited the Instagram account over the last month. We’re guessing that’s where the young people are so we are reaching the up-and-coming collectors. We’ll definitely announce the monthly webinars on these sites to bring in more participants and solicit new topics.
An interesting project for 2026 may be helping the Corning Museum of Glass in Corning, NY make the most of their displays and collections. Most items are not labeled, and groupings are pretty random and crowded. The potential is there, so we’d like to make that happen.
We are getting the Houston 2024 Expo exhibition books that were gifted to the Federation into the hands of members and clubs. Let me know if you’d like to purchase one or both or if your club would like a set to use as a fundraiser.
It appears we will be taking a break from a national antique bottle and glass convention in 2026. But prepare yourselves for the Nashville, Tennessee Area 2027 Expo. Greg and Elise Eaton and Stanley Word have been spreading their excitement over hosting the FOHBC National. Greg and Elise attended the Reno 25 Convention to find out what a national event entails. They are already experts in putting on spectacular annual bottle shows. With space for 400 tables, you won’t want to miss this one. Watch for reservation information and get your tables and rooms early.
We’ll be heading to the Keene, New Hampshire show soon as we take a tour around the eastern part of the states. Charlie Martin Jr., our Northeast Region director, has convinced us that fall colors are spectacular. We’ll be visiting members and club meetings, hoping to build interest in having the 2028 National Convention in that area—it’s about time!
Even prior to the new website, the current websites for the FOHBC, Virtual Museum, and Auction Price Report were moved to a highspeed, dedicated server. The moves have reduced costs significantly allowing for donations to the VM to be used for growth rather than maintenance. We’re hearing searches are lightning fast! There are 700 bottle and glass spins ready to be added to the Virtual Museum, and we are working with the auction houses to bring the Auction Price Report up to date. For the VM, we are in need of bottle and glass experts to research and provide the data that accompanies each specimen, and we’ll be putting the list of new spins on the new website to help you decide. Our FOHBC websites continue to be the premier places to find bottle and glass informa-
Lastly, this issue of AB&GC will be the final one with Ferdinand Meyer V (Peachridge Collections) as editor and publisher. We thank him for his many years of producing a first-class magazine. We are actively seeking an editor, graphic designer, and writers for AB&GC beginning with the January–February 2026 issue. Rest assured, you will continue to get a first-class magazine every other month. While we remain primarily a volunteer organization, there may be some compensation for some of these positions. Contact me if you are interested in more information.
Together, we are building a stronger Federation.
“Heard
By Dennis Sasseville
Can a collection of bottles tell the story of a city? The Manchester Historic Association (MHA-New Hampshire) believed it could and put together an exhibit in their Millyard Museum to accomplish that goal. The MHA’s guiding premise is that bottles can lend critical insights into the everyday life of an urban society by reflecting some sectors of manufacturing and retail commerce that once thrived here. Such diverse sectors once provided the city of Manchester with viable employment opportunities, producing highly desirable goods and services for its residents and visitors alike.
Starting in the second half of 2024, the MHA leadership and staff developed a plan for a unique exhibit to be housed at its Millyard Museum in the heart of the former Amoskeag Manufacturing Company textile complex, once the world’s largest such endeavors. Here, in a former textile mill building, the extensive history of the city, which was first settled in 1722, is permanently showcased for the public. As explained by MHA Executive Director, Jeffrey Barraclough, “We wanted to provide our members and those visiting the Millyard Museum with a unique educational experience from a viewpoint that they likely had never before considered. The glass bottles in our collection, as well as those generously loaned to us by some MHA members, all present us with a story. Most of these utilitarian containers were never meant to be saved for posterity; rather, once their contents were exhausted, they were discarded as trash. And, of course, the vast majority of glass bottles from times past experienced that very fate—and in fact our modern lifestyles and practices still very closely mirror these past practices.
“In developing our bottle exhibit, our staff chose to focus on five major sectors of commerce that were important in the history of our city—and really, most any community area settled a hundred or more years ago. We created an exhibit that reflected and provided key insights into Manchester’s past, featuring dairy products, the pervasive trade in alcoholic beverages, spring and mineral waters, a wide range of sodas and soft drinks, and a diverse sector of medicine, remedies, and apothecaries. MHA member Dennis Sasseville helped open the “All Bottled Up” exhibit at our April annual business meeting by sharing examples of how common bottles can be categorized and dated by researchers and collectors. All in all, I think we definitely succeeded in our educational quest to have our bottles tell an important piece of local history, as evidenced by the enthusiasm of our Millyard Museum visitors over the four-month exhibit period.”
Manchester Historic Association/Millyard Museum: https://manchesterhistoric.org/
Bottling plants of the past often operated from modest, rented buildings, including Main Street store fronts. Many such structures remain, albeit occupied by modern enterprises or having undergone conversion to residential or other uses.
Deliveries before the availability of motorized trucks, circa 1903. Reflecting the fragility of any new enterprise, including the bottling business, the Albany Steam Bottling Works only operated for about six years before being sold off.
One of the many apothecary bottles on display during the exhibit. As with most museum collections, only a small fraction of the holdings can be displayed at any one point in time.
Apothecaries abounded in Manchester, NH at the end of the 19th century. It was good to be informed that wines and liquors were for medicinal purposes during that era!
French immigrant brothers Joseph and Eugene Quirin started selling various brands of whiskey as well as their own brand in the early 1900s. As common to many bottlers of “strong drinks,” they also bottled a line of soft beverages for a time. National Prohibition in 1920 put an end to their business—a similar fate for several other local liquor bottlers and distributors as well.
One of the many creameries that once thrived and served the population of Manchester and the surrounding areas.
The Millyard Museum staff even created a children’s board game based on a milkman’s delivery route to entertain young visitors coming to the exhibit.
A family affair—the Quirin Brothers production room. Prohibition in 1920 put an end to their business—a similar fate for several other local liquor bottlers and distributors as well.
One of Cott Beverage’s largest and most productive bottling plants in their system operated in a former textile mill in Manchester’s Millyard, producing a host of premium fruit-flavored and an early line of dietetic beverages.
The Cohasaukee Corporation formed in 1907 producing water “bottled at the spring” at Cohas Spring in near-by Londonderry, NH. The company also bottled various flavored sodas and experienced success for a time, but the business eventually faded and was dissolved by the early 1920s.
The Green Mountain Ginger Ale Company produced their own line of flavored sodas as well as bottling several name brands from 1928 to 1950.
Blakes Creamery (bottle at far left) represents an iconic local brand. Started in 1900 by Quebec-born E.C. Blake, home deliveries of dairy products didn’t cease until 1979 and the last of the company’s legendary ice cream shops only shuttered its doors in 2023.
The Manchester Historic Association (MHA) collects, preserves and shares the history of Manchester, New Hampshire.
David Jackson
The bottle collecting community lost a true treasure of an individual recently when David Jackson passed unexpectedly. Although many others would have kind words to say, here are a few of his friends’ comments... – Vern Huffstetler
David was a good friend who was always ready for an adventure. His personality was so welcoming, and he was always meeting new people and making friends. We lived close enough to enjoy many visits, bottle shows and lunches. We often looked at collections to buy. I miss his friendship and love. – Tim Adams
My first long and serious conversation with David Jackson took place at the old Robeson Antique Bottle Club’s Lumberton, North Carolina show sometime around 1990. We were back and forth on certain South Carolina and California bottles when, out of the blue, he mentioned a “Thomas Taylor Sole Agents for P. Vollmers Old Bourbon Louisville KY” bottle. It was like a light bulb blew up in my brain. The fact that a bottle existed with my surname, Vollmer, was a shocker. Like any decent bottle collector, I immediately started the quest of seeking one out. Thirty-five years later, I now own three, and with the grandchildren sprouting up, I have considered adding more. David was a multi-talented individual with a fantastic memory who, at the drop of a hat, could spew out historical bottle information on a massive scale. Our friendship blossomed with trips to bottle shows all around the country. He never met a stranger and collected friends on a constant basis. Positivity was one of his strongest traits. He lived the life he loved and loved the life he lived. After retirement, he began an artistic career etching glass and mirrors from the back with a laser machine and then gilding them with gold leaf and painting the back by hand. His skill improved at an amazing rate, and he crafted many beautiful saloon signage art pieces. He referred to himself as the mad gilder of Greensboro. I am honored to have known David and will miss him dearly, as will all his friends and family. RIP Brother. – Marty Vollmer
David was a friend who collected bottles and gardened. A “green thumb” he was, growing the exotic, temperamental South African houseplant Clivia. We traded plants for their color. Every spring, he would send me pictures of his many blooming plants, and mine are yet to bloom! – Joan Cabaniss
David treated everyone like a brother, including me. In August 2021, I contracted COVID-19 far from home. I wasn’t given
much of a chance. Everyone was scared to death, but Dave said he would come to New York and drive me to my house. We spent 14 hours together traveling to my house. I could only get around with a walker, but he had my arm so I wouldn’t fall. We ate and slept in the car. David Jackson is my hero! – David Olson
It saddens me to say goodbye to a fellow bottle collector, artist, and friend, David Jackson. Two years ago, David and I discussed our retirement plans as artists with time to devote to our pursuits. We set a goal of creating 10 pieces of art per year for 10 consecutive years, aiming to leave a legacy of 100 works each. After that discussion, my first piece was a maul for David to use when painting his signs. He reported that it worked well and was in regular use. Unfortunately, David didn’t live long enough to fulfill the goal of 100 pieces, but what he did produce was fantastic. He had also started a book on sealed whiskeys, which we discussed at the 2025 Baltimore Antique Bottle Show. I’m not sure how far he got with it, but I’m certain that there was a tremendous loss of collector knowledge with his passing. We shared a love of dogs, and he was always excited to see my golden retriever, Buddy and give him some love. You will certainly be missed, my friend! – Vern Huffstetler
Hello, I was just revisiting your Peachridge Glass article, “Grrrrrwlll...Figural Bear Bottles,” 15 June 2012, regarding the various Bear designs there are out there. The reason I am contacting you is I have been pondering the purchase of what I believe would be the green version of the squatting Bear with round pendant. I received my first bear back in the 1970s painted as a lamp with the rare bulb in the neck base. It was painted to look like a polar bear, and has the heart pendant. My second purchase was the aqua smooth-base, applied face in similar design minus the neck bulb. This has the oval pendant but I did not check to see if it is base embossed. I don’t believe it is. Then I purchased one from an auction and added a larger bear with the same styling but less detail. It stands about 1.5 inches taller. It is in a deep amber with light puce tints in places. The green version is being placed at $500. Is that an honest price on the 10.5” green variant? It is listed as good condition. “No Chips or Cracks.” I will ask about bruises! The bear on the left is 11” and the one on the right is 10.5” Any additional history or info you can supply would be much appreciated. Editor: See Tony’s pic in Member Photos.
Tony Moller, Malvern, Pennsylvania
George is back!
This year marks my 60th year since my first dig. I was 15, hunting in Vermont with my brother in law. We stumbled upon an old farm dump with pontiled bottles laying on top. The rest is history. It didn’t hurt to grow up just a few miles from Keene, Stoddard, Lyndeborough and Temple factories. For the next few years, my girlfriend’s two brothers and I dug sites on farms, taverns, and, occasionally, found a town dump dating from the early to late 1800s. I had the good fortune to meet Mr. Charlie Gardner and sold some of my better finds to that fine gentleman. We always got the grand tour of his incredible collection. Then came flea markets, auctions and bottle shows. I set up at the 1968 and 1969 Keene bottle shows. They weren’t even in Keene. They were on the Green in Fitzwilliam, New Hampshire. I eventually moved to Florida and got to dig in Ybor City (Tampa’s old dump). Soon after, I was married and had to move and travel a lot for my job. This resulted in a 50 year break from my favorite hobby. When my wife passed away in 2022, I needed something to occupy my mind, since I had also recently retired. I have to give credit to folks like Rick Ciralli, Jeff Noordsy, Michael George and others that helped reignite the bottle flame. My digging days are probably over by now, but I’m back doing shows and buying/selling old glass again. There’s nothing like holding that historical piece of glass in your hands and the thrill of the find, whether it be at an auction, estate sale, flea market or just online.
George Field, N Scitaute, Rhode Island
Dear Ferdinand, I am a Park Ranger at Vicksburg National Military Park. I have an interest in learning more about Civil War-era demijohns, which brought me to your informative website. Perhaps you can help me with a unique project I am undertaking at the park? During the Civil War, the ironclad warship, USS Cairo, was the first warship sunk by an underwater mine. Almost a hundred years later, the USS Cairo was located underwater, raised, and is now on display at Vicksburg National Military Park. The mine that sank that ship was a glass demijohn rigged to explode (see illustration). I am currently doing research on this device and could really use your help for details on the demijohns used and where to find a suitable copy to recreate the torpedo for a museum display. I know the demijohn was a five gallon one allegedly used for carrying whiskey from a bar owner in Vicksburg. I am not sure of the color, size, or even shape of the demijohn and what would be appropriate for the 1860s in Mississippi. I do have two period sketches of the “torpedo,” however, both portray two different styles of demijohn. Could you look over this information and share your thoughts on this. Also, if you have any suggestions on reproduction or even antique demijohns that would be appropriate for the museum display, I would greatly appreciate it!
John Castaldo, USS Cairo Gunboat and Museum Vicksburg National Military Park (U.S. National Park Service)
Dad’s Whitlock
Me and my brother Marty Loschen with our dad’s “B.M & E.A. Whitlock” New York bottle. Our father acquired this bottle from a 100 year old woman living out in the middle of a field in an old antebellum home near Shongaloo, La. around 1970. It’s been on a mantle in our family’s living room all my life.
Brandon Loschen Palm Beach, Florida
Please visit FOHBC.org for expanded coverage.
Collector Profile: Jack Hewitt, from somewhere in the north Georgia Mountains. Since cell coverage is poor in the mountains, I asked Jack to write up a little something about his collecting history. I’ve known him for over half of my collecting lifetime, so the story he sent me included lots I didn’t even know about him. I trust you’ll enjoy the read as much as I did.
Tom, thanks for asking me to do this. It brought back some great memories. As you know, I am a second-generation collector, following in my father’s footsteps, John. We lived in Jacksonville, Florida. In 1966, I was in the first grade, and my older brother, Johnny, was in the 5th grade. Johnny cut out an article from the Florida TimesUnion that stated during the renovation of the Gator Bowl, the city discovered that the football stadium was built on top of the old Jacksonville city dump, and collectors were digging up old bottles. My brother talked my dad into taking us to go on a treasure hunt. We went down the following Saturday and found a dozen or so bottles. One of the men digging at the Gator Bowl was named Earl Wilkes. He told my dad about the Jacksonville Antique Bottle Club, which we joined. I believe that in 1967 or 1968, my dad was the show chairman for Jacksonville’s first bottle show at Regency Square Mall. He was the show chairman until we moved to Louisville, Kentucky, in 1970. We continued to collect, dig, and participate in shows. My summer before my senior year of high school, we moved back south to Marietta, Georgia, in 1977. He served as the show chairman in Atlanta until he died in 1987.
went to the Nashville show, and on that Saturday my dad had a heart attack at the show and died. He was doing what he enjoyed, and we spent almost three weeks together, making some great memories and renewing my interest in the hobby.
My Primary Interest: I have a wide view when it comes to collecting but when I was about eight or nine my dad carried me to a lady’s house who had a couple flasks she wanted to sell. She wanted too much for them and I recall there were some condition issues. As we were fixing to leave I asked if I could use her bathroom—she said “sure” and when I got into the bathroom, on the back of the commode, was a fiery opalescent teakettle ink with morning glories in it, I picked it up, (after washing my hands of course) and carried it into where my dad and the lady were sitting. I showed it to him and said I thought this might be something he would like. His eyes got really big, and he asked the lady if it was for sale. She said she would take $5 for it. I still have it, as well as the same teakettle mold in four different colors. Now I have over 100 pretty nice inks, with the majority of them being teakettles.
Has it been fun?: I think you know my answer to that. This hobby is like a big family, and every show seems like a reunion. We’ve lost some good ones recently. When I heard about David Jackson’s recent passing, I got calls from all over—everyone in disbelief. What a great guy that you could spend hours talking to. Seeing people like David being so excited about getting something to take home and put on the shelf—I haven’t found anything to compare it to.
I had lost interest for a few years during college and early in my working career, but my mom called me up and said my dad was going to the Yankee Bottle Club’s show in Keene, New Hampshire. She knew I had a couple of weeks vacation I had to use before the year’s end, and she wanted to see if I had any interest in going with him. I had never been to New England, and it was a cheap vacation, so I said sure. It was the best trip of my life; we laughed, we cried, and we talked. I had forgotten how much I enjoyed not just the bottles, but the friends. The week after we got home from the Keene show, my dad and younger brother
Digging stories: I remember digging as a kid, and it was fun, but my favorite digging story wasn’t one of my personal experiences; however, I did end up with the bottles. I received a call from a picker who used to be able to scrounge up items but usually didn’t have enough money to buy anything. I used to pay him for leads if they came through. He called me about a guy who had some incredible stuff, and I needed to see what he had. We met and drove down toward Atlanta, ending up in the ritziest part of the city, a few blocks from the governor’s mansion. The man lived in the biggest house I have ever been in and the house sat on 17 acres and was worth millions. The gentleman was in his eighties, and his father was one of the wealthiest men in Georgia. He took me into his garage, and upstairs there was a huge room with boxes of bottles. He told me that when he was a young man, his dad was friends with Dwight Eisenhower, and he said President Eisenhower gave him a metal detecting license for use on federal property. He had dug up these bottles in Chickamauga, Gettysburg, and Appomattox, among other locations. Each box was labeled. He had a half-dozen USA Hospital bottles, pickles, sodas, inks, medicines—you name it. He told me that others had come in and made him offers on the bottles. I told him what I would be willing to give him for the bottles,
and he said he would consider it. The money I had offered him was a good bit, but I knew it wasn’t going to change his lifestyle. I didn’t think I would ever see the bottles again, but it was fun just seeing them and hearing the story behind them. About six months later, I got a call from the executor of the estate, and she said he had died, but had a note that I had made him a fair offer on the bottles, and if something were to happen to him they should give me a call. She told me that if I was still interested in them, I could bring a check and pick them up the next day, as they had sold the house. I picked up the bottles and couldn’t have been happier.
Best buy: I bought a GI-22 Baltimore Glass Works flask in puce from an estate in Rome, Georgia, several years ago. (Tom Lines note: This one now resides in an Alabama collection.)
Working with my brother Jim: My younger brother Jim and I go to as many bottle and antique shows as we can. He is a fulltime dealer and is always beating the bushes. It’s nice to have a sibling who shares the same interests; plus, we’re carrying on our dad’s legacy. He’d like that.
View of the Federation: The way the Federation has grown is wonderful. The educational factors of the website and the Virtual Museum are great. I wish we could attract more interest from the younger generation—it seems like the crowds at shows are getting older and older.
Strengths in the hobby: Auctions, shows, and the people drive the hobby. The amount of money being spent on the really rare pieces blows me away, and that hurts to some extent because the younger collectors can be disheartened by being priced out of the market.
Top shows: Keene and Baltimore are two of my favorites. Down south, the Columbia, South Carolina show is great, as are the shows in Jackson, Mississippi; and Dalton, Georgia which are always a fun time.
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By the time you receive this copy, the all-encompassing involvement of our national convention in Reno, Nevada, will have come and gone except for reviews. It may have been the last FOHBC national event in the Western Region for a number of years. I make this prediction because our other regions need to participate as well, and it will invigorate more collectors in other parts of our great country to participate in national conventions.
For you “westerners,” please keep an eye on our FOHBC regional show listings in the magazine and website. I shouldn’t need to tell you, however, here are some on the radar. Los Angeles Historical Bottle Club’s Annual Show & Sale, August 30, in Santa Ana. Antique Bottle Collectors of Colorado Show, September 6, in Castle Rock. Oregon Bottle Collectors Assoc., September 19, in Aurora. Northwestern Bottle Collectors, September 20, in Santa Rosa, California.
In the last issue of AB&GC, Mike Dickman referenced my previous comment in the Western Region News, noting an increasing interest and demand for “bottles of a newer vintage.” He questioned whether I was referring to ACL soda bottles. My comment originated from the mind and perspective of an older collector who once freely consumed beverages from crown-top and ACL soda bottles. I will note in the affirmative that ACL soda bottles seem to be a major bottle group that has taken afire by collectors in what I consider a “newer bottles” genre. This is certainly not a negative observation, but rather one of accepting the passage of time as a natural progression of life. Furthermore, Mike has made significant contributions to the growing interest in this relatively new field through his excellent article series, “ACL Corner,” in this magazine. They are so well written and well illustrated that one cannot help but find the stories engrossing.
I must admit that I am partial to bottles that were individually made by a gaffer. Holding it, I can visualize each step that went into its production. The blower, or one of his young helpers, dipping the blowpipe into the pot and pulling out just the right amount of molten glass that was placed into the bottle mold and blown into it to fulfill the primary objective. Then it is passed to a helper, who either puts the bottle into a snap case or affixes a pontil rod to the base, while the gaffer releases the new bottle from the blowpipe. He then finishes the bottle top with a small gather of glass, all the while keeping the bottle spinning to maintain its form. The bottle is now released at the base from the punty rod or from the snap case. With pinchers, the boy then carries the bottle to the annealing lehr overnight to remove potential stress in the glass. This process was often carried out in sweltering heat that, at times, was so unbearable that factory operations were shut down during the hottest seasons.
Almost without exception, the handmade bottle, roughly pre1915, was developed in this manner, which can assuredly be relived in one’s mind when holding this treasure. The birth of the bottle is all missed with the later automatic bottle machines. Admittedly, I have always liked those heavily embossed liquor flasks from the 1930s to 1950s vintage—spider-webbed and all—but I managed to avoid them reluctantly. Maybe in my next life!
Midwest Region [Henry Hecker, Director]
The summer heat in the Midwest has been oppressive. Those bottle hunters who scuba dive have been the only collectors comfortable and rewarded with some great finds. Underwater discoveries in Michigan have included some nice crown sodas, a watch, and 19th-century china. From a Wisconsin lake, a newly discovered “Blue Ribbon Bottling Works, Milwaukee” Weiss beer has caused a buzz among the beer-collecting contingent. Wisconsin collectors continue to be infatuated with beer for better or for worse.
