Club Meeting Minutes for October 2, 2005

Transcription

1 Since 1971 Midwest Glass Chatter, October 2005 Club Officers Norman Barnett, Pres. P.O. Box 38 Flat Rock, IN Dave Rittenhouse, V.P CR 900 W. Farmland, IN Richard Cole, Treas W. Moore Rd. Muncie, IN Joe Coulson, Sec Collingswood Ln. Fishers, IN Club Meeting Minutes for October 2, 2005 The October meeting was held at Minnetrista in Muncie. President Norm Barnett opened the meeting and welcomed nine members. The September meeting minutes were accepted as reported and placed in the Secretary s book. Dick Cole was not present, so we did not have a treasurer s report. Once again, the members in attendance said they liked the new format of the Glass Chatter and said to keep going with it. Everyone is encouraged to contribute material for the newsletter. We had a refreshment scare at the beginning of the meeting. If it wasn t for a couple of members arriving with goodies at the last minute, we would have done without. It turned out to be pretty important, because we all needed the energy provided by the food in order to talk about the large number of jars brought to the meeting. The next club meeting will be held November 6th at Minnetrista in the Cantina room at 1:30pm. The theme for Show and Tell will be items relating to the letter T, or something you are thankful for (Thanksgiving). See you all at the next meeting. Respectfully submitted, Joe Coulson, Spook-retary Membership The Midwest Glass Chatter is a monthly publication and is a forum through which collectors can share information. Membership cost is $15.00 per year, per family, due each December 31. All jar/bottle related collectors are welcome. Send to MAFJBC, Attn: Junne Barnett, P.O. Box 38, Flat Rock, IN Next Club Show January 8, 2006 Make your reservations now! The hotel s phone number is Show and Tell Session The theme for Show and Tell this time around was jars and go-withs relating to the letter S, as well as a few other items that members wanted to share. Norm made the observation that this is the fewest members we have had at a meeting in a while, but it was probably the most jars brought in. Quite a few jars begin with the letter S and members were eager to share them. Dave Rittenhouse started us out by displaying a clear PT # Safe; a clear QT #2591 Sealfast Sold By C.B. Hobbs Grocer Phone 581 Tipton, Ind (unfortunately with a crack, but still a nice jar); an SCA PT #2605 Seal Tite; a clear PT #2627 Sierra Mason Made In California; an amber QT #2648 Smalley Full Measure (AGS monogram) Quart (with original cap); an aqua QT #2673 The T.A. Snider Preserve Co Cincinnati, O.; an aqua HG # Standard (base: Indianapolis Glass Works, Ind); an SCA QT #2709 Standard (looped underline); an aqua QT #2724 Star emblem encircled by fruits; a nice yellow olive QT # Swayzee s Improved Mason. Dave attempted to get extra credit for a couple of his jars, which he claimed met the S theme twice once for their name, and one more time because they were S uncolored amethyst! Dave displayed a wonderful yellow QT #2534 Safety. Dave said that he purchased this jar from someone who had dug it in an outhouse in Richmond, Indiana. The jar originally looked like a brick because of all the dirt that covered it. What a surprise after all that dirt and stain came off. Dave also tried to S neak in an R item that he forgot to bring last month. It was an amber bottle with product label for Rittenhouse (his name!) Square Straight Rye Whiskey, produced in

