I was poking around the basement the other day, just refreshing my memory about some of the treasures ‘hidden’ there. I came across a box full of old bottles. Well, at least in my mind they were oldies. This is an area I have never had much experience with but would gladly welcome being educated.
As luck would have it, in the ‘library section’ of the basement I came across a book called Collecting Bottles for Fun and Profit, by William Ketchem Jr. It’s from 1985, but since the subject items are mostly ‘antique’ and the pricing information found inside the book is limited, it does not matter that it is out of date. It starts out with an explanation as to the popularity of bottle collecting. They are valued in part because they tell us about our past, they’re attractive because they’re in a lot of shapes and sizes and coloring, and they are generally inexpensive. Years ago it was popular to dig at dumps, but that is no longer possible. But you can still find them at flea markets, yard sales or sometimes in your own back yard.
The book is quite helpful due to a nicely detailed glossary of terms, as well as descriptions and pictures, also ways to date the bottles. It shows how glass is made and ‘innovations in bottle making.’
I was pleasantly surprised by the wide variety of categories. Boy, I had never heard of a pineapple shaped bottle such as those from W& Co. New York. They once held either bitters or whiskey.
The book offered a lot of examples of patent medicine bottles in various shapes and with names of the product or manufacturer’s or chemist’s name. Understandably, it advises to watch for bottles in more unusual colors such as blue, green, red or yellow – they are worth a lot more. One of my favorites is the bottle from Sazerac Aromatic Bitters, made of white milk glass and with a lot of curve to it. It has earned the name “lady’s leg.”
It was surprising to see a milk bottle in green! This one is from the Altacrest Farms, from the early 20th century. I recall having the dark brown ones. Our milk man, Doc, would leave them on our doorstep and they held a heavy-cream milk. We did not worry about cholesterol or fat back them, just get those kids a lot of calcium!
I absolutely loved this large Planters Peanut jar. These would be found in a grocery, or ‘general’ store, right on the counter.
In addition to bottles that held milk, medicines or food, you’ll find an incredible amount of flasks for holding whiskey. The book informed me that very few figural flasks are ever found in dumps, because they were rarely discarded. Instead, they’d be refilled or displayed. It was common to see historical flasks, and it states that over 60 flasks bear the bust of George Washington. Others would be in the likeness of other past presidents such as John quincy Adams, Andrew Jackson, Zachary Taylor, William McKinley, and others. Many treasured examples would be embossed with sporting scenes such as hunters or fishermen. You’d also find animals, dogs, deer and ducks, and especially popular were the bottles embossed with racehorses.
I found an example of several 19th century whiskey bottles “that were shaped like cannons, perhaps a reminder of their powerful contents. “ The book explained that statement – it was due to the custom of worker’s often carrying small flasks filled with hard liquor and drinking it on the job. There were several prohibition movements throughout the 19th century because of this practice. It was learned that the drinking worker was not always the most efficient. (Well, duh!) Men fell off buildings that they were roofing or were struck by trees they were felling. This drinking on the job ethic is not something we’d tolerate today.
I absolutely loved the figural whiskey bottles such as this grouping of pigs.
And what about these milk glass bottles, a sitting bear that once held Kummel, a strong European liquor, and another featuring the “Atterbury Duck.”
I see so many Coke or soda bottles, beer bottles and being from the Dairy State, numerous milk bottles, but I’ve never seen any like this. From now on, I’ll be on the look-out for more unique examples!