For several collectors who braved the heat to attend a recent Wisconsin outdoor consignment auction, discoveries were made that merit national attention. The auction company, with expertise primarily in livestock and farm machinery, filled hay wagons with box and basket lots as well as the usual tractor fare. Unexpectedly, nestled in several boxes on one wagon, were important bottles haphazardly stacked without regard for their safety. The unknown consigner had to be equally clueless to dispose of this collection assembled (presumably) many years ago in such a venue. What survived the ham-handed raking of the boxes by the uninitiated were scroll flasks, a “Tippecanoe,” a “Benz Appetine Bitters” from Saint Paul, and an olive-green “Warner’s London Animal Cure.”(see below) One attendee reported a cabin bitters with roped corners (not a Drake’s) (???) disappearing before
the auction. The London Animal Cure made it to the auction block, but by that time, it had suffered a base crack. However, the star of the show was an emerald green “egg” soda embossed “Wm. M. Cunningham” on one side and “Soda Water” on the other. Cunningham was a 1840s merchant and pharmacist in Milwaukee known previously by his ovoid stoneware jugs. This magnificent “egg” joins the Hall of Fame of Wisconsin bottles, previously known only from a 1845 advertisement by Cunningham, announcing his purchase of a gross of “egg bottles” for his mineral water. Fortunately, this bottle survived the abuse of the auction preview. [Editor: See Henry’s upcoming, in-depth article about the Cunningham Soda Water bottle in the Nov-Dec issue of AB&GC]
Also, as president of the Mukwonago Historical Society, I recently had the privilege of accessioning an important glass cane for our museum collection. Family lore had it that the piece was given to an ancestor by a group of glassblowers from Milwaukee who summered on Phantom Lake in the early 1900s. With some additional research, the story has been substantiated. These glass
blowers took respite from the heat and smells of the city when the William Franzen Glass Factory closed in July and August because of the high temperatures. This fascinating story will be fleshed out in a future article in this magazine.
As Mother Nature prepares to move from Summer’s warm embrace to Fall’s cooler temperatures, I am always “chomping at the bit” in anticipation of the busiest time of year for bottle shows in the Northeast Region. Be sure to check out the lists of shows in the Calendar section of this issue of AB&GC in the Sho-Biz section and on FOHBC.org. Make your plans to attend as many shows as possible before Winter’s blustery weather slows the show activity to a trickle of events.
Roy Topka, from the National Bottle Museum (NBM) in Ballston Spa, New York, provided the following update report from the 45th Saratoga Annual Antique Bottle Show & Sale “The weather in our area has given us rain every weekend for months on end, and Saturday setup was hit with some bad weather, but by Sunday, the rain had subsided, but all had to contend with a cold and windy day. None of this dampened the spirits of anyone in attendance as there was plenty of activity at the tables of the 49 dealers who occupied 72 tables.” Roy and fellow show volunteers noted the sadness due to the passing, this past year, of several bottle dealers who have done this wonderful show for many years. All deeply missed and fondly remembered, Ron Tetrault, Dave Merker, Art Dell, and Dave Mosher. Additionally, Dave Graci was absent due to illness. Roy further reported “nine new first-time dealers to the show, which is more than we’ve had in many years and hopefully a trend which continues.” Most dealers reported brisk sales, and attendance was good. Alex Prizgintas, from the Orange County Milk Bottle Museum, set up an informative display that all attendees received well. [Editor: See Prizgintas article this issue] As is the custom on the show weekend, the NBM was open and received a good number of visitors. Roy noted that “as an aside, dealers and attendees who stayed at the famous Gideon Putnam hotel and spa outside Saratoga were pleasantly greeted to an outstanding display by the NBM, set up by Adam Stoddard, of Saratoga-type bottles and history of the springs. What a way to start and end your day!”
By the time you read this article, the Reno 2025 convention will have concluded. New memories have been made, and new lifelong friendships have been established. That is what makes our hobby so wonderful. Every antique bottle show is a new adventure of unexpected surprises. Until next time, happy bottle collecting!
By Richard T. Siri, Santa Rosa, California
The FOHBC Virtual Museum “25 from 25 in 25” ($25 monthly from 25 members in 2025) Fundraising Campaign
$25 from 25 in 25
We are three quarters of the way through 2025 and we need your help. Think how often you’ve visited the Virtual Museum and how valuable this Museum is to the future of our hobby.
We rely solely on donations and have never taken any FOHBC bank account or membership money. We also have a donor who has put up $5,000 if we can find a matching $5,000 donation. With over 700 spinners ready to be uploaded to the Virtual Museum, $10,000 would make that possible over the course of the next year.
Any amount will help though, so please consider making a donation now. Please help us to continue expanding the Virtual Museum...the greatest project in the hobby world!
FOHBC VIRTUAL MUSEUM OF HISTORICAL BOTTLES AND GLASS
FOHBC Virtual Museum .org
For gift information: Alan DeMaison, FOHBC Virtual Museum Treasurer, 1605 Clipper Cove, Painesville, Ohio 44077, a.demaison@sbcglobal.net
The FOHBC Virtual Museum was established to display, inform, educate, and enhance the enjoyment of historical bottle and glass collecting by providing an online virtual museum experience for significant historical bottles and other items related to early glass.
Please help us fill our PHASE 4 “Wishart’s Pine Tree Tar Cordial” bottle.
Please help us with our Phase 4 fundraising capital campaign to continue development of the FOHBC Virtual Museum. The FOHBC and the Virtual Museum team thank our many donors who have helped us raise over $119,363 to date. We are dangerously low on available funds to continue development to build our galleries, exhibition hall, research library and gift shop. Donations are tax deductible. All donors are listed on our Virtual Museum Recognition Wall We are continually traveling to collections, so more costs are incurred. All other time is donated by the Virtual Museum team out of our love and passion for the hobby and the FOHBC.
Thank you!
Donations to the Museum are always needed to ensure we continue. We are a 501(c)(3) educational organization, so your donation is tax deductible. Please confirm with your tax attorney.
Appliedcolor label (ACL) soda bottles are as Ameri can as apple pie. Americans invented all their elements: the apparatus to add artificial carbonation to water (Joseph Hawkins), the crown system to seal pressurized liquids (William Painter), the machine to mass produce glass bottles (Michael Owens), and the ACL process itself (anonymous American engineers). From 1934 to the mid-1980s, American-made ACL soda bottles containing thousands of different brands of soft drinks were sold in every corner of the United States.
However, notwithstanding their American nature, a number of ACL soda bottles were also made and sold outside the United States. Although most collectors stick with American-made bottles, some, including me, collect the “Foreigners” too. Let’s look at a few of these bottles.
Canada, our neighbor to the north, produced colorful and interesting ACLs that were often made in places bordering the United States. High Top, bottled by Royal Beverages in Fort Frances, Ontario, in 1953, is a good example. The 10-ounce bottle depicts an angler in high-topped wading boots casting his rod, likely fishing in nearby Rainy Lake or the Rainy River, which flows westward along the international Canada-United States border. [Fig. 1] Hudson’s Bay Company established Fort Frances as a trading post in 1817, and the remote little city today sits across the river from International Falls, Minnesota, which is nicknamed “the Icebox of the United States” for its long, frigid winters. Rainy Lake is famous for smallmouth bass, and the city of Fort Frances hosts a well-known bass fishing contest every year.
McGirr “Blue Seal” Beverages of Niagara Falls, Ontario, across the border from Niagara Falls, New York, is another sweet Canadian bottle. [Fig. 2] Although the manufacturer’s name does not appear on the bottle, it was put up in 1953 by Niagara Dry Beverages, Limited, which had been in business since 1921. Herbert McGirr was its longtime president. Blue Seal used water pumped from the company’s deep wells and was one of seventeen brands of soda pop made by the company. Amazingly, they produced 15,000 bottles per hour in their heyday in the 1950s until they ceased operations in 1971. The blue-and-white label depicts a bikini-clad brunette holding a bottle while lounging on a beach, with a sailboat and seagulls in the distance. The scene probably depicts Crystal Beach, a popular resort on Lake Erie, not far from Niagara Falls. Blue Seal utilized seven similar but distinctive ACLs over the years, but why this was done is anybody’s guess.
Ski, a soda pop made by Liqueurs Ski of Montreal, Canada, is a 12-ounce bottle that is undated but probably dates from the 1960s. The glass surfaces are elaborately embossed with tall pine trees, and on the back, a rustic wooden ski cabin is depicted. The front ACL is in Art Deco style and shows a stylish skier heading downslope alongside pine trees, while the back label states in French (translated here), “Le Ski is a very fashionable sport (“très en vogue”) and Le Ski is also a delicious tasting beverage.” [Figs. 3 & 3a]
Although I’m not a skier, it seems odd to me that the guy is not using ski poles.
Mexico, our southern neighbor, did not produce as many ACL soda bottles as Canada, but there are a few nice ones. La Victoria Bebidas Calidad (“Quality Drinks”) is from the cities of Tijuana and Mexicali in the Mexican state of Baja California, put up in 1952 by Embotelladora La Victoria [Fig. 4] The ten-ounce bottle was manufactured by the Owens-Illinois Glass Company of Toledo, Ohio, and undoubtedly was more expensive for the bottler to obtain than locally-made bottles; thus, the bottler may not have bought many, which would explain the bottle’s rarity. Both Tijuana and Mexicali are situated along the international border between Mexico and the United States. When the bottle was made in 1952, the two cities bore little resemblance to the places they are now, with a combined population of about 120,000 then compared to 3.5 million today. Sadly, Tijuana, in particular, has become infested with crime thanks to the Mexican drug cartels, and the city has the second-highest homicide rate in the world.
Technically, Puerto Rico is not a foreign land because it’s been a United States territory since it was ceded by Spain in 1898, following the Spanish-American War. But the island seems foreign to me! And Puerto Rico produced some great ACL sodas back in the day. Solo, with the slogan “High in Quality,” was put up by Joseph Charles Bottling Works and Investments, Ltd. of San Juan, the capital of Puerto Rico. The seven-ounce bottle is undated and depicts a helmeted pilot holding a glass of soda while a fighter jet streaks above him. [Fig. 5] The brand came in several different-sized bottles and utilized several different ACLs, including one featuring a fully suited astronaut floating outside his spacecraft. An example of that super rare bottle was pictured in ACL Corner #2 (AB&GC, January–February 2023) from FOHBC member Chris Weide’s collection. All of the Solo bottles are desirable and hard to find.
Manantial Las Palmas, by a bottler of the same name located in Caguas, Puerto Rico, is another nice bottle. It contained eight ounces of soda, and its black-and-white, framed oval front label depicts a bare-breasted Indian maiden sitting alongside a spring near a palm tree. “Manantial Las Palmas” means Palms Springs in English, and “Refrescos Deliciosos” translates to “Delicious Soft Drinks.” [Fig. 6] Caguas is a Spanish colonial city in eastern Puerto Rico that’s renowned for its natural mineral springs.
Panama also produced several nice ACL soda bottles. One interesting bottle is Ironbeer, which, despite its name, contains a non-alcoholic soft drink. The bottle is dated 1967 and states that it was bottled in Panama; however, there is no bottler’s name or city of origin listed. “Da Fuerza y Vigor” translates to “Gives Strength and Vigor.” [Fig. 7] Interestingly, the same brand using the same front ACL was bottled two years later in 1969 in Miami Beach, Florida, although the legend was changed to state, “Soft Drink” (proba-
Postcard from Tijuana, Mexico, June 23, 1953. The writing on the back says, “Hello Willy, Believe it or not, I am in Mexico. This is a swell place. Heading back to Jersey soon. So long, Vinny.” Did Vinny enjoy an ice-cold bottle of La Victoria soda pop while visiting Tijuana?
Postcard from Panama, home of the original Ironbeer soft drink. Panama has a long connection with the USA as we supported their succession from Columbia in 1903 with marines and warships, and in return were granted a slice of land on which the Army Corps of Engineers built the Panama Canal. In 1989, US troops invaded Panama to depose the drug-trafficking dictator Manuel Noriega, but sadly, 23 servicemen were killed during “Operation Just Cause.” We ceded the canal to Panama in 1999.
bly to avoid being taxed as an alcoholic beverage). Both bottles are very rare. There are also crown caps with a similar image from Havana, Cuba, but to my knowledge, no Ironbeer bottles from Cuba have been found in the United States, probably due to the Cuban trade embargo that has been in effect since 1958.
Lake Cordials Soft Drinks was produced and bottled in the small town of Lake Cargelligo, situated along a large lake of the same name in the state of New South Wales, Australia. The ten-ounce bottle depicting a pleasure watercraft cruising the lake was manufactured in 1962. [Fig. 8]
According to an Australian collector with whom I corresponded, the bottle is extremely rare, as Lake Cargelligo, known for its wool and wheat production, had a population of just 1,430 people in the 2022 Australian census.
Finally, I recently purchased a 7-ounce Chinese ACL soda bottle simply because I liked its aesthetics, and it cost only $20. I know nothing about the bottle, but it probably dates to the 1970s. The seller translated the Chinese characters as “Arctic Ocean Specialty Soda” made by “People’s Food Factory, Beijing.” [Fig. 9]
There’s no place on earth like the Good Old USA, and our ACL soda bottles are second to none. But “foreigners” can add a bit of exotic spice to the bottle shelf!
The author welcomes comments, questions, and suggestions at mikedickman@yahoo.com
Ironbeer crown cap from Havana, Cuba, a soft drink that also was bottled in Panama and Miami, Florida.
“La Bebida Nacional” (The National Drink) suggests that the beverage was popular in Cuba, but no Cuban bottles are known to American collectors.
BIBLIOGRAPHY:
The Painted Soda Bottle Collectors Association (PSBCA) website contains a wealth of information about ACL soda bottles including hundreds of photos, recent prices and an archive of all ACL Corner articles. PSBCA.org
Sweeney, Rick, Collecting Applied Color Label Soda Bottles (3d ed. 2002, PSBCA).
VintageSodaCollector.com by FOHBC member Tom Pettit. A great resource containing hundreds of color photographs as well as interesting, useful articles about all things ACL.
Weide’s Soda Page (ca-yd.com) by FOHBC members Chris and Catherine Weide, is another outstanding, useful resource for ACL bottles.
Wikipedia.com
[Fig. 9 Right] Arctic Ocean Specialty Soda, Beijing, China, date unknown.
The population of Beijing, in the 1970s varied throughout the decade, starting with an estimate of around 8,087,000 people in 1970. Other sources provide slightly different figures, such as 4,426,000 in the urban area in 1970.
Was the hatter mad, or was it the world around him?
Irecently had the opportunity to buy a trade card that was made way back in 1825. Yeah—200 years ago—(mic drop).
Forget about airplanes and automobiles—back in 1825, there were no such things as sewing machines, the telegraph, or even photographs. This acquisition predates my few Civil War-era trade cards by over 40 years (see my recent blog post, The Unwelcomed Success of Dr. Curtis, for a card from 1867 that most advertising trade card collectors would call an early trade card).
Truth is, I would have wanted this antique treasure even if it was only promoting the sale of broken wagon wheels, but the fact that it was the trade card of a hat manufacturer in the mid-1820s had a special allure for me because I know my Alice in Wonderland
The hat-making profession was getting ridiculed even back in the 1820s. A preparation of mercury salts was used to soften the
BY ANDY RAPOZA
hairs on pelts of beavers, otters, and other woodland creatures for easy use in making the flared “bell” and “chimney” styles of hats worn by men in the early part of the century. Constantly dipping the pelts in the hot bath of mercury and nitric acid allowed the mercury solution to seep through skin pores and into the bloodstream, and its noxious vapors were inhaled, causing many hat makers to have physical trembling, speech problems, and emotional instability such as:
Excessive timidity, diffidence, increasing shyness, loss of self-confidence, anxiety, and a desire to remain unobserved and unobtrusive. The victim also had a pathological fear of ridicule and often reacted with an explosive loss of temper when criticized. (H. A. Waldron, Did the Mad Hatter have mercury poisoning? British Medical Journal, Vol. 287, Dec. 1983, p.1961.)
Conquest—the name implied success in a dominant way. In Great Britain, the word conjures up a history-changing triumph—the Norman Conquest of England in 1066 and its ruthless, successful leader, William the Conqueror. The surname may have its roots in that epic event and commander, but almost eight centuries had passed, and no glories, fame, or fortune had been handed down to John Conquest.
He was born the son of a manual laborer in the quiet country village of Clophill, England, floating about 40 miles northwest of London. He was as common a man as common could be: just another Anglican by faith, with unremarkable brown hair and a pale complexion, and he stood five feet six inches tall, although wearing one of his hats may have made him feel taller. He was also illiterate, signing both of his marriage records with a mark that someone else had to surround with his name to make it official. The only thing that truly distinguished him from most of the countrymen who surrounded him was his occupation—he was a hatter.
It singled him out, and if his trade card reveals anything about the illiterate, diminutive hatter with a pasty complexion, it was that he wanted to make a strong impression—a commercial conquest.
A brief interchange in an early play script demonstrates the widely understood association that hatters had with odd and even neurotic behavior back in 1829 when it appeared in Blackwood’s Edinburgh Magazine:
TICKLER (aside to SHEPHERD.) He’s raving.
SHEPHERD (to TICKLER.) Dementit. [Demented]
ODOHERTY (to both.) Mad as a hatter. Hand me a segar.
In 1847, a British newspaper correspondent lambasted the hat worn by a member of Parliament, calling it “atrociously ugly” and then placing the blame on the hat maker, precisely because he was a hat maker, of being mad:
The hatter who originally conceived the design must have broke[n] out of a lunatic asylum and was assuredly more mad than hatters usually are, though the craft are proverbial maniacs (The Birmingham Journal [England], 27 November 1847, p.8; emphasis added)
Consumer demand for hats had been high for decades and was increasing as England moved towards the middle of the 19th century. Even though the demand for hats was met with real health problems and popular ridicule, many men and some women braved the unpleasantness of both and became gentlemen’s hatters.
Trade card for J. Conquest & Co., ca. 1825. Rapoza collection. Card dimensions: 3 5/8” x 3”. The card is made from thick, quality paper stock but is flexible and neither as thick or rigid as trade cards from the second half of the century. The reverse side and sometimes the margins on the front side were sometimes used by the proprietor to create a receipt for the customer by writing down the transaction date, purchase price, and payment date; however, the reverse side of this card is blank. J. Conquest & Co. had very little time to record such sales before the partnership was dissolved.
The trade card is a superb, dynamic example of the neoclassical artistic style in an elegant presentation of copperplate engraving and printing. Instead of the previously popular Rococo style, which featured flamboyantly curving flourishes profusely garnished with floral and marine decorations, Neoclassicism simplified design, using the classic architectural stylings of Rome and Greece, with symmetry and harmony in its presentation. John Conquest’s trade card was all that, arranged with a block-paved floor and two classically fluted columns symmetrically flank-
ing each side of the floor, firmly set on solid pedestals, all of which were then secured to a large foundation. Sound, solid, and safe—that was the underlying message about John Conquest’s business, but there was clearly more to catch the eye. The large eagle festooned with ribbon and banner and boldly surmounted by the name “J. CONQUEST & Co.” was likely a duplication of the sign in front of his building that identified his shop; the great bird was literally spread-eagle, dominant in the scene and poised to soar above the hat making industry. There was nothing pale and diminutive in the entire design of the card.
Two of Conquest’s Regency hat styles were posted on the card’s two columns, the gentlemen’s popular bell-shaped Wellington and chimney-styled hat designs, well-formed from fur soaked and steamed in mercury nitrate. Gentlemen’s hats were more status symbols than functional protective headgear. In US dollar equivalents, a beaver hat could cost $10-$25 at a time when the common laborer, like John Conquest’s own father, was making only 10 to 25 cents a day. Although illiterate and of common stock, John Conquest understood the importance of catering to an upscale clientele, and his card showed it.
Mr. Conquest also assured his card recipients that he could also resurrect old worn-out hats, relining them with silk. In the 1820s world of men’s hat fashions, silk was the new beaver; for over two centuries, the North American beaver population had been decimated, almost to the point of extinction, and the cost of beaver hats consequently inflated. Silk became an acceptable substitute, looking every bit as shiny and swell as the beaver hats. John Conquest was on the cutting edge of hat fashion, adding the newer and more cost-effective silk alternative next to the beaver hats in his hat showcase. New or refurbished, Conquest’s shop was the place to go.
John started his shop in the big, busy city of Manchester, England, in 1825. It was much smaller than London (not even a twelfth of its size) but still the second-largest city in the country—ripe with potential for a new hatter whose powerful eagle signage looked ready to make the business take off. He would need all that enthusiasm and confidence because there were already 75 hat makers in Manchester in 1825 (not including the additional 14 shops that were making women’s straw hats). With so many hatters in the city, the naming of one of its many pubs, the Jolly Hatters Tavern, seemed quite logical. The address of John Conquest’s new shop, 38 Piccadilly, put his business in the center of the city and just a half-mile away from the Jolly Hatters. His path to Piccadilly had been a long and challenging route strewn with life’s obstacles and potholes to overcome.
Business opportunities were not dazzling in Clophill, so in his early twenties, John made his way to London, already with a population of well over a million people. In 1813, when he was 23, he lived deep in the city and married a country girl named Ann Fearn, who had grown up in another village about 20 miles west of his hometown. John signed the marriage record with an X for his mark since he was unable to read and write. The young couple set up house on Little Somerset Street in downtown London where eleven months later, Ann gave birth to their first
child, a daughter they named Mary Ann; her birth record listed her father as a hatter.
Their wedded bliss was interrupted in January 1815 when John was arrested for perpetrating some unspecified misdemeanor against his employer. He was convicted and sentenced to one month of hard labor, serving his sentence when his little daughter was six months old. Reunited with his little family, they increased in 1816 with the birth of their first son, George.
In the span of the next few years, multiple tragedies struck the young Conquest family as wife Ann and daughter Mary Ann both passed away. Now 33 years old, widower John remarried Ann Chipping in 1823. The marriage record shows he was still illiterate, and he likely was for the rest of his life.
For ten years, at least since his first marriage in 1813, John had been working as a hatter in London’s Cheapside Street. The name is a modern corruption of “marketplace,” and it was true to the original description. By 1825, it was possibly the busiest shopping district in the city, if not the world. Each day and well into the night, Cheapside was a hive of activity, with shops and sidewalk vendors, horses, wagons, carriages, and coaches, professional offices, residences, apartments, boarding houses, and people—lots of people. Hat makers, haberdashers, and shoe shops offered the newest fashions, ready to be accessorized by watchmakers, jewelers, goldsmiths, and silver smiths. China and glass dealers, chair and cabinet makers, wallpaper stainers, and upholsters stood ready to furnish homes, while physicians and apothecaries were poised to assist those among the Cheapside shoppers who felt unwell. John Conquest name-dropped his former business location on his Manchester business card precisely because Cheapside was nationally known as the country’s most vibrant business district, and he was one of its alumni. His Manchester customers didn’t have to make the day-long trip to travel the 200 miles to London to shop in style—he was bringing London to them.
John Conquest’s trade card, almost certainly created in 1825, presented a business and businessman who was ready to accomplish great things in Manchester.
The firm of John Conquest & Co. was established in Manchester late in 1825. His partners were the Robinson brothers, Isaac and William. Isaac was about the same age as John, and William was a dozen years younger. The Robinson brothers, educated Quakers from Leeds, were the sons of a shopkeeper and were already working as silk hatters in Manchester as of at least September 1825, before they agreed to the new partnership with John Conquest. On 29 September, Isaac and his wife also welcomed the birth of their first child, a son, and John’s wife arrived at Manchester very pregnant, shortly before delivering the first child of their marriage.
John had an older brother named William, who was also a hatter. He had been with John through the Cheapside years and came with him to Manchester; however, he wasn’t included in the new partnership but chose instead to start his own business, “Wm.