2 Midwest Glass Chatter, October 2005 Page 2 Show and Tell Session, continued Dave Rittenhouse showed a clear QT #2591 Sealfast Sold By C.B. Hobbs Grocer Phone 581 Tipton, Ind. Pennsylvania according to the paper label. Dave said that there is no direct family connection to this company. Joe Coulson showed several Australian jars: a clear HG #2628 Signal, made c1915 by AGM (this was the beaded neck seal version but was made using a re-worked shoulder seal mould); a medium SCA QT and HG # S N H (in diamond), made by AGM c ; and a clear HG #2686 Spotswood. According to Dick Roller in the Standard Fruit Jar Reference: In 1890, the Melbourne Glass Bottle Works Co. opened a new plant near Melbourne, at Spottiswoode (later called Spotswood). Two Americanmade semi-automatic glassblowing machines were installed to make fruit jars. About 1915, the company merged with the Waterloo Glass Bottle Works Co., Ltd. to form Australian Glass Manufacturers Co., Ltd., with offices at Spotswood. This company name is often abbreviated as AGM. Joe displayed a few Indiana jars: an aqua QT and HG #2729 Star Glass Co. New Albany, Ind. (groove ring wax sealers, crude and bubbly glass, made c s); an aqua PT and QT # Swayzee s Improved Mason (made c by Swayzee Glass Co., Swayzee, Indiana; company purchased by Ball in Feb. 1906); an aqua HG #2782 Swayzee s (fleur-delis symbol) Improved Mason; and an amber QT #2534 Safety (made c by Nelson Glass Co., Muncie, Indiana; listed in Muncie city directory as being located at Pierce and Sullivan Streets). Joe also showed a clear HG (unlisted) product jar (base: H over A maker s mark; neck: unusual inverted bulge style lightning as described in a previous meeting by Lou Ebert) with a paper label for Safe / Hit / Texas Vegetables / packed & shipped by / Gulf Distributing Co. Inc. / Weslaco Texas U.S.A; a light green PT #2712 Standard Mason (word Mason in flag); a clear PT and QT #2545 Samco (in circle) Genuine Mason (with original milkglass Samco insert and white enameled screw band); and a clear QT (unlisted) (base: Ball Jar Art) (paper advertising inside which reads: Ball Smooth Jar Especially made for Ball Jar Art) (plain metal lid and screw band). Joe mentioned that there is a good article by Tom Caniff on the Samco Genuine Mason series of jars in the May 2004 issue of Fruit Jar News. Joe also brought all of his Ball Salt and Pepper S haker sets too. There were many variations produced by Ball over the years. Jean Harbron shared a clear QT #316 Ball (ghosted 3L) Sure Seal (c ); a Ball blue PT #2773 Sure Seal (in circle, c ); an aqua QT #2630 Silicon Glass Company Pittsburgh Penna (c ); a clear PT #2647 Smalley Full Measure AGS (c , with scarce original cap); an aqua PT #2538 Safety Valve Patd May (c , with original closure); a clear QT # Sanfords (on base) (c1900, made for a glue and ink company); a clear QT # Sealtite (ghosted Sealfast) (base: Pa G Co), made in Anderson, Indiana c ; an aqua QT # T.M. Sinclair Pork packers (1900 Schies Patent Lid and Clamp; John Schies lived in Anderson, Indiana and invented a lot of things for the jar industry). Jean also displayed several items made by the Sterling Glass Co.: a clear QT #2735 Sterling Mason (no ribs, made in 1930s); a wonderful original Sterling Mason cardboard shipping carton; a clear QT packer jar made during WWII (heel: Sterlinglass) with a paper label for Little Sport Peanut Butter; a small clear packer jar for Shinola shoe polish (with original cardboard package that it came in) (a couple of members commented that they did not realize that Shinola was a real product, they thought that it was only a slang term that described what liars were full of!); and a clear QT with quilted design pattern made by Sterling Glass Co. Phil Robinson displayed a clear HG #2776 Swasey Double Safety; a clear QT # Safe Seal; a clear 3 oz. (unlisted but similar to #2551) Sanford s Ink (on lid); an aqua