Conquest & Co. Hat Manufacturers,” just a half-mile from John’s new shop in Piccadilly. All four men hoped for success in their new ventures, but all their dreams were doomed.
The new partnership fell apart almost before the ink was dry on the new trade card. Founded after September 1825, the partnership was formally dissolved on 11 March 1826.
Seven weeks later, Ann Conquest gave birth to their first child.
It’s easy to guess but hard to know just why the Conquest-Robinson partnership failed so quickly. On paper, John Conquest and the Robinson brothers had nothing in common. He was from a country village, and they were from a big city. John’s father was a manual laborer, but their father was a middle-class merchant. John was an Anglican, and they were Quakers. They were educated, and John was illiterate. Their differences could have been molded into shared strengths to help their partnership and business succeed, but all or some of it may have driven a wedge between them; however, the suddenness of their dissolution suggests that something else was quickly pulling them apart. It may have been mad hatter disease.
John Conquest and Isaac Robinson had both been making hats for years. William Conquest had probably been working alongside his brother in Cheapside, and William Robinson may have been helping his brother Isaac for a few years prior to the new partnership. Mercury poisoning can work fast, but in the case of these four men, it had plenty of time to change their minds and alter their personalities.
William Conquest had set out on his own in the hat-making business in Manchester in 1825 but was declared bankrupt by December 1826. In 1828, he tried starting up again, this time with a partner, and, perhaps significantly, focused on making only silk hats, probably due to the increasing demand for them, along with concern about the health effects of making beaver felt hats with mercury. Nonetheless, their partnership was dissolved in 1831. In 1834, he shows up one more time, having reopened his old shop briefly by himself. The last we see of him is ten years later when a newspaper reporter calls him “the old curiosity man” as he is arrested and brought before the magistrate for stealing a bag of silver from the bar of the Commercial Inn, just a few blocks from his old hat shop.
William Robinson had a sadder fate, dying in August 1827; the youngest of the four hatters was only 24 at death. True, many illnesses and innumerable injuries could kill a hale and hearty young man, but mercury poisoning can damage the brain, lungs,
and kidneys, so it could easily have been the cause or a significant contributor to the young hatter’s death.
Less than two months after the partnership had fallen apart, Isaac lost his first-born son at just 10 months old. Again, we don’t know why the infant died, but the mercury present on Isaac’s clothing and body could easily have transferred as father Isaac held his baby boy after each long day’s work. The small lung capacity of babies also increased their risk of inhaling any vapors emanating from such exposure. Isaac himself lived a long life, dying at 84. However, after 1828, we no longer see him mentioned as a hatter but rather as a tea dealer, a grocer, and a “retired hatter.”
Even if mercury poisoning didn’t kill any of the Conquests or Robinsons, it often played havoc on a hatter’s mental, emotional, and physical health. All three hatters in the ill-fated partnership were constantly exposed to mercury poisoning, and perhaps one, two, or all three exhibited various symptoms that could easily have ruined their interrelationships or the business itself. Physical trembling could have hindered their ability to produce a fine-quality hat; speech problems could have been frustrating in dealing with customers and suppliers and might have made them resistant to future commerce with that hat shop.
The dissolution notice specified that it was John Conquest who was leaving the partnership. The man with all the aspirations for success in Manchester, as displayed on his trade card, was breaking up the team, and he was never again listed doing hat-making, as did his brother and his former partner, Isaac. It seems like John Conquest was the weakest link, even though his younger partner died just 15 months after the dissolution. You can almost hear the sighs of relief from the Robinson brothers when the phrase, “dissolved by mutual consent, so far as concerns John Conquest,” was added.
John appears to have been the problem. Perhaps he was exhibiting some of the neurological dysfunctions brought on by mercury exposure. “Excessive timidity, shyness, and anxiety” are
significant challenges for many in the workplace, but a complete “loss of self-confidence and a desire to remain unobserved” is more serious and troubling. John Conquest was suddenly, willfully leaving John Conquest & Co.—he was making himself invisible. Had he come to that decision because he had developed “a pathological fear of ridicule” and therefore couldn’t deal with complaints and accusations from his partners about mistakes they perceived he was making? Perhaps he even exhibited “the explosive loss of temper when criticized,” which could destroy any workplace or partnership.
What makes me feel that John Conquest may have suffered from some or all of these symptoms of mad hatter disease is how abruptly his partnership ended and how he completely disappeared from the public record for the last nine years of his life—he just vanished from public view. From the 1826 dissolution to his death in 1835, he had gone dark, appearing in surviving records only for the births of his two children in 1833 and 1834 and the death of the latter in 1835 (the first had died in infancy and the latter died at one year old). No records have been found showing that he continued to be employed. Perhaps he had stopped working altogether from the terrible effects of mercury poisoning. Had he become a mad hatter? Was that what brought the end of his career and eventually his life at age 45? We’ll never know, but there is a high likelihood that he and his one-time partners, as well as family members, were affected to some degree by the mercury solution that marinated their bodies and vapors that filled their lungs during and after hat making.
John loved and lost—wives, children, his business, partners, and perhaps his own life. Some of the losses may have been due to the mercury he used to make beaver felt for the older-style top hats. But his glorious trade card helps us feel his joy for life— the only remaining proof of his hopes, dreams, and ambitions. Whether or not his life was ruined by mercury, we should remember him for the positive messages his trade card tells us about him.
If I could travel back in time to meet John, I would want to compliment him on how wonderfully impressive his trade card was. Maybe, amid all the loss and dashed hopes, he would realize that he had triumphed with that card which has preserved his memory for 200 years—as it turned out, it was his ultimate conquest.
On 1 May 1826, just weeks after John Conquest’s business partnership had been dissolved, Ann Conquest gave birth to a daughter, their first child. They named her Mary Ann. It is possible for mercury poisoning to be transferred to a fetus during pregnancy and through breast milk, affecting the developing brain and nervous system, which could then potentially lead to neurological problems later in life, appearing even in adulthood; perhaps it impacted the mental health of Mary Ann Conquest.
In 1865, at 39 years old, she committed suicide by swallowing rat poison and possibly even infanticide. Before her suicide, she was asked if she had given anything to her month-old baby, who had suddenly died, but she denied doing so. A newspaper reported that “the loss of her child, and the fact of her having told an untruth, weighed upon her mind, and she appeared very much distressed.” She eventually confessed to her husband that their baby had died because of what she had done: the infant “was rather troublesome [so] she gave it a few drops of some mixture...” She then told a neighbor she had taken a dose of “vermin poison” and died shortly thereafter. The coroner’s verdict was that she poisoned herself “during a fit of temporary insanity.”
Was her temporary insanity seeded by mercury poisoning during her fetal and infantile development? The answer to that will forever be buried deep in the depths of history’s mysteries.
And for those readers preparing to jump to Google Maps to see exactly where 38 Piccadilly and China Lane meet, there is now a Kentucky Fried Chicken on the corner; the location has come a long way from a magnificent spread eagle to a box of fried chicken.
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While I love bitters, flasks, cures, and local bottles (like many of my fellow collectors), my collection is more a diverse mix of what our Victorian ancestors used in their day-to-day lives and decided to throw away over a century ago. I’m a passionate digger of antique bottles, driven by the thrill of discovering an artifact conceived of and designed by a business, hand-made by skillful glassmaking artisans, sold by an area proprietor, then consumed and thrown away by a local citizen, who never dreamt that someone would be digging through their trash well over 100 years in the future. It took that chain of people and events for these bottles I’m digging to be entombed under up to eight feet of coal ash, waiting for me to discover them. This, for me, creates a spiritual connection to these beautiful, handcrafted works of art.
Put together over 55 years of digging, my collection is an eclectic mix of whiskey, beer, bitters, soda, drugstore, patent medicine, ink, mineral water, and food bottles, as well as fruit jars, insulators, stoneware jugs, pottery bottles, elaborately stenciled pot lids, and more. Many of these objects I would not have sought out and purchased at a bottle show or online auction, but once I’ve dug something interesting that I don’t have, the bond has been established, and it’s going into the “Bottle Room.”
It was 8:30 am, Friday, April 26, 2024. I had just touched base with my digging buddy and high school friend, Bob Renzi, and we were set for a 9 am rendezvous at an early 1900s ash dump that had been hit hard over the years. While the dump produces a lot of machine-made age bottles, it is also famous for its “late throws,” when someone in the 1920s to 1930s was cleaning out stoneware jugs, Saratogas and other cool 1800s stuff out of their basement, shed or attic. We had scouted the dump two days before and had each managed to locate undug areas. We thus had a good start on our holes and expected our efforts would pay off today. Furthermore, a high-pressure front was hanging on for another day, resulting in a forecast of crystal-clear weather in the low 60s—perfect for digging.
Bob and I had dug together in our high school days and shortly thereafter, but while my OCD drive for digging and collecting continued unabated in the intervening decades, Bob had taken a break from the hobby while he got married, raised a family, and taught high school music for 40 years. Bob still has all his bottles from the old days, though, and now that he’s retired, he’s eager to add some exciting discoveries to his collection.
This dump goes deep, so there’s no realistic expectation to hit the bottom without the use of mechanized equipment. However, to maximize our chances of taking home good stuff, I encourage my fellow diggers to dig as deep as safely possible. For me, this
By John Savastio
means going eight to nine feet deep. This credo has paid off for me numerous times, with my best finds often discovered at the very bottom of my cavernous holes.
Some common milk bottles and 1920s Coke bottles, worth keeping for sale, were uncovered on the way down, but nothing worthy of being displayed on the Bottle Room shelves. It was around noon when I reached my self-imposed depth and began to use my three-foot-long chipping tool to dig 18 inches or so into each side of the hole, working my way up from the bottom. About a half-hour into picking at the bottom layer, I was on the side of the hole facing the trail when I noticed that my last stab at the virgin ash had revealed a three-inch blue corker on its side. Ah, it looks like a “Bromo,” I was thinking when my accursed phone rang loudly into my Bluetooth, simultaneously startling and irritating the hell out of me. Thankfully, it was an 800 number I could ignore. Getting back to business, I quickly pulled out the bottle and was thrilled to see it was three-sided with hobnailed corners. “Poison!” I cried. My first thought was that it was a “Sharp and Dohme.” I hurriedly rubbed the ash off and saw “TRILOIDS”— ”Yes!” I yelled. Although I’d never dug one, I knew the bottle and was 90% sure it was embossed “POISON,” which was confirmed a few seconds later when I wiped the ash off the next panel. I also loved the triangular shape, hobnailed corners, and seeing the word Poison so boldly embossed. While it’s a corker, it’s also an ABM (Automatic Bottle Machine), so it was probably manufactured between 1910 and 1925. I shouted out to Bob that I’d found a very cool three-sided poison and put it in my pocket. Bob was kind enough to jump out of his hole and record the moment. [Photo 1]
Although this was the first Triloids poison I’d dug, I recognized the bottle, as they are fairly common. A little internet research revealed that this product was manufactured by William R. Warner & Co., likely between 1908 and 1920. Triloids was a well-known brand of mercury bichloride, which was used at the time as a topical disinfec-
tant. Per Wikipedia: “Mercury chloride (or mercury bichloride), historically also known as sulema or corrosive sublimate, is the inorganic chemical compound of mercury and chlorine with the formula HgCl2, used as a laboratory reagent. It is a white crystalline solid and a molecular compound that is very toxic to humans. Once used as a treatment for syphilis, it is no longer used for medicinal purposes because of mercury toxicity and the availability of superior treatments.” Hmm, it was a treatment for syphilis in the early 1900s and a fairly common bottle. Oh my.
I found a few variations of the bottle online. There is one that replaces the embossed copy “TRILOIDS” with “POISON” so that Poison is embossed on two sides with the third side blank. There is also a scarce four-inch-size Triloids and a very rare five-inch size. A five-inch Triloids recently sold for about $1,700 on eBay! Triloids also can be found in cornflower blue glass.
William R. Warner opened a drug store in Philadelphia in 1856 and soon invented a tablet-coating process that allowed medicine to be encased in a sugar shell. In 1886, Warner gave up his retail pharmacy business and began drug manufacturing under the name William R. Warner & Co. and later acquired several other patent medicine businesses. He later relocated the company to New York and, following mergers, changed the name to Warner-Hudnut, then to Warner-Lambert. Today, it is known as Pfizer.
As I continued to chip away at each side of the hole from the bottom up, I found a few local milk bottles, but nothing too exciting. About an hour later, as the backfill in the hole had raised its depth to about five feet deep, I decided it would be more efficient (and comfortable) to stand up and chip away from top to bottom. It was at this same time that Bob decided to take a break and watch me for a while. His timing was good. After just a few minutes, at about three feet deep and on the side to the right where I’d found the Triloids, my pick tool suddenly and unexpectedly pried out a heavy light-yellow-glazed stoneware bowl, about five inches wide and three inches high, that landed on top of my boots. Well, this is an oddity, I thought as I bent over to examine the mysterious artifact. With some hope and excitement, I picked up the heavy bowl from atop my
boots, wiped off the ash, and was excited to see the word “DOG” in a medium brown semi-fancy script lettering glazed on the side. [Photo 2] I’d never seen anything like it and thought, “Very cool, now I have two good finds for the day!” This unusual piece would be a nice addition to the collection.
While searching for similar stoneware dog bowls for sale online, I soon discovered that they were made in various sizes by Robinson Ransbottom Pottery (RRP) in the early 1900s. RRP was founded by Frank Ransbottom and his brother in 1900 in Roseville, Ohio. Roseville was a hotspot for quality stoneware during this time period, and the company grew and thrived. According to collectors, the earlier pieces are not marked on the base, while the later ones are. The later pieces I saw online, while similar in look, were indeed marked “RRP Roseville, O USA” or something similar. They are not terribly scarce but are in demand due to collector interest. I also saw some marked “KITTY.” The base of my dog bowl is unmarked and unglazed. My bowl also has some white glaze that was splattered on the side during manufacture, making it unique and a bit more interesting as detailed in Photo 2.
About 15 minutes later, with my hole more filled in, I was now about elbow deep and digging the same side where I’d just dug the dog bowl. I was leaning over the edge and cutting downward, just a foot from the top, when my chipping tool abruptly pried out a large (nine-inch), ovoid, amber, turn-mold corker. I recognized the ovoid shape, so I knew right away to check for the seal on the shoulder that would verify my suspicions. Sure enough, clear as the 60-degree mild day we were enjoying, the seal was there and embossed as I expected, “PAUL JONES WHISKEY LOUISVILLE, KY.” [Photo 3]
Photo 3] Author with “Paul Jones
bottle seeing the light of day for the first time in 100 years.
[Photo 4] Close up of the “Paul Jones Whiskey” seal showing the smudged seal as if the glassmaker used a scraper to attach it to the bottle.
This must have been a damn good product because these bottles are quite common. That said, in 54 years of active digging, this was just the second one I can recall finding. I also remembered my rapscallion friend, Scott, digging one in the yucky mucky Phoebus, Virginia dump in the early 1970s and me being jealous. It was cool to find one now. I told myself that if it cleaned up well, I might keep it.
A few hours later, the holes were filled in, and I was on my way home, quite pleased with my day. I soaked the haul of bottles in a gallon bucket overnight and cleaned them the next day. I was very happy to see that the “Triloids Poison” was perfect. There was no stain or damage, and I could see it glow on my new shelves, backlit with 5,000-watt bulbs. I next cleaned the Paul Jones. While not quite in perfect condition, it was very close, and it was remarkably clean. I also noticed that the glass comprising the applied seal was smudged on the lower right side as if a flat-edged scraper tool had been used to press it down on that side. [Photo 4] I had not recalled seeing that before on a Paul Jones (or on any sealed bottle, for that matter). Google searches revealed several examples, all of which had perfect seals. This little bit of unusual crudeness, the excellent condition of the bottle, and its attractive red-amber color convinced me this one was a keeper.
Now that the Paul Jones bottle would make it into the hallowed Bottle Room, I needed to get some history on this relic. A webpage at Sipping History.com, titled History of Four Roses, provides a brief background on Paul Jones bottles and the Four Roses brand that followed. Note that the labels on Paul Jones sealed bottles indicate they were a “Pure Rye” whiskey, not the Four Roses brand for which the company was also famous.
“Paul was born in Lynchburg, Virginia, in 1840. Paul went to fight in the Civil War for the Confederate Army from 1863 to 1865 and earned the rank of lieutenant. In 1864, he fought alongside his brother, Warner, under General Robert E. Lee’s command, helping to defend Atlanta, Georgia. In the efforts, Warner was killed during the Battle of Atlanta. After the South surrendered and the war was over, Paul returned to his home in Virginia only to find it dismantled and destroyed from the years of war. Paul and his father made the decision to relocate to Atlanta. Together, they opened a grocery store and distribution center. Here near Atlanta, Paul began producing whiskey under the Paul Jones Company. In 1884, with the laws in Georgia tightening on the sale of alcohol, Paul once again relocated, but this time to Main Street in Louisville, Kentucky, on Whiskey Row. By this time, his father, Paul Sr., had already passed away. Paul Jr. had the Four Roses name trademarked in 1888 and then, in 1889, purchased the J.G. Mattingly Distillery at an auction. Paul was able to take possession of the distillery on Wednesday, February 12, 1890, and just a couple of weeks later, on Thursday, February 27, he began operating it. Paul Jones’ brands that he produced at the distillery included Jones Four Star, Four Roses, West End, Old Cabinet, Old Cabinet Rye, and Paul Jones (my sealed bottle). Paul Jones Jr. passed away in 1895 from Bright’s disease. His nephew Lawrence inherited the distillery.”
The Paul Jones seal bottles, though common, are very distinctive
and set apart from contemporary bottles by their lovely ovoid form and the uncommon and appealing seal on their shoulder. And, as stated earlier, I was delighted with the mashed-up and malformed seal on my bottle, which distinguished it from all other Paul Jones bottles I’ve seen. This led me to ponder on exactly how the seals were applied to bottles and what could have led to the disfiguration of the seal on my bottle.
Per Wikipedia, in an article titled Sealed Bottles, “Sealed bottles have an applied glass seal on the shoulder or side of the bottle. The seal is a molten blob of glass that has been stamped with an embossed symbol, name, or initials, and often it includes a date. Collectors of bottles sometimes refer to them as applied seals, blob seals, or prunt seals.”
In a December 9, 2012, Peachridge Glass website article titled David Jackson and his Applied Seal Bottles, David provides more information on how seals were applied to bottles. “There is an additional method of embossed labeling which was used in the 17th century and continued into the 19th century. That method involves the use of a slug or glob of molten glass added to the outside of the bottle. After the bottle is formed but still hot, a hot glass slug is placed on the side of the bottle, usually on the shoulder or high on the side, and then formed flat against the bottle using a tool inscribed with letters or a symbol. This produces a round or oval glass form attached to the bottle, with the desired words or symbol permanently visible. These embossed slugs are referred to as seals or applied seals. The application of the seal is permanent to the bottle and cannot be removed without damaging the bottle.”
While this information provides a sense of how seals were made and applied to a bottle, it does not give the detail I was hoping to find. The above states the seal was “formed flat against the bottle with a tool that is inscribed with letters or a symbol.” This is very vague. In the case of my bottle, I envision that somehow, when this tool applied the seal to the bottle—perhaps by an inexperienced worker on his first day—it was not fully attached. Thus, another tool, perhaps a stainless-steel flat scraper, was used by this rookie to roughly and crudely smush the protruding right lower side of the seal to the bottle, thereby leaving me with this gift of a Paul Jones bottle with a very distinctive, contorted seal.
On Memorial Day, Americans honor the many thousands of brave soldiers who have fought for their country, helping to ensure that the democratic freedoms we have enjoyed for two and a half centuries continue to endure. It is also a holiday, and as such, I took advantage of my freedom from a day at work to enjoy a day of digging at my designated spot, which has been so productive for me over the last 10 years. It was day two for me, digging a hole that I had started three days earlier.
As someone who is fascinated with history, I get hands-on insight into the lives of Victorian Americans when I dig in old ash dumps. One thing that is evident is that the ratio of whiskey and beer bottles to food bottles is higher than would be expected (compared
to our modern era). Per a Boston University article published at the 100th anniversary of prohibition, “The Prohibition movement began in the early 1800s based on noble ideas such as boosting savings, reducing domestic violence, and improving family life. At the time, alcohol usage was soaring in the United States. Some estimates by alcohol opponents put consumption at three times what it is today.” Thus, it’s understandable why the temperance movement began and led to the 18th Amendment to the US Constitution, which established the prohibition of alcohol in the United States. This also explains the high percentage of bottles containing alcohol in this late 1800s to early 1900s dump.
The abundance of the “Bromo-Seltzer” bottles in these turn-of-the-century ash dumps is another testament to the alcohol issues this country was experiencing. Known as the “hangover cure,” Bromo-Seltzer was (and is) a headache and indigestion/heartburn remedy invented in 1888 by Isaac E. Emerson and produced in Baltimore, Maryland. Its first formulation contained sodium bromide, a tranquilizer that turned out to be toxic and deadly. Bromo-Seltzer responded by reformulating its product with safer painkillers that contained less or no sodium bromide. The alcohol-consuming public forgave them, and sales continued to be strong.
it will be one of these scarce and more coveted sorts. I had the bottle out of the earth and in my hands in short order, and I was excited and hopeful as I felt the embossing on the underside in the center of the bottle. Quickly flipping it over and wiping off the ash, I was delighted to read within the slug plate, “PROPPER & SCHULHOF,” “1158 1st AVE 1210 1st AVE,” “421 E 72nd ST NEW YORK,” and along the top of the shoulder, “FULL MEASURE 1/2 PINT.” [Photo 5] I loved that it had three addresses embossed on the bottle. According to Matty Birittieri, an expert in New York strap-sided flasks, whom I later called on the way home, this company was in business from 1905 to 1918. Manny also provided a 1914 New York City directory entry, “Propper Edward & Co. (Leo & Edward Propper & Frederick W. Schulhof) 1210. 1st av.,” “Propper & Schulhof. (Leo & Edward Propper & Frederick W. Schulhof) 1158, 1st av.” Based on the age of other bottles in the dump, I’d venture that this bottle is in the 1905 to 1908 range. Perhaps by 1914, the 421 East 72nd St address was no longer in use. I could find no records of this bottle for sale, nor did I see it posted anywhere, so it may be scarce.
As stated, it was day two in my hole, and by late morning, I’d already dug roughly a dozen common whiskey bottles from this pit (as well as a handful of Bromos). These whiskies are mostly slick cylinders and strap-sided flasks that came in half-pint, pint, and quart sizes and are typically embossed with “GUARANTEED,” “REGISTERED,” or “WARRANTED FLASK” on the shoulder. Sometimes, there is a blank slug plug plate in the center. It was a difficult hole. I was digging between the roots of two large, side-byside trees, doing my best not to damage the roots. Additionally, this section of the dump, located near the landowner’s garage, is heavier in industrial ash; however, it has a few layers of household trash, including one approximately eight inches thick at a depth of five feet.
It was just before 11 am, and I was about eight feet deep in the hole, on my hands and knees, chipping into the eight-inch-thick trash layer, when the bottom of a half-pint strap-sided flask was revealed to me. Even though 90% of the strap-sided flasks dug in our local ash dumps are the common type described above, one in ten or so have an embossed slug plate, and I can’t help but hope and pray that each time I come across one,
Just 15 minutes later, I was gently chipping into the same eight-inch trash layer, five feet deep in my pit, when another half-pint, strap-sided flask was revealed. Based on my 90% common, with no embossed slug plate experience for these bottles, the chances that this one would also have distinct embossing by the proprietor were infinitesimal. With expectations set low, I soon had the bottle out of the ash in my hands and wiped off the dirt. I was gobsmacked when I saw that this one, too, had an embossed slug plate! Wow, not only two in one day but two within 15 minutes of each other! This new bottle read, “FROELICH’S WINE & LIQUOR STORE, 215 STATE ST SCHENECTADY NY, REGISTERED FULL 1/2 PINT.” [Photo 6] According to Roy Topka’s book, Old Schenectady Bottles, Froelich’s was listed in the Schenectady directories for only one year, 1907, and is considered scarce.
Thirty minutes later, the eight-inch trash layer had played out, motivating me to make a 180-degree switch, moving to the landowner’s yard side of my hole. To my delight, I soon discovered a pocket of household trash, approximately four feet deep and two feet wide. At around noon, my pick revealed what looked like the back of an amber half-pint whiskey flask! Could this be my third slug plate embossed half-pint whiskey
flask discovered in just one day? Moments later, this speculation ended when my chipping uncovered a blob top, and it was now clear the bottle was straight-sided and not tapered like a flask. Oh my god, I had a Warner’s!
As it had a blob top and not a double-applied collar or medicine top, I knew it could not be a half-pint
“Warner’s Safe Bitters,” one of the rarest and most coveted of all Warner’s bottles and one of the top bottles on my most-wanted-to-dig list. My second thought was it might be a “Nervine.” I had dug a pint-size Nervine in this dump in 2016 and would love to dig the half-pint Nervine to go with it. (cover of November 2017 Antique Bottle & Glass Collector) [Photo 7]
And yes, there was a third wish going through my mind. Six years earlier, in the summer of 2018, in this very same permission dump, I had dug a half-pint “Warner’s Safe Cure” with a “B” embossed in the little round indentation on the base (See Collecting a Potpourri of Dug Bottles, Part 2, Antique Bottle & Glass Collector, May 2019). When I cleaned this “B” mold half-pint Warner’s, I noted that it had a weak mold impression, particularly in the details of the safe. I compared it to the half-pint Warner’s in my collection that I had purchased, and it also had a very weak impression of the safe. Looking at the bottom, I saw that it, too, was a “B” mold!
Online eBay and Google searches found other half-pint Warner’s “B” mold bottles, all with this identical poorly detailed safe. The “B” mold half-pint Warner’s with the weak embossing was definitely a thing!
As I was exploring these “B” molds, I noticed that there was also a half-pint blob of “Warner’s Cure” with an “A” embossed on the base, which had a much better mold impression than the “B,” including a very nicely detailed safe. I saw both these “A” molds online and held them in my hands at shows. I wanted one…badly. Yes, all these possibilities were going through my mind in the five seconds between realizing I was digging a half-pint Warner’s and having it out of the ground and turned around so that I could see what I had!
Upon flipping the bottle over and very carefully wiping away the ash, I was delighted to see that it was indeed a half-pint “Warner’s Safe Cure” (No 5WR in Michael Seeliger’s 2016 book, H. H. Warner His Company & His Bottles 2.0). And I was ecstatic to see that it had a gorgeous, highly detailed safe, and overall mold impression. [Photo 8] “Yes,” I loudly exclaimed to myself (and to the birds chirping and squirrels chattering nearby). My next thought was, “No way this is the B mold!” Quickly looking at the base, I was very gratified that my suspicions were correct—it was the “A” mold!
Seeliger’s notes on the 5WR tell us this smaller-sized bottle “was introduced in 1893 when the Warner Company returned from the London investors back to Rochester as Warner’s Safe Cure Co. Originally, the price was 65 cents, but later was changed to 50 cents. Although Warner used the small size for many products, he did not introduce the smaller size to the United States until very late.”
I saw Michael at the June 2024 Saratoga Antique Bottle Show in Ballston Spa, New York, and asked what he might know about the “A” and “B” molds for the 5WR. Michael responded that he had not conducted a study of Warner’s molds, as there were just too many. He did say that the 5WR in his collection did have an “A” on the base and that this bottle was made from the mid-1890s until about 1908 or so. That certainly fits the age of the bottles I’m digging in this dump. Digging this “A” mold Warner’s 5WR was a wonderful way to validate further my experience and research that these molds are indeed for real. See [Photo 9] for a side-by-side comparison of the “A” and “B” molds, with the “A” mold on the left, which shows more detail in the safe.
Soon after the thrill of finding the Warner’s, another noteworthy keeper was unearthed in this Memorial Day 2024 pit, and I’m happy to say that it was the second seal bottle I’d dug in a month! Tall and thin, standing at 9 3/4 inches and aqua in color, the seal on the shoulder reads, “HUILE D’ OLIVE SUPERFINE BERTRAND FRESE GRASSE.”
[Photo 10] This translates to “Olive Oil Refined, Bertrand Brothers, Grasse.” Grasse is a beautiful town on the French Riviera [
[Photo 10] Quart-size “Bertrand” olive oil, dug Memorial Day 2024, next to pint-size example dug in 2023.
[Photo 11]
Capitol Avenue Drug Store advertisement for “Bertrand Frere’s Olive Oil.” Hartford Courant, 1878
nestled in the hills between the Alps and the Mediterranean, just north of Cannes (of film festival fame). Grasse is better known for its perfume, which the Bertrand Brothers also produced. According to Baybottles.com, two brothers, Baptistin and Emelien Bertrand, founded this perfume and olive oil business in 1858. The business operated in Grasse under the Bertrand Freres name for well over 100 years. In 1878, the Capitol Avenue Drug Store advertised “Bertrand Frere’s Olive Oil.” [Photo 11] Later, in 1898 and 1899, Fraser, Viger & Co., a self-described “grocer and wine merchant” located in French-speaking Montreal, Canada, advertised their olive oil using the French wording embossed on the subject bottle “HUILE d OLIVE.” I’ve always had a fondness for these French olive oil bottles with the big, applied seal, so it was wonderful actually to dig one!
Around 2:15 pm, as I was chipping into the last remnants of undug ash this hole had to offer, I came across a large (9 ¼” x 4 ½” x 2 ½”) reddish-brown brick. We do find bricks in these dumps, and typically, they’re of no interest and are tossed back into the hole. This one, however, to my surprise, was very heavily and attractively debossed “SUPERIOR FIRE LININGS CO No 1 TRENTON NJ.” [Photo 12] I’d love to hear from any readers who collect bricks and can tell us something about its history and interest to collectors.
For reasons that are hard for me to relate to now, I confess to being a fruit jar snob in the first 50 years or so of my digging and collecting antique bottles. Perhaps it was the fact that I considered myself a bottle collector, and these jars are not bottles per se. Or it could be that I saw them as something that grandmothers collect, so they’re not cool. Whatever the reasons, my first instinct was always to sell any jar I dug, and I sold dozens over the years.
It was two somewhat unusual jars that I dug up over the past few years that initiated a transformation in my appreciation of these highly collectible, hand-tooled American artifacts. The
first of these was a pint-sized aqua jar embossed on the front in an oval slug plate “PRESERVING HOUSE MAXAMS NEW YORK.” and base embossed “GLASS MFG CO COHANSEY PHILADA.” Dug in June 2016, See Collecting a Potpourri of Dug Bottles in the April 2019 issue of Antique Bottle & Glass Collector. The jar was dug with a fully intact lid held on with the remnants of a wiring apparatus unfamiliar to me. It was so rusted that it crumbled apart as I attempted to screw the lid off the jar. I was struck, though, by the unusual embossing (at least for this digger), as well as the distinct straight-sidedness of the jar compared to a typical Mason jar. I was also stoked to see the glass house embossed on the base, which enhances the appeal of a bottle (or jar) for most collectors.
When I showed pictures of the jar to my digging buddy Gary Mercer, he exclaimed, “That’s a Cohansey!” Ah, so the base-embossing actually identifies the odd wire clamping system! At his urging, I immediately ordered the latest copy of Douglas M. Leybourne’s Red Book No. 11, The Collector’s Guide to Old Fruit Jars. Upon receiving the book shortly thereafter, I found the jar listed as #2138, with a value of $500 and up! The jar pictured in the book (a line drawing) was, however, a little squatter than mine.
While value does not determine whether I keep a bottle, it certainly got my attention, and the decision to keep the Maxam’s was a no-brainer. Additionally, as luck would have it, my neighbor, who collects antiques, had a slick Cohansey jar with an intact wire closure that I transferred to my jar, and it fit perfectly.
Dug in the summer of 2022, “The Mason Jar of 1872,” was a second remarkable jar that captured my attention as something very appealing and out of the ordinary. I’d dug and seen many Mason jars in my 54 years of digging, but this one was unknown to me, which made it an exciting discovery. I also found it compelling to see a date other than the ubiquitous “1858” on a Mason jar! Listed as Jar #1750 in Red Book, it’s described as having a ground top and is valued at $60 to $90.
I had the jar professionally cleaned by Leo Goudreau, and David Rittenhouse provided an original glass lid. David did not have the matching zinc band, however, and suggested I reach out to Rich Green for that. Rich responded that the actual zinc bands for these jars were very rare, but he said that he could fabricate
[Photo 13] “Maxams
Preserving House New York” and “The Mason Jar of 1872.” The two beautiful dug pieces that converted me to a passionate jar collector.
one by cutting and soldering together actual relic Mason jar bands. I said go for it. With the assistance of these three antique jar-collecting friends, a completely beautiful jar was literally resurrected from the trash heap. See [Photo 13], paired with the Maxams.
With my passion for antique fruit jars now fully awakened, I discovered several worthy additions to the collection in 2024. While none of them are particularly valuable, they all passed my qualifiers of being old, interesting, cool, and in nice condition. Following is a sampling of some of the good ones:
Friday, May 24, 2024: Red Book #1736: Midget pint in aqua. Ground lip. “MASON’S” Keystone logo “IMPROVED.” Red Book values at $50 to $75. Professionally cleaned by Leo Goudreau, with a glass lid and zinc cap provided by Rich Green.
Saturday, June 15, 2024 (dug two jars): Red Book #628: Quart jar in aqua. Ground lip, glass lid, and circular wire clamp. “COHANSEY” in arched lettering across the top third. The Red Book values range from $35 to $50. Cleaned by Leo Goudreau. The glass lid and zinc cap were provided gratis by David Krzemien.
Red Book #1069. Quart jar in aqua with nice whittling. “THE GEM.” On base “PAT’d DEC 17 61 REIS SEPT 68 & JAN 19 ‘69 PAT’d NOV 26 1867.” Red Book values between $10 to $12. Cleaned by Leo Goudreau. Rich Green provided the glass lid and zinc cap.
Sunday, July 14, 2024 (dug two jars): Red Book #1722. Quart, aqua, ground lip “TRADE MARKS,” “MASON’S,” “CFJ Co,” “IMPROVED.” (Note: Not an error above; it is embossed in the plural “TRADE MARKS.” Red Book value $10 to $12. Rich Green provided a glass lid and zinc cap.
Red Book either #1920 or #1925-1. Half gallon, aqua, ground lip. “MASON’S,” “CFJ Co,” “PATENT NOV 30th 1858.” Red Book value $10 to $12. This jar was found in the very bottom of an eight-foot-deep hole under a tree and came out very clean. David Krzemien provided a lid and zinc cap at no cost.
Friday, August 16, 2024: Red Book #1939: Light green pint straight-side ground lip “MASON’S,” German iron cross emblem “PATENT,” “NOV 30th 1858.” On base, “PAT NOV 26
“Trade Marks Mason’s CFJ Co Improved” RB#1722, half gallon “Mason’s CFJ Co Patent Nov 30th 1858” RB #1920, Pint “Mason’s (German Cross) Patent Nov 30th 1858” RB #1939.
[Photo 16]
Beautiful reproduction zinc tops. On left, “Boyd’s Genuine Porcelain Lined” with a German iron cross in the middle, for the “Mason’s” pint, Red Book #1939, provided by Rich Green. On right, “Consolidated Fruit Jar Company New York” with “CFJ” monogram in middle, for the half-gallon “Mason’s CFJ.” RB #1920, provided by David Krzemien.
67,” “143.” This jar has an unusual look due to its straight-sided design. Red Book value is only $4 to $6 in aqua. Rich Green provided a milk-glass lid and a beautiful repro zinc lid embossed “BOYD’S GENUINE PORCELAIN LINED” with a German cross in the middle. [Photos 14, 15 and 16]
If there are bottle gods or jar gods, they decreed that the old idiom, save the best for last, would apply to the jars I dug in 2024. It was Saturday, September 14, a pleasant sunny day in the low 80s. It was day two at my designated spot, and I had bottomed out at just 7 ½ feet (this section, close to the landowner’s garage, is shallower than the center of the dump). I was also just a few weeks away from retirement after 40 years with New York State, so the excitement from that provided a pleasant baseline for a good vibe for this dig.
Additional positive resonance for this day came from several good bottles found as I chipped away at the sides of the hole, working my way from the bottom up, two of which I’ll briefly highlight:
1) Quart aqua hutch embossed in slug plate “WEINSTEIN & KAPLAN REGISTERED ALBANY N.Y.” The first of these I’d ever dug, an uncommon and attractive bottle to add to my quart Hutchinson collection.
2) “COCHRAN BELFAST” round-bottom torpedo with a small base that allows the bottle to stand (but rather precari-
[Photo 17]
Two bottles dug September 17, 2024 glistening after cleaning. On left, quart aqua Hutch embossed “WEINSTEIN & KAPLAN REGISTERED
ALBANY N.Y.” On right, round bottom “COCHRAN BELFAST” with a tiny base that allows the bottle to stand.
ously). I’d found one of these the day before and three on this day. These bottles are very heavy and must be made from a relatively hard glass, as they seem to be impervious to staining. See [Photo 17], which shows these bottles side by side after I cleaned them the next day.
It was in this “Good Day Sunshine,” optimistic, cheerful mindset while chipping into the early 1900s layer of virgin ash at about four feet deep that a quart-sized jar was suddenly revealed. Its intense, deep aqua-blue color immediately energized me. Still, as a recently converted devotee of jars, I chipped away at it with all due caution, taking care to avoid the packed coal ash that surrounded it. Once freed from its grave, I wiped away the ash in short order and was encouraged to see that this was indeed an odd one, embossed as follows, “PACKED IN ST JOHNSBURY VT, BALL (in script), SURE SEAL.” On the reverse shoulder, “BY THE TOWLE MAPLE PRODUCTS CO.” Embossed on the base, “PAT’D JULY 14, 08.” Wow, a Ball Maple Syrup jar! [Photo 18] This was indeed unusual, and I knew I had something good. Based on the patent date and the fact that it was
[Photo 18]
Freshly dug Red Book #320-6 juxtaposed with it sparkling after cleaning the next day.
A “Ball” jar used for product packaging by “The Towle Maple Products Co,” based in St. Johnsbury, Vermont.
the lid. Damn!) The book tells us the glass crown is the standard “Unmarked Ball Blue Lightning-style Lid.” However, the book does not mention that, although these lids are standard and nofrills, they are very scarce and hard to find. Does anyone have an unmarked Ball Blue Lightning-style lid for sale and perhaps the expertise to reconstruct the wire bail system for this jar?
Below is interesting information about the Towle Company and its jar, pulled from an August 20, 2022, online article by Matthew Thomas titled Maple Syrup History; Exploring the Past World of Maple Syrup; The Towle Maple Products Company St. Johnsbury Ball Jar. “Among Ball jar collectors, the Towle’s St. Johnsbury Sure Seal jars are a widely sought-after series. These round jars and glass lids with a snap-down, Lightning-style wire closure were manufactured in a unique 22-ounce size in the Ball Sure Seal shape exclusively for the Towle Maple Products Company and were not available or sold to home canners. Often referred to in the Ball jar collector community as packer jars, product jars, or customer jars, these jars were initially filled with various brands of the Towle Company’s blended syrups for retail sale in shops and grocery stores, most notably the signature Log Cabin Syrup brand.
“There are at least nine variations of the jars that can be divided into groups based on glass color, closure style, and embossing text. For example, most of the jars are “Ball blue” in color and exhibit the tell-tale circular scar from being made on the Owens Automatic Bottle Machine.
[Photo 19]
Beautifully labeled “Towle’s Log Cabin Syrup.” Example of a Towle’s St. Johnsbury Ball jar with intact Log Cabin Syrup paper label. From the collection of Scott Benjamine.
a Ball jar, I assumed it would be ABM, and indeed it was (as verified by the Owen’s circle on the base). And although the rusted remnants of the wire bail system were still there, the coveted glass lid was missing. Despite my best efforts to scour the surrounding area and sift through the ashes with my fingers, I could not find it. Sigh.
Looking up the jar later that evening, it appears to be “Ball Sure Seal” 320-6 in Red Book described as 22 oz., 7-1/4 inches tall, and valued at $100 to $150 (the value is 50 to 60% less without
“Although the jars found in most collections today do not have paper labels, initially, all the Towle’s St. Johnsbury jars had paper labels on their front face, either the well-known Log Cabin Syrup brand label or one of a few other brands used by the Towle Company. [Photo 19] Towle’s St. Johnsbury jars with intact paper labels from known collections include Log Cabin Syrup, Great Mountain Brand Syrup, and the Crown of Canada Brand Syrup. The Towle’s St. Johnsbury jars can be tightly dated to between the middle of 1910 and the end of 1914, based on the known dates of operation of the Towle Company plant in St. Johnsbury, Vermont, which is discussed below.
“All the jars in the Ball blue glass color variation feature the Ball name embossed on the back face in script with an underline, a looping double LL, and a dropped “a,” which are known to date
between 1910 and 1923 on Ball-made jars. This detail corresponds to the historical record that the Towle Company operated in St. Johnsbury from 1910 to 1914. Under the scripted “Ball” name in capitalized sans serif typeface are the words “SURE SEAL.”
“The Towle’s St. Johnsbury jar is so notable and popular among Ball jar collectors that it has been recognized and described in Red Book 12 The Collectors Guide to Old Fruit Jars. The most recent edition of the Red Book, published in 2018, lists nine variations of this jar (RB 320-4 through RB 320-12).
“Also unique to these jars is a very specific and hard-to-find glass lid. According to experts in the Ball jar collecting community, the correct glass lid for these jars is in the same Ball blue color as the jar, but unlike other similarly shaped and sized lids, the proper lid has a shallower depression in the center and a less steep central ramp.”
My permission spot has been very generous in terms of local drug store bottles, particularly from cities such as Albany, Schenectady, and Troy, New York, as well as from New York City and even out-of-state places like Portland, Maine. While these local drug store bottles are often wonderfully embossed and representative of local history, the vast majority of them were made in colorless, clear glass.
Friday, August 16, 2024, was a hot and humid day with a high around 87. I was near the landowner’s 1920s-era detached garage and starting a new pit. I first spent time transplanting small trees, ferns, and shrubs from the area I was about to dig to areas that had been recently dug to keep the landowner’s property as green and attractive as possible. I’ve been pleasantly surprised at how well these transplants have taken to their new homes, and I’ve done the same in other dumps I dig. The process requires filling in my holes, which, by ensuring the undug areas aren’t covered by backfill, makes digging the next hole much easier and helps to ensure that very little dump is left undug.
I opened up a large pit to maximize my chances of success and stumbled upon a section of undug dump I’d somehow missed between holes. Being of the mindset that no bottle is left behind, I’d need to dig this section out, adding to my workload. At
about 1:15 pm, I was excavating this little missed section when I noticed, out of the corner of my eye, just a few feet away and to my right, a bottle I had just tossed out of the hole without seeing, feeling, or hearing it. I quickly picked it up and was stunned to see that it was an embossed, emerald-green pharmacy bottle! [Photo 20] Looking at the bottom row of embossing, I saw “SCHENECTADY” and recognized the bottle by its distinctive form, recalling that it was rare. The bottle is 5 ¼ inches in height and embossed “3iv H.A. KERSTE PH C PRESCRIPTION DRUGGIST SCHENECTADY, N.Y.”
Stoked out of my mind, I leaned back to thoroughly examine the bottle to confirm it was in good condition. Five seconds into the inspection, I was devastated to see a large crack running around the edge of the back of the bottle. Despite my disappointment that it was not perfect, it was in one piece, and I knew I had a great and rare local bottle. To my surprise, the rest of the hole turned out to be rather bland and lifeless industrial ash with very little of interest emerging. Additionally, I failed to take the heat and humidity into consideration and did not bring enough water, running out by 2:30. I paid the price with muscle cramps...ugh.
Cleaning the Kerste bottle that evening, I was thrilled with how beautiful it was (despite the crack) and how it sparkled on the backlit glass shelves in my Bottle Room. I next looked in the reference guide, Old Schenectady Bottles, by Roy Topka, to see what information he had on Kerste. It’s the first drugstore bottle listed in Roy’s book, but it only mentions that the colorless bottle is common but rare in green and cobalt blue. I next contacted Roy by text, along with Schenectady bottle collectors Jeff Ullman and Todd Cagle, who specialize in colored pharmacy bottles. They were all very happy for me, congratulating me on my find. As I expected, they confirmed they each had one of these bottles in their collections (I knew I’d seen them before somewhere!) They also added that to the best of their knowledge, these three were the only other green Kerste bottles they knew of, so mine was the fourth. Not only that, their three Kerste bottles are three inches in height, while mine is 5 ¼ inches, making mine, as far as we know, unique. That was very exciting to know!
I was able to learn a bit more about H. A. Kerste and his Schenectady pharmacy business from an August 29, 2013, Times Union article, Prescription for Nostalgia, by Cameron J. Castan. The story references the drugstore Kerste operated at 402 Union Street and the city’s decision to recognize the building as a historic landmark.
“Locals stopped in for remedies for ailments ranging from stomachaches to burns. The store also catered to children, with shelves of toys and candy. The three-story building was constructed in 1892 by Henry A. Kerste, a pharmacist and prominent member of the community. It now houses an accounting office on the second floor. The sign for a defunct Afghan restaurant, Kabul Night, remains on the first floor.
“At 11 am Saturday, September 7, city officials will gather outside the building to recognize Kerste’s Drug Store as a historic landmark. Kerste, who received his degree from Albany College of Pharmacy in 1886, was also known as one of the
first people in Schenectady to ride a bicycle as well as to own a car. So many people pass by this building every day without giving it a second thought. If you look closely, you can still make out the tiles at the entrance that say Kerste’s, said Andrew Conti, whose grandfather bought the pharmacy in 1940. Ercole Conti was trained by Kerste himself and operated the store until it closed in 1976, succumbing to competition from supermarkets and large discount chains.
“The second floor of the mom-and-pop pharmacy served as the Contis’ home for almost half a century. “I wanted a way to preserve all the special memories I had there. The drugstore is truly part of the fabric of Schenectady’s history,” said Conti, who pushed for the building’s landmark status.