3 Midwest Glass Chatter, October 2005 Page 3 Show and Tell Session, continued QT #2673 The T.A. Snider Preserve Co Cincinnati, O.; an ice blue QT #2629 Silicon (with lots of tiny bubbles and wavy glass); an aqua QT #2668 The Smalley Jar; an aqua HG #2700 Standard (base: Indianapolis Glass Works); a beautiful amber HG #2729 Star Glass Co. New Albany Ind.; a clear PT #2627 Sierra Mason Jar Made In California; and a light green HG #2785 Sydney Trade (dingo dog) Mark Dingo Fruit Jar (an Australian jar). Phil also showed an amber PT #2534 Safety. One of Phil s family members saw the pint for a very reasonable price in a shop in Nashville. Phil went there the next day to acquire the jar, but it had already sold. When Christmas time came around, guess what jar showed up as a gift for Phil?! Phil had one more interesting jar to display. It was a clear QT #2681 Speas Mfg. Co. U-Savit Jar. It had a very interesting metal screw cap, which was an adapter to turn the jar into an oil burning lamp! Meredith started out with an R item that S lipped by last month. She displayed a Rudd s jelly glass with Pat Apl For embossing. Meredith s S items included: a clear jelly glass with metal lid embossed Superior (star and crescent) Quality ; a clear glass with met lid embossed SKAT The Best Hand Soap Known ; and a product jelly glass with paper label that reads Smokey Mountain Jellies / The Jam & Jelly Factory / Hee Haw Village / Pigeon Forge, TN Norm Barnett showed us a clear QT #2725 Star (same type closure as The Leader jar); a clear QT #2732 Stark (with original unusual closure); an aqua QT #2740 Stevens Tin Top (reverse: Missouri Glass Co.; pinched in sides). Norm also showed us three A. Stone pint size jars! They were an aqua PT #2750 A. Stone & Co. Philada; an aqua PT #2752 A. Stone & Co. (arched) Philada Manufactured By Cunninghams & Co. Pittsburgh, PA. (iron pontil) (unlisted in PT size); and an aqua PT #2743 A. Stone & Co. Philada (iron pontil). Norm told us that he acquired one of these jars many years ago at an antique store for the princely sum of $4. Not too long thereafter he acquired a correct stopper, which set him back a whopping $2. Wouldn t it be nice to make finds like that! There were a few other S items that didn t get mentioned. Junne Barnett handed out S how flyers for the upcoming Muncie January 2006 Show (less than 3 months away!). Ted Penix told us about his pending S urgery. Joe Coulson gasped an unprintable S word twice during the meeting (sounded something similar to S hazam!), once when he saw Phil s amber wax sealer, and once upon seeing Norm s #2725 Star jar. Jean Harbron and Kay Rittenhouse are always pleasant natured and S miling. Typically at the beginning of our meetings, Norm has multiple news items and comments, but this time he was S ilent without much to S ay (and all members in attendance were S uitably S hocked!). Jean Harbron displayed an original Sterling shipping box and several Sterling product jars

4 Midwest Glass Chatter, October 2005 Page 4 Show and Tell Photo Gallery More on the Marion Fruit Jar & Bottle Co. In last month s Chatter, I wrote that it was unlikely that the Fairmount plant of the Marion Fruit Jar & Bottle Company was running when the company was purchased by Ball in As usual, Louie Ebert picked up on this and provided conclusive evidence. He gave me a Xerox copy of the Marion NewsTribune of Friday October 29, Page 9 has the following article: Tearing Down Ball Plant Old Fairmount Factory is Being Dismantled Fairmount, Oct 28. The main building of the old Wilson & McCulloch fruit jar factory located at the intersection of Eighth street and the Big Four railroad, and now owned by Ball Brothers of Muncie, are being torn down by a gang of men, acting under instructions from the Ball Brothers company of Muncie. While there is nothing left of the factory but the blowing room and the office, the tank having been removed last year, the disposition of the remnants is not known. This was the second factory to be built in Fairmount after the discovery of natural gas and was operated for many years as a fruit jar factory with human blowers. Later it was sold to Wilson & McCulloch of Marion and they afterwards installed the blowing machines. With the failure of natural gas the factory was abandoned, the force of work-