“Kerste’s was renowned in the late 1800s for “The Arctic,” its large, hand-carved oak and marble-topped ice cream soda fountain. The structure was later sold to a museum in Vermont. I think Schenectady is going through a period of revival. I’m glad that buildings like my grandfather’s are being rediscovered, Conti said. It’s not unreasonable to think that Schenectady was truly a birthplace of innovation.”
Further internet research tells us that in the 1900 census, Henry A. Kerste was listed as a druggist, born in New York City in 1865. His wife was Sussie Kerste, age 32.
According to Roy Topka, Ercole Conti, the person who bought Kerste Pharmacy in 1940, told him in the 1970s that there was also a cobalt blue version of the same bottle available in three sizes. However, no one we know has one in their collection!
Riker was a major drugstore chain founded in the mid-late 1840s that lasted into the 1920s. They made several collectible embossed bottles. I’ve been fortunate enough to dig a few of them over the years. The first of these was an emerald-green, pinchedwaist hair bottle, four inches high, dug on September 12, 2020 [Photo 21] and featured in my article, The COVID Bottles of 2020, published in the October 2021 issue of Antique Bottle & Glass Collector. Labeled versions of this bottle read “Septone Soap, A Shampoo.” Riker was selling a hair preparation called “Riker’s Septone” as early as 1878 and as late as 1907.
side of the piles of branches they’ve thrown over the fence for decades. There was a huge tree stump in the way, but fortunately, the stump was rotted and soft. The first foot or so of this dump was an organic humus layer from the leaves and detritus that had accumulated since 1912 or so when this dump was no longer in use (and houses were built over a big section of it). I typically don’t find much in this layer, so it was a nice surprise when I tossed a shovelful of dirt from my newly started hole and saw a nice, cylindrical bottle roll out. I instantly recognized it as a “Citrate of Magnesia.” I’d been finding quite a few of them in the last few years and have been collecting them. Hoping that it would be embossed, I was pleased to see it was indeed marked “RIKER’S DRUG STORE” in an oval slug plate. Wow, cool, I thought, another Riker’s bottle I don’t have. I planned to soak this colorless bottle under the sun to see if it would become a nice shade of lavender in a year or two. Magnesium citrate is a legitimate saline laxative that treats constipation. Based on the number and variety of these bottles that I (and other diggers) have found, this medicine seems to have been quite popular around the turn of the century. I see that it is advertised for this same use today, which would seem to verify it actually works.
My permission dump yielded two Riker bottles in 2024, the first on Friday, July 12, 2024. It was a brutally hot and super humid summer’s day. I was digging very close to the property owner’s detached garage, with his car parked on the other
A month later, late in the day on Sunday, August 25, as I was close to finishing up a hole, I was chipping away at the sides just a few feet from the top. While caving in this top layer, a big brick-shaped amber bottle was revealed. Ooh, very cool, I thought, as these are sometimes nicely embossed medicine bottles! Because the ash was soft, the bottle was quickly in my hands. Turning the bottle over, I could see, to my great satisfaction, that it was indeed heavily embossed “WM B. RIKER & SON CO., MANUFACTURING CHEMISTS NEW YORK.” Way cool. A big (eight in. tall), beefy, amber pharmacy bottle from Riker, a company that I was beginning to have an affinity for! The bottle was in sparkling condition, so there was no need for a professional cleaning with this one. I also liked the peculiar stubby neck. [Photo 22]
Google AI provided this succinct history of the Riker Drug Stores:
“William B. Riker, a native New Yorker, was born in 1821 and died in February of 1906. During the early to mid-1840s,
Riker served as a clerk for a druggist named Meakin, whose business was listed at 511 Broadway. Riker later worked with a druggist named Dr. Hunter. Sometime after 1846, Riker established his first drug store in Manhattan’s Flatiron District at 353 Sixth Avenue.
“His son, William H. Riker, later took over his father’s chain of stores and personally operated them through the early 1890s. The firm of William B. Riker & Son was still selling products into the early 20th century. In 1907, Riker acquired the Charles P. Jaynes & Company drugstores, based in Boston, Massachusetts, and merged them with Riker, forming Riker-Jaynes. Then, in 1910, Riker-Jaynes merged with a competing drugstore chain, Hegeman & Co., becoming the Riker-Hegeman Company and creating a chain of over 100 stores. In 1916, the Riker-Hegeman stores were acquired by the newly formed Liggett Company (which in turn was owned by the United Drug Company). In the early 1920’s Liggett’s advertisements still mentioned that some of their locations were “former Riker-Hegeman stores,” but by the mid-1920s, the Riker-Hegeman name completely disappeared from their drugstore ads.”
The Riker bottles I’m digging in this dump are likely from 1895 to 1910.
Is it a squat soda or a split beer?
On Friday, July 12, a nice surprise came at the very end of a long day of digging. My chipping tool revealed an aqua blob top, and pulling on it easily released it from the soft coal ash. I was astonished and very pleased that it was a squat soda, embossed in the slug plate “W.H. ARNOLD GLENS FALLS, N.Y.,” and on the back, “THIS BOTTLE NOT TO BE SOLD.” I’d never seen the bottle nor recalled hearing of this bottler. I was unable to find any information about Arnold online, so I reached out to the human encyclopedia, Manny Birittieri.
According to Manny, Arnold moved to Glens Falls in 1889 and was in the liquor business. Sometime around 1894, he extended his business by adding the bottling of soda water and other drinks. Manny mentioned that Arnold was also a brewer. To add to the mix, I found Arnold Hutchinson bottles for sale online. With Arnold going into business around 1890 and with examples of Hutch bottles he was using for his sodas out there, it seems more likely this is a split beer. Or perhaps Arnold wasn’t sold on Hutch bottles at first and used a squat soda bottle for his early pop bottles?
[Photo 23]
[
The bottles I dug in 2024 and kept for my collection will exemplify my “digging what I dig” bottle-collecting philosophy. I would never, for example, attend a bottle show or look at an auction for a “Triloids Poison,” a “Propper & Schulhof, New York” strap-sided whiskey flask, or a “Towle Maple Products Co.” Ball jar. But the unpredictable randomness of fate gifted them to me, and I am now the proud and very pleased caretaker of these marvelous artifacts. When I gaze upon these treasures in my Bottle Room, they reignite the happy memories I have of the exhilarating moment of discovery when I unearthed each one of them. I’m very appreciative of the fact that I still have promising unexplored spots to excavate and that, at the age of 64, I’m still healthy enough to dig. May the good times continue.
References—Source—Bibliography:
Wikipedia: Mercury Chloride (Triloids main ingredient): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mercury(II)_chloride
Roseville Pottery History, Marks, and Artists (Makers of DOG stoneware bowls): https://justartpottery. com/pages/about-roseville-pottery
Paul Jones; History of Four Roses: https://sippinghistory.com/2021/11/09/four-roses/
Sealed Bottles on Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sealed bottles
David Jackson and his Applied Seal Bottles: https://www.peachridgeglass.com/2012/12/david-jacksonand-his-applied-seal-bottles/
Boston University on Alcohol consumption prior to prohibition: https://www.bu.edu/articles/2020/pov-the-100th-anniversary-of-prohibition-reminds-us-that-bans-rarely work/#:~:text=From%201900%20until%201915%E2%80%94five,able%20to%20afford%20illegal%20 liquor.
Old Schenectady Bottles, by Roy Topka
Michael William Seeliger’s 2016 book, H. H. Warner His Company & His Bottles 2.0. Bertrand Brothers Olive Oil: https://baybottles.com/2022/05/08/huile-d-olive-superfine-bertrandfreres-grasse/
Towle Maple Syrup Ball Jar: https://maplesyruphistory.com/2022/08/20/the-towle-maple-productscompany-st-johnsbury-ball-jar/
H.A. Kerste PH C Prescription Druggist Schenectady N.Y.: https://www.timesunion.com/business/article/Prescription-for-nostalgia-4772415.php
August 29, 2013 Times Union article, Prescription for Nostalgia, by Cameron J. Castan: https://www. timesunion.com/business/article/Prescription-for-nostalgia-4772415.php
Google AI: a division of Google dedicated to artificial intelligence
Editor: Read these other recent articles by John Savastio in the FOHBC.org Member Portal.
KU-8
$9,000
By Vern Huffstetler, Tim Adams and Joan Cabaniss
Whenwe were researching companies for the American Poison Bottles book, we struggled to find anything on the DP Co embossed on the KU-8 DP Coffin poison bottle. Luckily, Joan Cabaniss had a bottle with a faded label. Joan, Tim Adams, and John Clifford used a magnifying glass and direct sunlight to make out the “Drugs Product Company, Lehn and Fink.” Our internet searches did not yield much information on the Drug Products Company or its affiliation with Lehn and Fink. We were able to find a couple of letterheads, a token, and a matchbook cover, but not much else. We did find some good history on the Lehn and Fink Products Company and told their story in the book. Even though the trail seemed cold, our natural curiosity would not allow this to be the end of the story. Beth, my brilliant and tenacious wife, joined me in sifting through trade journals, periodicals, and genealogical sites to piece together the story we share with you today.
The Drug Products Company was the vision of Harry Noonan (April 9, 1877 – February 1, 1948). Harry began his career in the pharmaceutical industry at only 15 years of age as a messenger
KU-8
Shape: Coffin
Colors: Cobalt blue, Amber Size: 3”, 4 3/4”, 7”
Rarity: 4 (Small Cobalt), 5 (Other sizes and Amber)
Description: BIM. Four corners of the coffin have star protrusions. Front is embossed with a skull and crossbones and “DP CO.” Both sides are embossed “Poison.” Base is plain.
KU-9
Shape: Coffin
Colors: Amber, Lime green
Size: 3”
Rarity: 5 (Extremely Rare)
Description: BIM. Much like KU-8, the four corners of the coffin have star protrusions. However, front is not embossed. Base is plain.
in the office of Norwich Pharmacal, a company known for packing Mercury Bichloride in coffin-shaped bottles. He advanced through roles of increasing responsibility, serving as a packer, shipping clerk, bookkeeper, general office assistant, foreman of the shipping, order, and stock department, and foreman of the private formula department at the home office in Norwich, New York. His dedication culminated in his appointment to the Office and Sales Manager of the New York City office. Harry held that position for 13 years from 1901 to 1913. After 20 years of service, Harry resigned his position in January 1913 to organize the Drug Products Co. at 230-234 West 17th Street, New York, NY.
The Drug Products Company established a reputation as a
progressive manufacturer of high-quality, ethical medical preparations. The term “ethical” in this context meant that a prescription from a physician was required to obtain their product. Ethical drug manufacturers were the opposite of patent drug manufacturers, who were often selling dangerous drugs to the public. Although the Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906 had made significant progress toward requiring drug companies to list the contents on labels, some companies were still putting dangerous medicines in the hands of the public. The years surrounding World War I marked a period of transition to more modern pharmaceutical practices. The Drug Products Co. was helping lead the way. Harry led by eliminating disease names from all of DP Co.’s preparations and urging other companies to adopt this important standard. Although it initially met with stiff opposition, the industry eventually followed suit. As a strictly ethical manufacturer, DP Co. chose to advertise responsibly, reaching physicians through trade journals and by distributing calling cards during in-person visits.
In 1913 and 1914, accidental poisonings and suicides related to mercury bichloride were tragically common. Mercury bichloride antiseptic tablets were meant to be mixed with water or alcohol to produce an antiseptic wash for the care of wounds as well as the open sores related to Syphilis. This sexually transmitted disease was referred to as “Lues” in the period and was considered the third plague. It reached epidemic proportions among the soldiers on the Western Front of the Great War. If the tablets were confused with oral medicine and swallowed, the results were often fatal. There was much debate in Congress, the American Pharmaceutical Association (APA), and other organizations globally about safeguards to prevent these accidental poisonings. Some of the countermeasures considered included tablet and bottle shapes that would intrinsically warn the user of its deadly content. A couple of sources cite Harry Noonan as the originator of the coffin-shaped tablet for mercury bichloride. However, after he resigned, Norwich submitted a design patent application No. 801,748 under the name of William P. McNulty. In 1914, Norwich donated the patent to the American Pharmaceutical Association, with the hope that it would be adopted as a standard to help prevent accidental poisoning. Although no law was adopted in the United States, several companies adopted the coffin-shaped tablet, embossed with “POISON” on one side and the emblem of the skull and crossbones on the other. Nearly all companies that produced mercury bichloride packed them in a poison bottle.
By 1916, the Drug Product Co. had outgrown their initial location and moved to 48 West 4th Street, New York, NY. Har-
ry’s role in the company and his involvement in the American Pharmaceutical Association earned him considerable respect within the industry. He was elected and served as president of the APA for two consecutive terms, from 1919 to 1920. After his presidency, he continued to serve in leadership roles throughout the 1920s and 1930s, including the National Drug Trade Conference, the World Trade Conference on Narcotic Education, and as Chairman of Delegates on “Bottle Containers” for the American Drug Manufacturers Association. He was involved in passing laws preventing heroin from being manufactured and imported into the United States and other legislation involving the pharmaceutical industry during this period.
In December of 1920, Drug Trade Weekly announced the Drug Products Co. had taken possession of a handsome concrete building at 156 Meadow Street, Long Island City, NY. Harry Noonan considered less expensive locations in New Jersey but chose this site for ease of access for his New York City customers. The factory could be reached easily by subway, railroad, ferry, or trolley. This new facility had room for 40 people involved in manufacturing and a 12-person sales team with room for natural expansion. Harry stated, “We are proud of the healthy growth which the new plant shows and believe it will mean much to you as well. For in our new building, we shall find a greatly enhanced opportunity for rendering you full and efficient service. Let us have the opportunity of demonstrating the truth of this belief to you.” He also went on to say, “We believe that in labeling our preparations according to the recommendations of the Council on Pharmacy and Chemistry of the American Medical Association we are more than contributing our share toward the inhibition of self-medicating by the laity. We believe it is only a question of a short time before all houses dealing in pharmaceutical preparations will be forced to follow our lead.” The company expressed pride in its Pulvoids line of products, which would pulverize under the thumb, and Wafoids, a line of medicated candies for children.
The March 1926 edition of The Practical Druggist states that the Drug Products Co., Inc., located at 156 Meadow Street, Long Island City, NY, operates the largest laboratory in Greater New York. They also announced the hiring of some of the pharmaceutical industry’s finest into key positions within the company. M. D. Crichton was elected treasurer and a member of the board. William A. Hitch, chemist, bacteriologist, and pharmacist, was chosen as supervisor of the DP Co. Hyposols (Ampule) department. H. F. Kuhn was hired as Director of Sales. These men, with great experience, were preparing the DP Co. for continued growth. Since the move to the new location in 1920, the company had grown to 50 employees in the factory and 25 active salesmen.
The last time we found mention of Harry Noonan at the Drug Products Co. was in a 1942 meeting of the National Wholesale Druggists’ Association, which listed the Drug Products Co. at 26-32 Skillman Ave, Long Island City, NY, with Harry Noonan as President and General Manager, and his son, H. Richard Noonan as Vice-President and Sales Director, and his wife Elisabeth as Treasurer. Seeing these names together was a reminder of how deeply the Drug Products Co. was woven into the fabric of the Noonan family. However, a 1944 court case concerning the adulteration of medicine does not list any Noonan as part of the suit against the company. A December 11, 1946, New York Times article, “Drug Products Co. Officers Elected and Plans for Expansion Announced,” lists Joseph H. Moss as president and has no Noonan involved in the management team at that point. Manufacturing operations for both the Drug Products Co. and Purity Drug had moved to 2-16 Paulison Ave, Passaic, New Jersey.
Harry Noonan’s obituary in a 1948 Phoenix, Arizona newspaper, stated he retired from business in 1943. We also know this was a time period when the Lehn and Fink Co. was actively acquiring companies. Although we have not found the smoking gun, it is our opinion this is when they acquired the Drug Products Co. and kept the coffin-shaped poison bottle and tablets for mercury bichloride that Harry was involved with at Norwich and brought to the Drug Products Co. The Lehn and Fink Products Co. simply added their name to the label. However, this forced us to consider if poison bottles were still in use in 1943. A KS-2 poison bottle in my collection is sealed, contains blue coffin tablets
of mercury bichloride and is dated November 4th, 1944. This was also the transition period when treatment was changing to the newly introduced penicillin. With the side effects of mercury and the effectiveness of penicillin, this was likely the end of the poison bottles used to protect users from the dangers of mercury bichloride. Although we are unclear when the Drug Products Co. went defunct, we do know they were still advertising Pulvoids in 1955. It is possible they were still part of the Lehn and Fink Products Company when it was sold to Sterling Drug Company in 1966.
Harry Noonan was a natural leader involved in service to his community as well as the pharmaceutical industry. He was a member of the Special Service Bureau of the N.Y Police Dept., President of the Rotary Club of Long Island City, NY, active in the Chamber of Commerce of Queens, Chemist Club of NY, Westchester-Biltmore Country Club, Masonic Lodge, Shrine as well as the Drug and Chemists’ Square Club. After he retired in 1943 and moved to Phoenix, Arizona, Mr. Noonan was the chairman of the Red Cross and a member of the Phoenix Rotary Club, Arizona Club and the Phoenix Country Club. He truly led a life of service to his fellow man and set an example for others to follow. As poison bottle collectors, we will remember him as the man who utilized the fantastic DP Coffin Poison Bottle filled with his coffin-shaped tablets marked “POISON” and a skull and cross bones!
$1,000 June 2021 Glass Works Auctions #167
Lot 141: June 2021 · Glass Works Auctions “ST / DRAKE’S / 1860 / PLANTATION / X / BITTERS - PATENTED / 1862”, (Ring/Ham, D-108), New York, ca. 1862 - 1875, black olive amber color 6-log cabin, 10”h, smooth base, applied tapered collar mouth. Perfect condition, extremely bold impression, no wear or scratches. A very rare color and as dark as any we’ve sold! Also four heavy ‘beads’ are embossed on the base, something we have not seen in any other Drake’s! Dan Catherino Collection.
$2,400 November 2020 American Glass Gallery #121
$180 May 2012 American Glass Gallery #8 “ST / DRAKE’S / 1860 / PLANTATION / X / BITTERS - PATENTED / 1862”, (Ring/ Ham, D-105), New York, ca. 1862 - 1875, medium salmon pinkish puce 6-log cabin, 10”h, smooth base, applied tapered collar mouth. A 1/2” in diameter in-making chip extends from beneath the applied collar down into the neck. Pure puce color that looks great in any lightning.
Lot 185: ““S T / DRAKE’S / 1860 / PLANTATION / X / BITTERS - PATENTED / 1862”, 1862 - 1880. Medium-to-deep pinkish raspberry, cabin form with 6 logs above the label panel, applied sloping collar - smooth base, ht. 9 7/8”, near mint; (just the slightest trace of minor wear, and the embossing is a little weak in the upper shoulders as is not uncommon with this mold, otherwise perfect). R/H #D106. A gorgeous, rare, eye-appealing color that passes plenty of light, and having plenty of pink!
$14,000 September 2020 Glass Works Auctions
Lot 172: “ST / DRAKE’S / 1860 / PLANTATION / X / BITTERS - PATENTED / 1862”, (Ring/Ham, D-105), New York, ca. 1862 - 1875, medium moss green cabin, 9 7/8”h, smooth base, applied tapered collar mouth. Recently ‘picked’ at the ‘Elephant Trunk’ flea market in Connecticut (a favored venue of the ‘Flea Market Flip’ reality television show), and possibly only the second known example in this very unusual moss green color. In 1993 we auctioned the collection of Elmer Smith of Shelton, Washington. Lot 20 in that collection was at that time the only moss green Drake’s Plantation Bitters known to exist, it sold for $10,000!
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William Henry Bovee was born to James Bovee and Bellphame Scribner in New York, New York, on August 12, 1822. He was just six years old when his father died on January 31, 1828. James Bovee was a ship captain, often absent from home and making many trips from New York to the Mediterranean Sea. His mother did not remarry and raised her five children essentially on her own. Wm. H. was the second in birth order. He is first noted in the 1843 New York City Directory, dealing in groceries, and by 1845, he was dealing with “coffee and spice.” William married Elizabeth W. Marshall about 1843 in New York.
Enticed by the stories of newly discovered gold in California, Bovee left his home and family and arrived in San Francisco on August 27, 1849. He headed to the vicinity of Sutter’s Mill, the initial discovery site of gold, and had some luck, but the work proved to be a physical hardship. Bovee soon returned to Sacramento, where he opened a provisions store. Realizing that San Francisco was a better location for importing and selling goods, he returned to San Francisco by March 1850 and opened his Steam Coffee and Spice Mills. [Fig. 1]
Bovee soon partnered with Charles S. Brown in the coffee and spice business, operating under the name Brown & Bovee, which was terminated in July 1852. (Daily Alta California, August 1, 1852) Again, as a sole proprietor, Bovee wasted no time in championing his steam spice mill and also offered to grind just about anything for his customers. [Fig. 2]
Bovee sent for his wife and two children from New York in 1852 to begin their new life in the midst of the Gold Rush, arriving on the ship Empire. (Daily Alta California, August 16, 1852)
By 1855, Bovee began advertising his spices in half-pound glass containers.[Fig. 3] It is not documented whether they were the same bottles [Figs. 4a-c] that bear his name embossed, but this is possible. (Daily Alta California, July 11, 1855)
By Eric McGuire
Fig 1: William H. Bovee advertisement for his Steam Coffee and Spice
3: By 1855, Bovee first advertised his spices being sold in half-pound glass containers. It is not documented if they were the same bottles that are found with his name embossed, but this is possible. (Daily Alta California, July 11, 1855)
5: Advertisement “To the
and
Fig 6 & 6a: In 1859 Bovee had already taken on Ira Marden as a silent partner and then chose another partner in his business that was destined to become an important figure in the world of coffee. James A. Folger is a name that is still recognized today. (Daily Alta California, January 6, 1860)
Fig 7: This notice marks the last date that the Bovee & Co. spice bottle was made, which gives it an assumed production range of 1855 to 1860. It also indicates the first date that the embossed Marden & Folger spice bottle was produced. (Daily Alta California, December 17, 1860)
Fig 2: Bovee knew how to advertise effectively and was successful enough to do it in style. He used Parker’s 1852 San Francisco Business Directory for this impressive advertisement.
Fig 4c: “W. H. Bovee & Co. San Francisco” bottle in aquamarine glass.
In 1859, [Fig. 5] Bovee had already taken on Ira Marden as a silent partner and then chose another partner in his business, who was destined to become a significant figure in the world of coffee. [Fig. 6 & 6a] James A. Folger is a name that is still recognized today. (Daily Alta California, January 6, 1860)
Shortly after the establishment of San Francisco, the opposite side of the San Francisco Bay was “discovered” by a number of the inhabitants of the city. Oakland was soon established as a sort of gentrified community with large gardens and small farms. Bovee’s interest became documented with a small article in the Daily Alta California
“In Oakland, there are a number of elegant little places, cultivated in large fruit, berries and flowers. Of course, we could visit only a few. The first on our list was that of W. H. Bovee, near the bridge. It is a garden of four acres, very carefully and well cultivated in flowers, vines and dwarf fruit trees, of which last he has a number brought from France. Many of the vines are trained on trellis work. Among his apple trees is one from Russia. Mr. Bovee has had the place only a short time, but is rapidly embellishing it, and is preparing to build an elegant dwelling, and to ornament the gardens with bowers, a summerhouse, etc.”
(Daily Alta California, September 18, 1860)
It was not long, however, that Bovee grew weary of continuing in the coffee and spice mill business even though it was highly successful. [Fig. 7]
Bovee chose a completely different direction in his work life that seems somewhat incredulous. He decided to “retire” from his spice business, with his two partners taking over, under the new name of Marden & Folger. (Daily Alta California, December 17, 1860) Three months later, Bovee purchased the Contra Costa Laundry in San Francisco.
Another short-lived venture in Bovee’s playbook soon took place in the partnership with George C. Waller, a prominent San Francisco businessman. However, this time it makes even less sense. It was almost like Bovee couldn’t pass up something new, even though this one was mixed with the old. The new business of Bovee & Waller was “Jobbers and dealers in coffee, spices, etc., etc.” at 515 Front Street. The partnership notice also includes the sentence, “Where I shall be pleased to meet my former friends and patrons.” (Daily Alta California, April 11, 1861) It was almost as if it was a business for “old times’ sake.” There is no further record of this partnership, and it probably did not last long. Seemingly, as if he had nothing else to do, he was elected Mayor of Oakland in 1864.
It was not long before Bovee showed his hand in something that would eventually be a lucrative business for him. About a year after purchasing a laundry, Bovee advertised a ranch for sale
near Healdsburg, Sonoma County, California. [Fig. 8] However, he even started another laundry business in San Francisco in 1869, titled the La Gande Laundry Company (Sacramento Daily Union, August 7, 1869)
Along with his real estate ventures, Bovee also returned to the business that initially brought him to California, except this time it was not placer but hard rock mining. The Alta California noted of Bovee, “Mr. B. retired from the busy walks of a San Francisco mercantile life to his present field of operations about two years ago, carrying with him little or no experience in mining. His new adventure cost him the loss of many thousand dollars; but, nevertheless, he persevered against obstacles, a tithe of which would have discouraged men with less determination, gaining in knowledge of his business daily under the hard tuition of the only schoolmaster worth a rush, until now his success is most complete, in our judgment. With fifteen arastras and ten stamp batteries, he is handling about fifteen tons per day, and is yielding him on an average $30 per ton.” (Daily Alta California, May 30, 1867)
With continued success, especially in his real estate ventures, Bovee continued to diversify into areas that appeared unusual, including his Neptune and Mermaid Swimming Baths—the Mermaid for women and an adjacent Neptune for men. [Fig. 9] They were located on the bay front in the city of San Francisco.
By 1882, Bovee was partnered with Henry A. Cobb in the real estate and general auctioneering business at 321 Montgomery Street in San Francisco, styled as Cobb, Bovee & Co. (Daily Alta California, January 11, 1882). Cobb was a highly esteemed businessman in the wealthy California fraternity. The partners dissolved their relationship on February 19, 1883, and both continued in the real estate business, with Cobb specializing in auctions.
Continuing his real estate business, Bovee also became a director of the Marshall Mining Company of California, with his son-in-law, George D. Toy, who was also one of the five directors. (Daily Alta California, March 2, 1883). In an apparent move of benevolence, Bovee was one of eight individuals who incorporated the California Life and Accident Association of San Francisco, which also included his son-in-law, George D. Toy, as a director. “It has no capital stock, but is formed for the purpose of providing substantial aid and furnishing support to the families of deceased or disabled members.”(Sacramento Daily Union, October 30, 1883) How this corporation actually
functioned was not explained, but later advertisements indicate it was simply a life and endowment insurance company. In 1886, its name was changed to the California Life and Endowment Association. (Daily Alta California, December 22, 1886) It was later dissolved, along with a long list of other similar companies that neglected to keep sufficient funds on hand to meet their increasing commitments. The problem was, “There is no law to prevent the existence of these societies in this State. They do not come under the head of insurance companies and are not subject to the investigation of the Insurance Commissioner, section 451 of the Code, taking them quite out of his supervision.” They were all determined to be based on false financial principles. (Daily Alta California, October 4, 1890)
By 1884, Bovee was still firmly entrenched in the real estate business and also assumed the role of auctioneer (Daily Alta California, March 4, 1884). He undoubtedly saw the value in such a venture, as he must have worked closely with auctioneers in the realm of real estate. It was like he just needed a little more excitement in his life, so he added auctioneering to his repertoire.
By 1885, Bovee’s primary business of real estate became a family affair. “W. H. Bovee, George D. Toy and H. P. Sonntag have associated themselves for carrying on a real estate business, in which the several departments of buying, selling and renting of properties will be carried on, in connection with auction offerings, which latter are to be made an attractive feature of the partnership. Premises have been secured on the ground floor of the Lick House.” (Daily Alta California, May 11, 1885) Both Toy and Sonntag were married to Bovee’s daughters. For the next several years, Bovee, Toy, and Sonntag became one of the most successful real estate companies in San Francisco. In January 1887, the youngest partner, Henry P. Sonntag, left the firm, which continued under the same name. (Daily Alta California, January 4, 1887)
“One who is contented with what he has done will never become famous for what he will do. He has lain down to die”
W. H. Bovee’s final business venture was in association with the Alila Land Company, organized to acquire land at the town site of Alila, Tulare County, California. He became a director of the corporation in 1890 (Daily Alta California, February 13, 1890). Originally a train stop on the Southern Pacific Railroad, the name was changed to Earlimart in 1910.
William Henry Bovee’s storied and interesting life came to an end on May 14, 1894. [Fig. 10] Several notices of his death appeared in newspapers throughout the West, with some variations in the information provided. Included below is one example.
Perhaps Bovee’s philosophy of life could be summed up in his own statement printed in 1880. “One who is contented with what he has done will never become famous for what he will do. He has lain down to die” (Oakland Tribune, March 11, 1880)
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Exa mined through one retailer over many decades in ten steps.
The inspiration for this article comes from the wonderful website on identifying antique bottles operated by the Society for Historical Archeology (SHA) and hosted by the Bureau of Land Management. This site carefully examines and details the many facets that weave a compelling story about glass bottles by teasing out stories of their production. One of their pages posts two “Grove’s Tasteless Chill” bottles and examines the various traits of the bottles, which, when considered collectively, offer a fairly accurate estimate of when the bottles were made. We have assembled six bottles from the same pharmacist and will share the results of our study, which will help establish the foundation for how we have arrived at each bottle’s approximate manufacturing date. We hope that this exercise will do more than simply come up with a date; rather, it will reveal better ways for you to understand and value antique bottles in general. It is also fun.
Fig. 1: These are the six “Grove’s Tasteless Chill Tonic” bottles, and we have assembled them from left to right in order of oldest to most recent. Let’s begin our discussion starting from the bottom of each bottle’s base.
Fig. 2:
1. In this photo, please note that all of the bottles have cup-shaped bases, which easily place them after the Civil War (1865). The scar comes from the Automatic Bottle Machine (ABM), which leaves this residual imprint. This makes sense since Edwin Wiley Grove began marketing his “Tasteless Chill Tonic” in 1885. One year later, Grove would assemble a group of investors to establish the Paris Medicine Company. Both his name and the medicine company are embossed on these bottles, except for the one on the far right, which we’ll discuss in greater detail later in this article.
2. Additional inspection of the bases reveals that the first bottle on the left has no “Owen’s Scar,” which is a circular impression on the base ranging from 1 3/8 to 2 inches. Bottles with this scar date from approximately 1903 to 1940. The next four bottles have the scar, so that would initially suggest the bottle furthest on the left without the scar as the oldest, likely before 1903, when the earliest bottles without the Owen’s Scar would appear. It is plausible that the bottle on the left might have been one of the earliest used by Grove. The bottle furthest to the right also has no Owens Scar. Taken alone, this would indicate that it was manufactured before 1903, but you’ll notice a maker’s mark on the base which provides additional evidence that dates it sometime after 1940, when ABM no longer imprinted that circular scar on the base.
Fig. 3:
3. Another point to consider is that bottles three through six all have maker’s marks. The third bottle has an “N” (Port Glass Co., Belleville, Illinois, 1902-1910). The fourth bottle has the Owen-Illinois logo (1929-1954). So, estimating the approximate age begins to reveal important evidence as we discover some hard facts, such as maker’s marks, which establish a better-defined range of dates for these bottles. It becomes a bit more interesting with the fifth bottle, which features the classic Owens-Illinois mark (1929-1954), and the last has an embossed “N” enclosed in a square border, indicating it was manufactured by Obear-Nester Glass Company (1915-1980). The fifth bottle has an Owens Scar, indicating it was made sometime before 1940. The sixth bottle does not, meaning it
was manufactured after 1940, considering its manufacturer. That alone should answer the question of how to place these last two bottles in chronological order.
4. Two additional traits to observe are that both bottles on the far left (Fig. 2) have a heavily weighted base with uneven glass and seed bubbles. This makes the bottle somewhat crude, reflecting the earlier glass-blowing techniques used when these bottles were made. The third bottle shows no bubbles and exhibits a well-balanced amount of glass throughout, which is quite exceptional. The fifth bottle, second from the far right, though much more recent, does have a few tiny seed bubbles. If looking purely at bubbles, the third bottle from the left with no bubbles would seem to be the more recent, but that is precisely why, when estimating a date, you must consider as many traits as possible. For now, evidence suggests that the two furthest bottles to the left are indeed older, while bottles three and four to the right are more recent. Bottles five and six are later, purely because they have external threaded closures (1920s-present). Not until bottle six do we find the best example of using a proportionate amount of glass without any excess.
5. Moving further up towards the shoulder, the bottle to the far left exhibits something easily missed—air vents (18801890) (Fig. 4). These are very tiny bumps that can be easily overlooked, but you can feel them if you know what and where to look. Bottle one on the far left has four symmetrically spaced tiny air vents on the shoulder, both front and back. These vents would permit gases to escape from the mold-forming process. If trapped, gases cause an uneven bed of air pockets, resulting in a wavy finish that resembles what is often referred to as a “whittled” effect. In fact, these types of bottles are even referred to as whittled bottles. Some believe that whittled effects can also be caused by cold molds used earlier in the day’s run. When the hot, molten glass comes into contact with the cool steel mold, it can produce a gas, resulting in a wavy finish.
6. Bottles one and two on the right (Fig. 5) employ slug plates. These are interchangeable
5
plates that glass manufacturers would use on shorter bottle runs. Using slug plates allowed manufacturers the benefit of combining various short orders to fill a full day’s worth of molten glass by simply swapping out the slug plates for each order. This would also suggest that the two bottles to the left were manufactured earlier in Grove’s development, when he was starting and didn’t have a larger market share. The latter two bottles to the right are proprietary bottles that incorporate the complete mold dedicated to only one customer. This implies that Grove took the added expense and time to create a mold that only he could use. When his proprietary bottle mold was being used, it would likely be for a much larger order. Again, this would suggest that the first two bottles to the left are earlier examples in Grove’s career.
7. Now, inspecting the side seams indicates that the bottle to the left (Fig. 6) is mouth-blown or “blown in mold” (BIM) since the side seam stops short of the finish (top) where a tooled finish
6
was applied (1870-1910). Additionally, when discussing the side seam, the bottle to the far left (Fig. 1) has excess flashing, creating a rather rough seam. The other five bottles have seam marks that run up to and over the lip, indicating that they were produced in an ABM. This provides further evidence that the Automatic Bottle Machine produced these bottles since they all have the Owen’s Scar on their bases. One interesting note is that the second bottle to the left exhibits two offset side seams, suggesting that the parison mold created one seam (also known as a “ghost” seam), followed by the blow mold, which finished the bottle, creating a second, more prominent seam (1900s-1920s). The last item concerning seams is that bottle six shows a different style, one emulating (rather poorly in our opinion) the strap-sided seam commonly found on some liquor bottles. That change in style provides additional evidence to support our consideration of bottle six as the most recent in the group.
8. The closures for the bottles are as follows: the four to the left (Fig. 7) have a cork finish, and the two on the far right have external-threaded tops (early 1920s to present) (Fig. 1). Cork dominated the production of medicine, food, ink, and some non-alcoholic beverages before 1930. Obviously, the two on the far right are the more recent, with their threaded lips.
9. One fact worth noting is color. Bottles one, two, four, and five
are aqua in color, while bottles three and six are distinctly clear. (Fig. 1) What we find somewhat odd is that bottle six has a clear color with a hint of straw, suggesting that it was manufactured after WWI (1917) when glass manufacturers stopped using magnesium to scrub molten glass clear of color. The primary source for magnesium was Germany, and trade was restrictive after the war. Bottles with magnesium would eventually turn purple when exposed to ultraviolet light. After WWI, bottle manufacturers began using selenium to scrub color from the molten glass to create clear glass. Bottle three has a slight straw tint, indicating a different formula that confuses us when considering its chronological placement. Again, never age a bottle by relying on a single element alone. Ask as many questions as possible to discern the approximate age of the bottle.
8
10. Our final observation concerns bottle two (Fig. 8) While machine-made, it does have a rather crude neck (and remember that this bottle has an odd finish, which produces an offset of “ghost” seams). We would argue that this machine-made bottle is a very early example of the Owens ABM. Unlike the next two on the right (Fig. 1), the neck lacks well-defined lines and seems crudely uneven. Bottles three and four have well-defined necks demonstrating advancements in the ABM process. Even the oldest one on the far left (Fig. 1), which was mouth-blown, has a better neck, revealing that older bottles can reflect better results when crafted by a gifted glass blower.
Armed with these facts and observations before us, we can begin to assemble our findings and form a decision based on empirical evidence and theoretical observations.
Bottle would date from approximately 1890-1900. Lacking a maker’s mark, without an Owens Scar (before 1900), mouthblown, slug plated with air vents (1880-1890). The glass contains seed bubbles and a cork top closure. Tooled finish (18701910) with crude flashing found on the side seam.
Bottle would date from 1900-1920s. Early slug-plated machine made with the Owens Scar (1903-1940) and blown with an interesting early offset ghost seam (1900-1920s). There are no maker’s markings, although the glass features seed bubbles and is sealed with a cork-top closure.
Bottle would date from 1920 to 1940. The base displays both the Owens Scar (1903-1940) and a maker’s mark of “N” (Port Glass 1929-1954). Proprietary mold, no bubbles in the glass, well-proportioned with a cork-top closure. ABM-manufactured (1903-1940) with a side seam from the base up to the lip. It also has a slight “straw tint” indicating that it was manufactured after WWI.
Bottle would date from 1929 to 1940. The base displays both the Owens Scar (1903-1940) and an Illinois Glass Co. (19291954) maker’s mark. Proprietary mold, very tiny bubbles in the glass, well-proportioned with a cork-top closure. ABM-manufactured (1903-1940) with a side seam from base to lip.
The final two examples differ in minor but significant ways. Both bottles and six have external threads, which mark a distinct change from the previous four examples (1920-present). The latter was manufactured with an embossed design only on the shoulder to support a paper label on the body, while bottle five has both an embossed side and a slick side that could support a paper label on one side. With that information alone, you might think that a bottle only supporting a paper label would be newer than one with one side embossed. To find the best answer, you will need to ask more questions.
Bottle five would date from 1929 to 1940. The base of this bottle displays the Owens-Illinois trademark “oval-diamond” logo, which dates from 1929 to 1954. It does have a cup-shaped base with an Owens Scar (1903-1940), but in all honesty, we think these two bottles are classic overlapping bottles that may have been produced approximately at the same time. Both have external threads for the finish (1920s-present). The only reason we might date bottle five earlier would be that its maker’s mark comes from a manufacturer that dates back to a much earlier period and had a limited run from 1929 to 1954. The fact that it is embossed on one side like the previous four bottles tends to keep it, in our opinion, leaning towards an earlier example.
Bottle six would date from 1940 to 1941. The base displays an “N” embossed within a square frame indicating that it could have been produced between 1915 and 1980 at the Obear-Nester Glass Co. The external thread makes it possible that it was produced after 1920. Additionally, the bottle does not exhibit the Owens Scar, which is typically found on bottles manufactured between 1903 and 1940 or later. The bottle itself is very similar to one posted by the National Museum of American History, which dates it from 1938 to 1941. That seems to be clearly supported by the evidence presented.
We believe what makes collecting—collecting anything—is the value you receive not simply from the object, but from the knowledge you acquire that teaches you how to ask the right questions, which makes the object more intimate and animated.
Understanding a painting, automobiles, music—or in this case a bottle—makes the item more valuable, not necessarily in terms of money, but in being able to understand its history, context, and chronological placement.
So, by all means, collect while learning and enjoying the stories hidden in every bottle. That is where you will discover their true value.
Growing up in the 1970s, everyone associated Milwaukeeans with the hit pop culture TV show, Happy Days. Set in the 1950s Midwest, the 70s sitcom followed Richie Cunningham (Ron Howard), his unlikely best friend, Arthur Fonzarelli (Henry Winkler), and their family and friends through the foibles of life. Happy Days is most notably commemorated by a life-size bronze Fonzie, thumbs frozen up as if saying, “Ayyyyy,” adorning Milwaukee’s downtown river walk.
Long before fictional Richie Cunningham befriended the Fonz, Milwaukee’s very real William Cunningham established himself as one of Wisconsin Territory’s earliest druggists. William Cunningham operated his “Wholesale and Retail Druggist” store from 1844 through 1849 at 151 East Water Street, Milwaukie (sic), Wisconsin Territory.
By Steve Libbey
William’s operations are most notably commemorated by the handful of incised stoneware jugs scattered about in even fewer collections, and now by one, “inconceivable,” new discovery.
Cunningham, a well-known druggist in the newly flourishing city, used the term “druggist” loosely. Advertising in various Milwaukee newspapers, Cunningham offered “Jaynes’ medicines,” spirits, turpentine, rice, flour, “Vaccine Mattee,” “McAllister's Cold Pressed Oil,” pure wines and spirits, ground ginger, small scales and weights, “Hungarian Balsam of Life,” bronze, (all colors and qualities), glue, Arabian oil, hops, cassia, paints, fish oil, vermacilla, strychnine (a sure death for wolves), garden and field seeds, soda crackers, glass candle sticks, bottled soda water, (put up in egg-shaped bottles, (egg shaped? Would you, “Sit on it, ayyyyyy”), “Hubbard’s Pills,” “Christie’s Galvanic,” rosin, saleratus, glass lan-
Above left: Life-size bronze Fonzie, thumbs frozen up as if saying, “Ayyyyy,” adorning Milwaukee’s downtown river walk.
Left: Early and extremely rare stoneware jugs. Both left and right jugs incised “W.M. Cuningham Druggist 151 East Water St. Milwaukie WT.” Note the spelling of “Milwaukie” and “Cuningham” with one “n.”
Courtesy of the Wisconsin Stoneware website.
Right page: A quick appraisal of the remaining bottles revealed a very rare “Munzinger & Gerlinger Milwaukie” beer, a “George Benz Minnesota” whiskey, a “Tippecanoe” bitters, an extra-large “Warner Safe Cure London,” and one dark green-teal round-bottom bottle.
The origin of collecting Wisconsin soda and mineral water bottles dates to 1845 when William M. Cunningham, a Milwaukee druggist, expanded into producing and bottling soda water. Up until now there were no known surviving Cunningham bottles. Milwaukee, the fastest growing Wisconsin Territory “metropolitan” area of the day, in the Wisconsin frontier, quickly spawned more of Wisconsin’s earliest bottlers.
The earliest Wisconsin soda–mineral water bottles were manufactured through a process whereby the glass blower used an iron rod pushed into the base of a bottle after popping the bottle out of the mold to hold the super heated glass as the artisan manufactured the blob top. These “pontiled” sodas are some of the most beautiful relics of Wisconsin’s past. The cobalt blues, the big kicked up pontils and the extremely crude lip finishes make them prized specimens for Wisconsin antique bottle collectors.
terns, mortars, “McMun’s Compound Balsam Lungwort,” watch oil, “Bullard's Oil Soap,” trusses and pretty much anything else a frontiersman might need. Cunningham even published and distributed 4,000 free Milwaukee Medical Advisers annually, containing “A number of recipes particularly useful for families and others.”
William was described as a man of great energy and character, standing at above-average height, with a slight build, a thin, beardless face, dark brown hair, and dark blue eyes. Similarly, Jon Steiner, our fourth protagonist, is above average height. Unlike Jon’s calm, peaceful demeanor, Cunningham, a man who walked quickly and erect, was of a nervous temperament. Both Steiner and Cunningham share soft, pleasant voices, a great love for books, a fondness for music, an appreciation for fine arts and crafts, AND unimpeachable character.
A man of business acumen, William Cunningham built up a substantial business in a few short years.
Jon Steiner recently left his career in welding/metal fabrication production management to pursue his passion—buying and selling vintage and antique Americana. Jon’s lifelong accumulated knowledge, eye for quality, and uncanny knack for finding rare and exceptional pieces of glass, stoneware, paper, textiles, paintings, statuary, and everything else assured his successful life upgrade. Jon’s wares for sale in his growing business rival Cunningham’s.
Somewhere between home and the auction, Jon passed through the seven levels of the Candy Cane Forest, through the Sea of Swirly Twirly Gum Drops, arriving, as if by magic, at the Stade Auction Center.
Left: Jon Steiner recently left his career in welding and metal fabrication production management to pursue his passion—buying and selling vintage and antique Americana.
This story began simultaneously one hundred and eighty years ago and last week. In Jon’s ceaseless pursuit of resale inventory, he spotted an upcoming auction with box lots of what appeared to be high-quality antique glass, including pontiled scroll flasks and a sample size of “Chapman and Gore Chicago” whiskey. Jon put the auction on his list of stops, hopeful that maybe, just maybe, something for his collection would turn up.
Somewhere between home and the auction, Jon passed through the seven levels of the Candy Cane Forest, through the Sea of Swirly Twirly Gum Drops, arriving, as if by magic, at the Stade Auction Center.
By the time Jon arrived, a hobnail-cornered bitters bottle, in light amber, had disappeared...stolen! A quick appraisal of the remaining loot revealed the aforementioned bottles, a very rare “Munzinger & Gerlinger Milwaukee” beer, a “George Benz Minnesota” whiskey, a “Tippecanoe” bitters, an extra-large “Warner Safe Cure London,”AND one dark green/teal round-bottom bottle. In the afterglow of the candy cane forest and sea of swirly twirly gum drops, Jon dared to hope it might be good. Good, as in an embossed torpedo from out east.
Picking it up, Jon read “SODA WATER.” It's embossed! Spinning it around, he was stunned, “Wm. M. CUNNINGHAM.” Inconceivable! Jon's extensive collections feature the earliest and rarest Wisconsin stoneware including two, “Wm. M. CUNINGHAM DRUGGIST EAST WATER ST. MILWAUKIE WT,” jugs. Jon found a unicorn!
Waiting for the bottle box lots to hit the auction table, Jon witnessed “angry elves” repeatedly bang bottles together, even cracking the Warner’s Safe Cure, London. Only one other person recognized the unicorn. Jon was determined to travel back home through the Candy Cane Forest and Sea of Swirly Twirly Gum Drops, unicorn in hand, and so he did.
The fictitious pop culture Cunningham family has entertained millions of people for years. Jon’s soda POP culture reality is inarguably the oldest Wisconsin soda bottle and a colorful minty gem. What else remains to be rediscovered?
The wonder doesn’t end there. Over the course of his five years in business before, "Death of exhaustion," William Cunningham advertised,
"BOTTLED SODA WATER – by this arrangement persons can have the delightful beverage served to them anywhere they choose. Soda Water prepared in this manner is equal if not superior to that from the fountain. Put up in half pint egg shaped bottles. Price 50 cts per doz. Bottles or 6 cts each (and the bottles subject to return when empty) Prepared and sold by W'm. M. CUNNINGHAM, Apothecary and Druggist, June 9. Martins' Buildings."
Pop (Soda Water) culture has never been so interesting or entertaining. Like so many of the unbelievable finds of our lifetimes, this one made a stop on the way home. While we didn't stick to the four main food groups— candy, candy canes, candy corns, and syrup—we did celebrate with a sip of fine old bourbon. It was an absolute honor and privilege to be one of the first people to handle and appreciate Jon's treasure after it had been forgotten for the better part of two centuries.
For those envious, “For the umpty-umpth time, life isn’t fair, it's just fairer than death, that's all.”
Left: Illustration of W. M. Cunningham’s Apothecary and Druggist establishment at 151 East Water Street, Milwaukie, WT. “Drugs, Paints, Oils &c. Wholesale & Retail.”
Below: Newspaper notice. “A New Thing! –Soda Water put up in Bottles!!! Offered at the low price of 75 cents per dozen bottles. Prepared and sold by Wm. M. Cunningham.
C o l o r ? It depends...
Ralph Finch tries to find a word to explain man’s age-old problem...and the problem is answering when your wife says, “Are you crazy? You are wearing that shirt with those pants? Are you color blind?” And all you can do is stand there...and shrug your shoulders.
Since the first bottle was blown, and certainly since the first rare bottle was offered for sale at auction, this debate has been a common topic. What color is that bottle? If it is “colorless,” that usually doesn’t require much debate. Same with “black glass.” Men don’t have much of an issue here...after all, “black glass matters.”
Ask a man what color his shoes are, and usually the answer comes in one of two words.
But ask a woman what shade her lipstick is? Well, she rightfully may take a while to answer. After all, a maker of lipstick recently said it offers more than 200 shades, including even textures. (My favorites are “Powderkiss” and “Love Me”).
Colored glass? Major collector Robert Strickhart of New Jersey commented on one of the many confusing facets of glass, “There is the geography aspect of color identification. For example, if you are on the buyer side of a bottle sales table, the bottle is best described as aqua. If you are a few feet on the other side of the table, the seller side, that same bottle might be described as light sapphire or faint cobalt.
“On the more serious side of this, my real difficulty is lighting.
So me collectors see red describing bottles.
I have encountered bitters barrels that appear pink in natural sunlight and have an almost grey tone with artificial lights.
“LED upgrades to the bottle cabinets have improved upon this phenomenon, but glass color continues to be a mystery in some cases. Describing a bottle as ‘gasoline puce’ often perplexes me. Few people rarely even see gasoline, as it goes directly from the pump to the tank. In fact, some gasolines appear yellow and others pink, depending on refiners and chemical formulation.”
Then, Robert added the factor of human frailty:
“Tommy McCandless, who had some of the most wonderfully colored historical flasks, was in fact red-green colorblind. This color blindness kept him from becoming part of the Army Air Corps during WWII.
“He’d come over to my house the night before a show and ask me to describe the color of a flask so he could price it correctly before putting it on his table.”
However, let’s return to the issue of colored glass. Go back through back issues of the great glass auctions, like John Pastor’s American Glass Gallery, or...
Last March 24, Jim Hagenbuch, in one of his great Glass Works Auctions, struggled with Lot 91, an 1800-1820 scent bottle. It was described (edited) as, “Lot 91, ‘Unicorn’ type scent bottle, fiery opalescent...a rare coloration...that changes color depending on the light viewed in.”
So what color is it? (The high bidder, for $550???, can now call it whatever he wants.)
But here is an example of just how serious the challenge that glass auctions face, and it goes back to one of my favorite articles. It appeared in the February 1980 issue of the Antique Bottle World magazine. The article was titled, Some bottles are chameleons, and I think it bears repeating. It involved Norman Heckler, a man never at a loss for words, and that was proven when he auctioned the famous Charles Gardner collection in 1975. Heckler had a challenge, but it only reflected the problem George and Helen McKearin recognized in their 1941 tome, American Glass The McKearins even quoted the challenge faced by a famous curator of birds who came up with 1,115 different shades of bird colors.
Heckler made a gallant attempt to describe all the colors and shades in the Gardner sale, including 13 different shades of olive green in the auction’s 172 olive green bottles, as well as 64 shades of “just green” alone. (I can name one: Kermit.) In total, Norman (Heckler) used 205 colors, hues, tones, shades, and tints...
Can you name 64 shades of “just green”? Norman did. And I especially enjoyed his list of amber bottles, including, “light amber, clear brilliant, brilliant shaded, deep, dark, dense, golden, light golden, brilliant golden, brilliant seedy, copper, red, puce, yellow, smoky, deep red, honey, olive, brilliant olive...”
And as late as Jim Hagenbuch’s May 12, 2025 auction, Jim dealt with describing the otherwise common word “amber.” He used “medium golden amber, medium golden yellow amber, yellowish amber, deep reddish amber, deep yellowish, golden yellowish amber, red amber, yellowish olive amber, and deep olive amber. My favorite, on a circa 1839 eagle flask, was a “deep yellowish ‘old’ amber,” as opposed to “new” amber. Color me confused.
A few other collectors have added their two cents’ worth of coloring what is basically a glorified “amorphous” (non-crystalline) solid.
Bob Strickhart adds, “The Gardner sale was in 1975, pretty close to 50 years ago. That’s a long time to remember important stuff, and, as you know, time alters memory, as well as most things in life.
“Louise Luther was hired by Bob Skinner the year before the Gardner auction. She had the miserable job of working with me in developing a catalog that was promised by Bob Skinner to Charlie Gardner.
“At that time, most cataloging was done by hand. The bottles had been spread out on many shelves in the storage area in a back room in the gallery. I stood in the aisles, dictating the catalog information to LoLu (Louise), who sat at a small desk and wrote the information as I spoke (it seemed to me it was shorthand). She was also responsible for the development of the catalog from that point on, with the help of a gentleman Bob Skinner had hired.
“Of course, color was part of that procedure. With all the bottles laid out, we quickly realized that there were hundreds of different colors, many in each of the color groups. Oh, boy!! From that point, we would compare the color of the bottle we were working on with those in the same color group. Yes, we fussed and argued and came up with what we thought was the best description. Yes, we went back to some already ‘completed’ lots and changed the color name, particularly after cataloging a good number and getting ‘our feet wet’ with our thinking on the color subject.
“At one point, Louise and I could not come up with the color of an item. We laughed at ourselves and the whole process, took a coffee break, and Louise announced we should call the bottle’s color aventurine. Thinking, (why not!), we had spent enough time on this bottle, let’s do it. At that time and for many years later, I thought that Louise had made up that name and was just playing with the potential buyers of the bottle and with me.
“We still struggle with colors, as do most collectors, and we have always known it was one of the most important characteristics of a bottle at auction. The challenges that auctioneers, buyers, sellers, and collectors have with color names have not gone away.”
Thank you, Norm. And, this last spring, at auction, I found these confusing (and edited) descriptions:
“THE FATHER OF HIS COUNTRY” / BUST OF WASHINGTON. Brilliant yellow-topaz. A very rare, eye-appealing color, gorgeous variegated shading, an exceptional example, eye candy for the shelf.”
And:
“A very rare and unusual color. In addition to milky aquamarine moonstone, the color has also been described as opalescent aquamarine. Regardless, a fantastic flask and a most unusual color.”
And these:
“A light-to-medium citron green.”
“Clear, light yellowish olive amber, almost a straw-amber with a strong olive tone.”
“Light-to-medium yellowish olive amber.”
And, finally, Rhea Mansfield Knittle, in her 1927 Early American Glass, made this admission of the effect time, sun, different light, etc., can have on glass:
“If you do not like the color of the bottle you bought...give it a chance…it might change to a color you like.”
Comments, using colorful words, can be sent to rfinch@mi.rr.com
[Left] I forwarded this letter to Joe Gourd of a stampless cover I just purchased. I’d never heard of these bitters and am not familiar with the Fogg Brothers of Boston, Massachusetts. The letter is dated 1853.
– Charlie Martin, Jr.
Editor: New RH listing: S 105.35 Sickel’s Wine Bitters, Fogg Brothers Boston, Massachusetts. Correspondence in the form of a folded letter dated October 21, 1853, Philadelphia ordering 50 boxes of Sickel’s Wine Bitters.
[Left] For the Bennington collector. Lot #1 was described as a “Bennington Lion Figure,” flint enamel figure of a lion on base with ball, delicate tail, protruding tongue and the classic “coleslaw” lion’s mane, Bennington, Vermont, 1849-1852. Underside with impressed patent date and maker’s mark, “Lyman Fenton & Co.”, ht. 9 ¼ inches, length 10 ¾ inches. Fine condition.
Estimate: $2,000 - $4,000 – Norman C. Heckler & Co.
[Above] Texas archaeologists uncover treasure-filled tomb of ancient Mayan ruler in Belize. The tomb of a Mayan king has been discovered by Texas archaeologists in Caracol, Belize, marking the first time researchers in the ancient city have found a ruler’s identifiable resting place. Caracol dates back to 900 B.C., according to the Caracol Archaeological Project, and lasted centuries until the collapse of the Maya civilization in A.D. 800-900. At its peak, the city had a population of over 100,000 people. Today, the city is the largest Mayan archaeological site in Belize, the project said. The pottery basal flange bowl contains a scene showing two bound prisoners. The coatimundi lid is eroded in the front but contains a portrait of the Maya god of trade, Ek Chuah, on its rear.
– University of Houston
[Left] Archaeologists found a 2,600-year-old clay seal that still had a fingerprint on it which may have belonged to Yeda‛yah, the son of a figure mentioned in the Hebrew Bible. The style of the writing on the seal dates the artifact back to the First Temple period 2,600 years ago. Before drivers licenses and social media handles, seals were a primary method of identification. They helped prevent theft, marked property, and showed ownership when they were bound to goods like wine and oil. For modern historians, seals are the perfect stamp (literally) of chronology in ancient studies. Ongoing excavations led by the Temple Mount Sifting Project (TMSP) in Jerusalem, Israel, revealed the clay seal.
– Popular Mechanics
[Left] This “Hermanus Germanys Infalliable Dyspepsia Cure (motif of Hermanus)
- Prepare for the U.S. / By L. and N. Adler Medicine Co. / Reading Pa. U.S.A.” is interesting in that all the known examples (about 10), were dug in June of 1976. They were found on the bank of the old Union Canal that parallels the Schuylkill River, in Reading, Pennsylvania. Over 100 broken examples were dug, but only a lucky ten, found near the top of the bank under a corrugated metal roof, survived.
– Glass Works Auctions, Premier Auction #185, Lot 146
Antique Bottle & Glass Collector
Read and see more in the FOHBC
[Left] It was a rainy day in Okinawa, Japan, where Beckylee Rawls lives with her husband. The weather was ideal for tidepooling, so the couple headed to a local spot known for its rich marine life when the tide goes out. Rawls, 29, says she often spots fascinating sea creatures there—crabs, fish and sea cucumbers that become temporarily trapped in the shallow pools until the tide rolls back in. But on this particular day, while exploring the pools, the project manager noticed something unusual: the top of a beautiful shell just barely visible through the sand in a small pocket of water. “Honestly, the only thing going through my head was, ‘That’s a pretty shell, let me take a closer look.’” Curious, Rawls bent down and picked it up with her bare hands. The shell was slightly cold from the water, and what caught her attention most was the intricate, almost mesmerizing pattern etched across its surface. She held it for about 30 seconds, capturing the moment on camera, turning it over in her palm and swishing it through the tidepool to rinse off the sand. But when she flipped it over, she noticed something inside—soft tissue, just barely visible. Something was alive. While she’d seen shells like this washed up on the beach before, this was the first time she had ever encountered a live cone snail. Startled, she gently placed it back into the tidepool. Then, as the couple was leaving, Rawls decided to reverse image search the shell. “That’s when I learned I might’ve just made the biggest mistake of my life,” she says. From that search, she discovered that the cone snail is considered the most dangerous shell in the world. She explains how, while the shell itself is harmless, it’s the venomous cone snail living inside that makes it so deadly. Despite its small size and beautiful appearance, the cone snail can deliver a venomous sting capable of paralyzing—or even killing—humans. Some species carry enough venom to kill multiple people, and there is no known anti-venom. By some miracle, Rawls wasn’t stung. “It’s even nicknamed the ‘Cigarette Snail’ because, according to urban legend, if it stings you, you won’t live long enough to finish a final cigarette,” she says. “That chilling reputation really put things into perspective.” – MSN.com
[Left] A recent virgin find from an antique shop in rural southwest Indiana. “XX PLANTATION BITTERS 1862 RIGHT SECURED 1863.” Probably 1863 and 1864. Rich, medium-to-deep amber shading to a honey amber through the corners, rectangular cabin form, applied sloping collar. Smooth base, ht. 9 ¼” Extremely rare! Similar to R/H #P108. An extreme rarity. Believed to be one of only four in mint, or near mint, condition (a fifth example has a repaired hole in the base). Note: per the Ring Ham book, the embossing on the reverse roof panel is: “PAN’T”. The book also notes that “PAN’T” is very faintly embossed. The embossing on this example is also light, but very definitely seems to be embossed, “RIGHT” (vs. “PAN’T”). If that is the case, it may be a unique example. Also, per the Ring-Ham book, Drake patented a rectangular 15 log bottle in 1862. Regardless, here is one that is very rarely offered for sale. One example was previously sold privately at $20,000. Don’t miss your opportunity on this one! – American Glass Gallery, Auction 41
[Left] Roman coin trove discovered. In 2016, the City Council of Tomares, Spain released photos of some of the 19 amphoras containing thousands of unused bronze and silver-coated coins dating from the end of the 4th century. Workers laying pipes in a southern Spanish park unearthed a 600-kilogram (1,300-pound) trove of Roman coins in what culture officials say is a unique historic discovery.
– The Seville Archaeological Museum
[Above] Dear Ferd, I recently added this trade card to my collection. It advertises Rogers Tonic Bitters in a large and small size (bottle?) along with a number of their other products. These bitters were manufactured by Rogers and Cooke of Knoxville, Tennessee. I could not find any further information. The card was copyrighted in 1881 by John Gibson, New York, NY.
Note the humorous little fish about to bite the rat’s tail in the lower right corner. Best wishes – Joe Gourd
SATURDAY
A collection of spectacular and inspiring photographs from around the world and around the web. Please feel free to submit your images for consideration.
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Antique Bottle & Collectibles Show 2025
November 7th &- 8th
Show Hours: Fri. 12-5, $15 Early Admission Sat. 9-2, Free Gold Country Fairgrounds & Event Center 1273 High St., Auburn, California
For show dealer applications, contact: Dan Bell (530) 305-8794 or Max Bell (530) 368-9495
Free advertising in each issue of Antique Bottle & Glass Collector (AB&GC). One free “WANTED” or “FOR SALE” ad in AB&GC per year each renewal. See page 72 for more info. DEALERS: Sell your bottles in the Antique Bottle & Glass Collector. Change the bottles each issue. Include your website in your ad to increase traffic to your site. Send all advertisement info to FOHBC Secretary, Alice Seeliger, N8211 Smith Road, Brooklyn, Wisconsin 53521 or best, email to: AliceSecretaryFOHBC@ gmail.com
FOR SALE: Quality bottles largely from the US, meticulously described and well-priced. Listings with images available on my High Desert Historic Bottle website at historicbottles.com. My email is on the website. Bill Lindsey, Chiloquin, Oregon. (11.01.26)
WANTED: Looking to buy high-end collections. I will travel to you for the right pieces. Call Dan at 207.632.8958 if you are thinking of selling. (09.25)
WANTED: Hobble skirt embossed Coca-Cola bottles: 1915s, 1923s, D-Patent’s 6 oz and 6 1/2 oz. Collector will buy or trade. Jim Georges, georges77@twcny.rr.com or 315.662.7729. (11.27)
WANTED: OWL DRUG bottles, tins, boxes, paper, anything from The Owl Drug Company. Marc Lutsko, Unit 6922, 2300 N. Harris Street, Helena, Montana 59604-7347, letsgo@ montanasky.net, 406.291.0861, Box 97, Libby, Montana 59923 TOP DOLLAR paid (01.1.26)
WANTED: Harley bottles of West Chester, Pa. and Philadelphia, Pa. The West Chester bottles (four) display either J. Harley, James Harley, Jas. Harley or E.M. Harley. The Phila. bottles (four) display Edwd. Harley, Schul (Schuylkill) 4th & Market St., Philada. or E. Harley, 802 Market St. or E. Harley, West Market St. or Edw. Harley, 1838 Market St., Phila. Bob Harley, Phone: 610.790.5520, rwh220@Yahoo.com (11-1-26)
WANTED: Hutchinson stoppers: Paying $1.50 cash each for those I can use. Send to Zang Wood, 1612 Camino Rio, Farmington, NM
87401. I will mail you back the bad stoppers, plus your postage cost to me. Strictly cash deal. (09.01.25)
WANTED: New Jersey collectors: Will pay a fair price for NJ Hutch. Anchor Bottling Co. Atlantic City, NJ embossed on Anchor in slug plate. If you have one and will sell, please contact Zang Wood, 1612 Camino Rio, Farmington, NM 87401, 505-327-1316 or zapa33-5l@msn. com with information and cost. (09.25)
WANTED: Earliest Singer Oil Bottle (pre-1860) embossed only with “I.M. Singer & Co. – New York” on the front. Send photo and price to Craig Solomonson, craig@solomonson.net (09.01.25)
WANTED: Milwaukee Pre-Prohibition back bar bottles and shot glasses. Greg Markovic, 262.408.3616, gcmarko@sbcglobal.net (11.01.26)
Early Sodas of Texas Austin, Belton, Corsicana, Denison, Fort Worth, Galveston, Hearne, Houston, Marshall, Mexia, Paris, Temple and Texarkana.
Early Sodas of Alabama Eufaula, Mobile, Montgomery and Tuscaloosa.
Early Georgia Sodas Atlanta, Augusta, Columbus, Macon, Savannah and Valdosta.
Early Sodas of The Carolinas Charleston, Columbia, Georgetown, Hilton Head Island, South Carolina. Statesville, Weldon, Wilmington, Wilson, Winston, North Carolina.
Earl y Sodas of Florida and Cuba Jacksonville, Key West, Ocala, Sanford and Havana.
Earl y Sodas of Mississippi Biloxi, Jackson, Meridian, Natchez and Vicksburg.
David Kyle Rakes email: barakes123@gmail.com website: bottlesandjugshistoricalbooks.com Sold as softbound book or digital PDF file. Visit w ebsite or contact David for more info.
FOHBC Sho-Biz is published in the interest of the hobby. Federation-affiliated clubs are indicated in red. Information on upcoming collecting events is welcome, but space is limited. Please send at least three months in advance, including telephone number to: FOHBC Sho-Biz, c/o Alice Seeliger, Advertising Coordinator, N8211 Smith Road, Brooklyn, Wisconsin 53521-9789; email: fohbcmembers@gmail.com; phone: 608.575.1128. Request event insurance and show ribbons two months in advance. Show schedules are subject to change. Please call before traveling long distances. All listings published here will also be published on the FOHBC.org website.
06 September 2025 – Castle Rock, Colorado
The 58th Anniversary Antique Bottle Collectors of Colorado Show, Douglas County Fairgrounds at Kirk Hall, 500 Fairgrounds Dr., Castle Rock, Colorado 80104. Early Bird Admission Sept. 5th at 8:00 am $10. General Admission: Saturday, 9:00 am to 3:00 pm, Free. More information: Fred Bjork, 719.310.8388, manfredbjork@ yahoo.com, antiquebottlecollectorsofcolorado.com, FOHBC Member Club
06 September 2025 – Seekonk, Massachusetts
The Little Rhody Bottle Club Tailgate Swap Meet starts at 8:00 am and ends at 2:00 pm. There is no set up fee and no admission fee. Bring as many tables as you want. Buy, sell, trade and keep what you make. Show Address: Leonard’s Antiques, 600 Taunton Avenue, (Rte #44) Seekonk, Massachusetts 02771, Contact Info: William Rose, 508.880.4929, sierramadre@comcast.net, FOHBC Member Club
07 September 2025 – Pekin, Illinois
Pekin Bottle Collectors Assoc. 55th Antique Bottle Collectors Annual Show & Sale, 8:30 am to 3:00 pm, Admission $2, Free Appraisals, Moose Lodge, 2605 Broadway Street, Pekin, Illinois, Contact Info: Daryl Weseloh, 309.264.9268, darylweseloh@gmail. com, FOHBC Member Club
13 September 2025 – Lebanon, Indiana Indianapolis Circle City Antique Bottle, Advertising and Antiques Show, Boone County Fairgrounds, 1300 E. 100 S. Lebanon, Indiana 46052. Set up: 7:30 am to 9 am, Show: 9 am to 2:00 pm, FREE admission, $20 early admission (8:00 am). Auction to be held at Boone County Fair Grounds on Friday, 12 Sept at 6 pm. Contact: Martin Van Zant, 812.841.9495, mdvanzant@yahoo.com or “Balsam” Bill Granger, 317.517.5895, bgranger@iquest.net, for more information, FOHBC Member Club
14 September 2025 – Chelmsford, Massachusetts
Merrimack Valley Antique Bottle Club’s 50th Annual Bottle Show & Sale, Chelmsford Elks Lodge, 300 Littleton Road, Chelmsford, Massachusetts 01824, 9:00 am to 1:00 pm, $4 admission, $20 early admission (8:00 am), Visit mvabc.org or contact: Kevin Cantrell, 978.551.6397, kmcantrell86@gmail.com, FOHBC Member Club
19 September 2025 – Aurora, Oregon Oregon Bottle Collectors Associations’ Bottle, Antique & Collectibles Show & Sale, Friday 12 noon to 5:00 pm Dealer set-up and Early Bird admission $5. Saturday 9:00 am to 3:00 pm regular public admission by donation. American Legion Hall, 21510 Main Street N.E., Aurora, Oregon. Contact: Wayne Herring, show chairman, 503.864.2009 or Bill Bogynska, 503.657.1726 billbogy7@ gmail.com, FOHBC Member Club
20 September 2025 – Santa Rosa, California
Northwestern Bottle Collectors’ Association’s 58th Annual Antique, Bottle & Collectible Show at the Santa Rosa Veterans Memorial Building, 1351 Maple Avenue, Santa Rosa, California 95404. General Admission: Saturday Noon to 4:00 pm, FREE, Saturday early admission 10:00 am to Noon, $10. For dealer and
show information contact Richard Siri, 707.481.5423, rtsiri@sbcglobal. net or John Burton, 707.523.1611, johncburton@msn.com, FOHBC Member Club
21 September 2025 – Depew, New York
The Greater Buffalo Bottle Collectors Association’s 26th Annual Show & Sale, Polish Falcons Hall, 445 Columbia Avenue, Depew, New York 14043, General Admission $4: Sunday 9 am to 2 pm. Contact chairman Tom Karapantso, 716.487.9645, tomar@stny. rr.com or Peter Jablonski, 716.440.7985, peterjablonski@roadrunner. com or Joe Guerra, 716.207.9948, jguerra3@roadrunner.com, gbbca. org, FOHBC Member Club
21 September 2025 – Ellendale, Delaware
DELMARVA Antique Bottle Club Show and Sale, Ellendale Fire Hall, 302 Main Street, Ellendale, Delaware, 9:00 am to 2:00 pm, Info: Keith Fleming, 302.684.8138, moonderby327@gmail.com, FOHBC Member Club
27 September 2025 – Brookshire, Texas Peachridge “Glass in the Grass” 7:00 am to Noon. Ferdinand and Elizabeth Meyer residence, 2131 Peach Ridge Road, Brookshire, Texas 77423, $25 Dealer fee, Free admission and food. Texas shootout at high noon. Contact Ferdinand Meyer V, 713.305.4432, fmeyer@fmgdesign.com. Postponed to September 2026
28 September 2025 – Topsham, Maine
The Mid-Maine Antique Bottle Club 5th Annual Show and Sale, Topsham Fairgrounds Exhibition Hall, Topsham, Maine, $3 General Admission, 9:00 am, $20 Early Buyers 8:00 am to 9:00 am. Contact Paul McClure, 207.832.1503, oldbottles@outlook.com, FOHBC Member Club
28 September 2025 – Hammonton, New Jersey
2025 Fall Bottle Show at Batsto Village by the Batsto Citizens Committee, Inc., 9:00 am to 3:00 pm, rain or shine! Free admission! Historic Batsto Village, Wharton State Forest, Rt. 542 Pleasant Mills Road, Hammonton, New Jersey. Contact Info: Jim Hammell, 856.217.4945, hammelljm@gmail.com
03 & 04 October 2025 – Biloxi, Mississippi
Presented by the Olde Guys Digging Club of Biloxi, Mississippi, the 8th Annual Mississippi Gulf Coast Antique Bottle Show will be held from 9:00 am to 4:00 pm Saturday at the Joppa Shrine Temple, 13280 Shriners Blvd., Biloxi, Mississippi 39532 (Exit 41- I-10). Dealer Set Up on Friday, from noon to 5:00 pm and Saturday, October 4, 2025 from 8:00 to 9:00 am. Free Admission on Saturday. Early Buyers $20 per person during dealer set up on Friday. Please make your hotel reservations early as a major automotive event takes place the day after the show in the area. For more information or table contracts contact: Peter Taggard, 645 Village Lane South, Mandeville, Louisiana 70471. Phone 985.373.6487
Email: petertaggard@yahoo.com
03 Oct & 04 October 2025 – Williams, California
Sacramento Valley Museum Antique Bottle Show, Bottles, Collectables & Antiques, 1492 E St., Williams, California, Friday, Oct 3rd, Early admission $20, 10:00 am to 4:00 pm, Saturday
Admission Free 10:00 am to 3:00 pm, Show chairs Cristy and Slim Edwards, closethegatefenceco@yahoo.com, 530.586.0717
04 October 2025 –Pickens, South Carolina
3rd Annual Pickens South Carolina Bottle Show & Sale at The Market at the Mill, 225 Pumpkintown Hwy, Pickens, South Carolina 29671, 8:00 am to 2:00 pm, Set-up 7:00 to 9:00 am. Show and dealer information Samuel Rhodes, 864.508.6518, samuelrhodes99@gmail.com, FOHBC Member Club
04 October 2025 – Chesterfield, Virginia
The Richmond Area Bottle Collectors Assoc. presents their 53rd Richmond Antique Bottle and Collectibles Show and Sale; General Admission is $3, 9:00 am to 3:00 pm; Early Admission is $10 from 7:30 am, at the Chesterfield County Fairgrounds, 10300 Courthouse Road, Chesterfield, Virginia 23832. Info: Tony Townsend, 804.379.0902; RichBottleClub@comcast.net, FOHBC Member Club
11 October 2025 – Fayette, Alabama
12th Annual Fayette, Alabama Bottle Collectible Bottles & Antiques Show & Sell, Free admission to the public, Boy Scouts of America Scout Building, 100 3rd Avenue, Fayette, Alabama 35555, Saturday 8:00 am till 1:00 pm, Set-up: Friday, October 10th from 1:00 pm to 6:00 pm and Saturday, October 11th from 6:00 am till 7:30 am, $15 per table. All table rental goes to local Boy Scouts. Limit 50 tables. Contact: Jeff Pendley, Chairman, 205.275.2650, JfPendley@aol.com
12 October 2025 – Keene, New Hampshire
The Yankee Bottle Club’s 56th Annual Keene Show & Sale, 9:00 am to 2:00 pm, early buyers 8:00 am, at Keene High School, 43 Arch Street, Keene, New Hampshire. Contact: Alan Rumrill, PO Box 782, Keene, New Hampshire 03431, 603.446.7447. Email: alanrumrill57@gmail.com. Website: yankeebottleclub.org FOHBC Member Club
18 October 2025 – Macungie, Pennsylvania
Forks of the Delaware Bottle Collectors Association 50th Annual Bottle and Antique Show & Sale, Macungie Memorial Park Hall, 50 Poplar Street, Macungie, Pennsylvania 18062, Saturday, 9:00 am to 2:00 pm, $3 Admission, Early shopper admission at 7:30 am ($20 admission fee for early shoppers). For info contact: Ray Buch, 908.797.7302, forksofthedelawarebottles@hotmail.com For updates see our Facebook Page Forks of the Delaware Bottle Collectors, FOHBC Member Club
19 October 2025 – Findlay, Ohio
48th Annual Findlay Antique Bottle Club Antique Bottle & Collectibles Show & Sale, Owens Community College, Education and Wellness Center, 3200 Bright Road, Findlay, Ohio 45840, 9 am to 2 pm $5, Early Bird Sunday 7 am to 9 am $20 (Dealer-only set up Saturday) Contact: Fred Curtis, 419.424.0486, finbotclub@gmail. com, Website: finbotclub.blogspot.com, FOHBC Member Club
24 & 25 October 2025 – Nashville, Tennessee Area
Tennessee Bottle Collectors Presents their Nashville Area Antique Bottle & Advertising Show, Wilson County
Fairgrounds, 945 E. Baddour Pkwy, Lebanon, Tennessee 37087, Behind Expo Center, I-40 Exit 239B, Friday 1:30 to 6:00 pm Early Buyer $20 Admission, Saturday 8:00 am to 2:30 pm Free Admission. Dealer Set-up: Friday: 11:00 am to 6:00 pm, Saturday: 7:00 am. For Show Info or Vendor Contract, Contact Show Chairmen Greg Eaton: at 865.548.3176 or Stanley Word at 615.708.6634, FOHBC Member Club
26 October 2025 – Countryside, Illinois
1st Chicago Bottle Club 56th Annual Show and Sale 9:00 am to 2:00 pm. Admission is $5. Holiday Inn Chicago SW-Countryside, 6201 Joliet Road, Countryside, Illinois 60525. Contact Tom Majewski, 630.778.1932, tnsmski@comcast.net, FOHBC Member Club
02 November 2025 – Newark, Delaware
Tri-State Bottle Collectors and Diggers Club 52nd Annual Antique Bottle & Collectibles Show and Sale, Aetna Hose Hook & Ladder Banquet Hall, 410 Ogletown Road (Route 273), 9:00 am to 2:00 pm, No Early Buyers! Free Admission, Set-up same day at 7:00 to 8:30 am. Contact: Dave Porter, president, 100 Jarmon Road, Elkton, Maryland 21921, 717.779.8324, daveelle@msn.com, FOHBC Member Club
07 & 08 November 2025 – Auburn, California ‘49er Historical Bottle Association, Antique Bottle & Collectibles Show 2025 “Best in the West,” Gold Country Fairgrounds & Event Center, 1273 High St, Auburn, California. Show Hours: Friday Noon to 5:00 pm, $15 Early Admission; Saturday 9:00 am to 2:00 pm. Free. For show dealer applications, contact: Dan Bell 530.305.8794 or Max Bell 530.368.9495, FOHBC Member Club
08 November 2025 – Royal Oak, Michigan Metropolitan Detroit Antique Bottle Club 42nd Annual Antique Bottle Show & Sale, Royal Oaks Elks Lodge #1523, 2401 E. Fourth St., Royal Oak, Michigan. 9:30 am to 2:30 pm. Admission $3. Early Admission 8:00 to 9:30 am – $25. Free Appraisals. For further information, contact: Mike Brodzik 586.219.9980, bottlemike@outlook.com, FOHBC Member Club
09 November 2025 – Pompton Lakes, New Jersey North Jersey 55th Annual Antique Bottle Show and Sale, 9:00 am to 2:00 pm, Pompton Lakes Elks Lodge #1895, 1 Perrin Ave., Pompton Lakes, New Jersey 07442, just off I-287 Exit 57 or Rt. 202., Free Admission, $15 early admission (8:00 am), Featuring all types of antique bottles, glassware, stoneware, advertising, postcards, small antiques, etc., Sponsored by North Jersey Antique Bottle Collectors Ass’n, Vendor info: Call Ed, 201.493.7172 or email metropetro222@gmail.com, All welcome! FOHBC Member Club
09 November 2025 – Belle Vernon, Pennsylvania
The Pittsburgh Antique Bottle Club’s 55th Annual Show & Sale, 9:00 am to 2:00 pm, early buyers 7:00 am, $25. Admission is $3. PittsburghAntiqueBottleClub.org, New and improved Location! WTVFC Social Hall, 1314 Axton Street, Belle Vernon, Pennsylvania 15012, Contact Info: Bob DeCroo, 724.326.8741 or Jay Hawkins, 724.872.6013, FOHBC Member Club
22 November 2025 – Clemmons, North Carolina
Clemmons Antique Bottle Show at the Village Inn Hotel & Event Center, 6205 Ramada Drive, Clemmons, North Carolina 27012, Saturday 9:00 am to 3:00 pm, No Early admission, Set up: Saturday 7:00 am to 9:00 am. Free to the Public! Contact: David Erickson, 336.247.1928, dave.erickson111@gmail.com
22 November 2025 – Terre Haute, Indiana
Wabash Valley Antique Bottle & Pottery Club presents A Bottle, Pottery and Tabletop Antique Show and Sale at the VFW Post 972, 218 N. 12th Street, Terre Haute, Indiana 47807, Saturday 8 am to 1 pm, Set up: Saturday 7 to 8 am. Free to the Public! Contact: Marty Plascak, mplascak@ma.rr.com, FOHBC Member Club
17 January 2026 – Jackson, Mississippi
The Mississippi Antique Bottle Club presents the 41st Annual Antique Bottle Advertising & Collectible Show, Trade Mart Building, Mississippi Fairgrounds, Jackson, MS, Saturday 9:00 am to 3:00 pm. For details contact: Cheryl Comans, 1211 S. Fifth Ave., Cleveland, MS 38732; Cell 601.218.3505, cherylcomans@gmail.com, FOHBC Member Club
17 January 2026 – Mooresville, North Carolina
4th Annual Carolinas Antique Bottle & Collectibles Show, The Charles Mack Citizen Center, 215 N. Main St., Mooresville, NC 28115. Dealer set up 7:30 to 8:30 am; Early Bird 8 to 9:00 am $20; General Admission 9:00 am to 3:00 pm. Contact Johnny McAulay 704.439.7634, mcaulaytime@aol.com
04 April 2026 – Kalamazoo, Michigan
The Kalamazoo Antique Bottle Club’s 45th Annual Antique Bottle & Glass Show at Kalamazoo County Fairgrounds, 2900 Lake Street, Kalamazoo, Michigan 49048. General Admission: 9:30 am to 2:30 pm, $3, Early Bird Admission: 8 am to 9:30 am, $30. For more information, email kzooantiquebottleclub@gmail.com. Visit Facebook Page. FOHBC Member Club
25 April 2026 – Columbia, South Carolina
South Carolina Bottle Club presents their 53rd Annual Bottle Club Show & Sale, Jamil Shrine Temple, 206 Jamil Road, Columbia, South Carolina 29210, Saturday 9:00 am to 3:00 pm; Dealer set-up Saturday 7 to 9:00 am. Contact Marty Vollmer 803.629.8553 or martyvollmer@aol.com or Eric Warren 803.960.7814 or scbottles@ aol.com, FOHBC Member Club
09 May 2026 – Gardendale, Alabama
6th Annual Alabama Bottle & Advertising Show, Gardendale Civic Center, 857 Main Street, Gardendale, Alabama 35071 (10 minutes north of Birmingham). Dealer set up: 7:00 am; Early Buyer: 8:00 am $20. For dealer information contact Show Chairmen: Keith Quinn, 205.365.1983, klq1812@gmail.com or Steve Holland, 205.492.6864, FOHBC Member Club
29 - 31 July 2027 – Nashville, Tennessee Area
FOHBC Nashville 2027 National Antique Bottle and Glass Convention. FOHBC National Event
Annual Statement of Ownership, Management and Circulation
1. Publication: Antique Bottle & Glass Collector
2. Publication No: 1050-5598
3. Filing Date: September 01, 2025
4. Issue Frequency: Bi-monthly
5. Number of Issues Published Annually: 6
6. Annual Subscription Price: $40
7. Mailing Address of Known Office of Publication: FOHBC, N8211 Smith Road, Brooklyn, WI 53521-9789
8. Mailing Address of Headquarters or General Business Office of Publisher: FOHBC, N8211 Smith Road, Brooklyn, WI 53521-9789
9. Names and Complete Mailing Addresses of Publisher, Editor and Managing Editor: FOHBC, N8211 Smith Road, Brooklyn, WI 53521-9789
10. Name and Complete Mailing Addresses of Owner: Federation of Historical Bottle Collectors (FOHBC), N8211 Smith Road, Brooklyn, WI 53521-9789
11. Known Bondholders, Mortgages, and Other Security Holders Owning or Holding one Percent or More of Total Amount of Bonds, Mortgages or Other Securities: None
12. Tax Status: Has Not Changed During Preceding 12 Months
13. Publication Name: Antique Bottle & Glass Collector
14. Issue Date for Circulation Data Below: August 19, 2025
15. Extent and Nature of Circulation, Average No. of Copies Each Issue During Preceding 12 Months; & No. Copies of Single Issue Published Nearest to Filing Date:
Total Average Qualified Print Circulation (Net Press Run): 1,500
Total Distribution: 1,495
Copies Not Distributed: 5
Total: 1,500
16. This Statement of Ownership will be printed in the: September–October 2025 Issue of this Publication.
17. I certify that all information furnished on this form is true and complete. I understand that anyone who furnishes false or misleading information on this form or who omits material or information requested on the form may be subject to criminal sanctions (including fines, and imprisonment) and/ or civil sanctions (including multiple damages and civil penalties).
Federation of Historical Bottle Collectors (FOHBC), Alice J. Seeliger, Secretary N8211 Smith Road Brooklyn, WI 53521-9789
608.575.1128 fohbcmembers@gmail.com FOHBC.org
The Federation of Historical Bottle Collectors (FOHBC) is a non-profit organization supporting antique bottle and glass collecting. The goal of the FOHBC is to promote the collection, study, preservation and display of historical bottles and related artifacts and to share this information with other collectors and individuals. Membership is open to any individual, club or institution interested in the enjoyment and study of antique bottles and glass. Membership benefits include:
–Antique Bottle & Glass Collector (AB&GC), the official publication of FOHBC and the leading publication for those interested in antique bottle and glass collecting and all associated ephemera. Annual subscription includes 6 issues (bi-monthly) of this all-color, 72-page plus covers publication. (Digital memberships also available.)
–Free classified advertising in AB&GC. Ads may be up to 100 words for items of $25 or greater value; and one free ad of 60 words each year For Sale, Wanted, or For Trade. (Restrictions apply and free ads are limited to the first received for available space.) Ads appear on the FOHBC website also. See page 67
–FOHBC.org, a comprehensive website dedicated to the organization and hobby, providing access through the Members Portal to the latest news in the collecting world, Membership Directory, archived magazine issues, indexed articles, Federation meeting minutes and announcements, and a vast assortment of research material.
–Virtual Museum of Historical Bottles and Glass, the most comprehensive antique bottle and glass experience on the Internet. Spinning images of museum-quality examples of antique bottles and glass, including well-researched history of the manufacture, distribution, and use of each item.
–Auction Price Report, an online resource which includes the sale price and description of anything auctioned by the top antique bottle and glass auction houses in the past decade. Easy to use. Updates planned. (Password protected)
–National Shows and Conventions, featuring displays, educational seminars, membership meetings, social events, and banquet with interesting speakers, all centered around a first-class sale event. Members are eligible for discounts on “Early Admission” or table rental.
–Newsletter, digital presentation of periodic postings to keep FOHBC members up to date on current issues affecting the hobby.
Affiliated Bottle Club Membership brings these additional benefits to your antique bottle and glass collecting group:
–Federation-sponsored Insurance Program for your show and any other club-sponsored activities. (Application required for each event.) Value of this is many times more than the cost of club membership.
–Club Display Ad in AB&GC at discount of 50%.
–Free Club Show Ad on the Federation website to increase your show’s exposure.
–Free Links to Club Website; Social Media (Facebook) exposure.
–Free Federation Ribbons for Best in Show and Most Educational display at your show. Please order two months in advance of event.
For more information, questions, or to join the FOHBC, please contact: Michael Seeliger, President and Interim Membership Director, N8211 Smith Road, Brooklyn, WI 53521-9789; phone 608.575.2922 or email: fohbcmembers@gmail.com
Visit us at FOHBC.org
Where there’s a will there’s a way to leave Donations to the FOHBC
Did you know the FOHBC is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization? How does that affect you? It allows tax deductions for any and all donations to the FOHBC. You might also consider a bequest in your will to the FOHBC. This could be a certain amount of money or part or all of your bottle collection. The appraised value of your collection would be able to be deducted from your taxes. (This is not legal advice, please consult an attorney.) The same-type wording could be used for bequeathing your collection or part of it; however, before donating your collection (or part of it), you would need the collection appraised by a professional appraiser with knowledge of bottles and their market values. This is the amount that would be tax deductible. Thank you for considering the FOHBC in your donation plans.
Please complete the following application or sign up at FOHBC.org
(Please Print)
Name
Address
City ______________ State_______________
Zip ___________ Country _________________
Telephone
Email Address
Collecting Interests ________________________
Additional Comments
Do you wish to be listed in the online membership directory?(name, address, phone number, email address and what you collect) { } Yes { } No
Would you be interested in serving as an officer? { } Yes { } No
Would you be interested in contributing your bottle knowledge by writing articles for our magazine? { } Yes { } No
Would you be interested in volunteering to help on any FOHBC projects? { } Yes { } No
Membership/Subscription rates for one year (6 issues) (Circle One) (All First Class sent in a protected mailer)
United States
- Standard Mail
- Standard Mail w/Associate* $45 1st Class w/Associate
- Standard Mail 3 years $110 1st Class 3 years $175
- Standard Mail 3 years w/Associate* $125 1st Class 3 yrs w/Assoc. $190
Digital Membership (electronic files only) $25
Canada – First Class $85 Other countries – First Class $120
Life Memberships:
- Level 1: $1,000, includes all benefits of a First Class Mail Individual Membership. No promise of a printed magazine for life.
- Level 2: $500, includes all benefits of a Individual Membership with a digital subscription. No printed magazine.
*Add an Associate Membership to any of the above at $5 for each Associate for each year. Associate Membership is available to members of the immediate family of any adult holding an Individual Membership. Family members age 21 or older must have their own Individual Membership. Associate Members enjoy all of the rights and privileges of an Individual Membership.
Associate Member Name(s)
Signature Date
Please make checks or money orders payable to FOHBC and mail to: FOHBC Membership, Michael Seeliger, President and interim Membership Director, N8211 Smith Road, Brooklyn, Wisconsin 53521, 608.575.2922, mwseeliger@gmail. com. To pay by PAYPAL, FOHBCmembers@gmail.com (or register at FOHBC.org). To pay by charge card, call Michael Seeliger at 608.575.2922.
Affiliated Club Membership applications are available at FOHBC.org. One year memberships are June 1 to May 31 and payment is due by May 1. $130 includes liability insurance coverage for all club-sponsored events. [Please request Certificate of Insurance two (2) months before show at FOHBCmembers@gmail.com.] $80 is membership only with no insurance coverage. (Payments after May 1 incur a $25 late fee.) Both Affiliated Club Memberships include a 50% discount on advertising in Antique Bottle & Glass Collector. Payment process is same as above.
Classified Ads: Preferably ad copy should be sent via email to FOHBCmembers@gmail.com. If mailing, send clearly and legibly written or typewritten copy to Alice Seeliger at address shown below. The FOHBC is not responsible for errors in ads due to poor quality, illegible copy. FOHBC reserves the right to refuse any advertising submittals. Send Free or Classified Ads to:
Mail: FOHBC Advertising, c/o Alice Seeliger, N8211 Smith Road, Brooklyn, Wisconsin 53521
Email: FOHBCmembers@gmail.com
Provide address for invoicing. For questions, call Alice at 608.575.1128. NOTE AD DEADLINES ON PREVIOUS PAGE.
AB&GC Submission Requirements:
SUBMISSION POLICY – Articles:
We welcome the submission of articles and related images pertaining to antique bottle and glass collecting, digging, diving, finding, displaying and other interesting topics related to the hobby.
All Antique Bottle & Glass Collector articles or material should be submitted via File Transfer Protocol (FTP) or email depending on size. Text files should be submitted electronically in Microsoft Word or similar software. Electronic image files should be in a JPEG, PNG, TIFF or EPS format. Minimal resolution of 300 dpi at actual publication size is preferred but as low as 150 dpi (at double publication size) is acceptable.
Please send proposed articles and images to Alice Seeliger at: alicesecretaryFOHBC@gmail.com or mail (if necessary) to Alice Seeliger, FOHBC, N8211 Smith Road, Brooklyn, WI 535219789. For questions, call 608.575.1128.
SUBMISSION POLICY – Classified Ads:
All copy should be typewritten, or clearly and legibly printed, or sent via email. The FOHBC will not be responsible for errors in an ad due to poor quality or illegible copy. The FOHBC reserves the right to refuse any advertising.
Please send Classified Ads to Alice Seeliger, FOHBC Advertising Coordinator, N8211 Smith Road, Brooklyn, Wisconsin 53521, 608.575.1128, alicesecretaryFOHBC@gmail.com