5 Midwest Glass Chatter, October 2005 Page 5 Marion Fruit Jar & Bottle Co., continued men going from here to man the Coffeyville, Kansas factory. The plant has not been in operation for almost three years. As the buildings were almost ready to fall down, the order to dismantle the same comes as good news to the residents of that portion of the city. Thanks again to Louie for this valuable information. This plant, designated Plant #2, was the former Dillon Glass Company that made the Dillon wax sealer. A layout of the plant from a 1902 Sanborn Fire Insurance Map is shown below. Marion Fruit Jar & Bottle Company did have another plant (Plant #3) in Fairmount, located between Fourth and Fifth Streets along the same railroad. However, this plant, the former King City Glass Co., is listed as being not in operation on the same 1902 Sanborn map. So Ball ran neither of the two Fairmount plants. Written by Richard Cole Tribute To Junne The Midwest Glass Chatter, the official newsletter of the Midwest Fruit Jar & Bottle Club, has for years been something special to Junne Barnett. By special, I mean that it was a joy, an opportunity, a challenge, a hardship, an irritation, a frustration, an aggravation, a basic pain-inthe-butt. For over thirty years, each month, Junne would ask, plead, beg and cajole club members for articles to put into the newsletter. She, being club secretary most of the time in addition to being the newsletter editor, would write the minutes of the last meeting, but she was always hoping that someone would come up with something new and exciting to include in each issue. But, usually, it was up to her to dig around to find something useable. And she was good at it, for the Chatter won awards many times as being the best newsletter in the Federation. And then there were the technical difficulties. Issue the Chatter too early, and people would forget about the upcoming meeting. Too late, and the Chatter would be delivered after the meeting. Good ole Postal Service. We all know how reliable they are. And, of course, being sick or in the hospital didn t change the need to get the newsletter out each month. No matter what, the blame came down on Junne s head. The pasted-up master copy had to reach the publisher in time, and hopefully they weren t backlogged that month. Postage was a con- stant concern, requiring trips to the Flat Rock post office on a regular basis. And if the club treasurer was lazy or forgetful, the money for the stamps came out of her own pocket. With luck, she would get reimbursed. Emphasize with luck. Who knows how much money Junne contributed to the club over the years. These are just a few of the problems. I m sure that Junne could add many pages to the list of things that can, and have, gone wrong over the years. But the newsletter always got out, somehow. I hope that most of you, like me, really understand and appreciate what Junne has done for the club for these many years. But it would be nice if each of you would take the time, when you see Junne at a club meeting or show, to express to her your gratitude. Or drop her a note to say Thank you, Junne, we are glad that you did a job that needed to be done so well. We will always be grateful. Because we all are. - Dick Cole

6 MIDWEST ANTIQUE FRUIT JAR & BOTTLE CLUB A jarrific place to share and learn Send articles and info here: Joe Coulson, Editor Collingswood Ln. Fishers, IN jcoulson@leaderjar.com Next club meeting will be held November 6th at Minnetrista in the Cantina room at 1:30pm!! ADDRESS SERVICE REQUESTED Complimentary Copy Subscribe, Today! WE RE ON THE WEB! Announcements The Muncie January 2006 Show is less than three months away. Start planning now for a hotel room or a display or a sales table. Call Norm ( ) or Dave ( ) for details and to obtain a contract. Norm will be mailing contracts to our regulars soon. Keep Ted Penix in your thoughts and prayers. He is planning to undergo an experimental surgery to implant a device that will connect to his spinal cord, so it will help control the sporadic nerve pain that he is experiencing (neuropathy). Give him a holler and let him know you are thinking of him ( ). It s not too late to place your pre-production order for the 2006 Fruit Jar Annual. This book always contains great research articles, current jar price info especially for the scarce jars, and a directory of fruit jar collectors. It will be distributed in mid-january. It is available for $35 postpaid from: Jerry McCann, 5003 W. Berwyn Ave., Chicago, IL We were suprised and very happy to see Junne Barnett in attendance at the October meeting. She has a "new" knee and is able to get around pretty well. Junne has put a lot of hard work and effort into keeping this club newsletter going for over thirty years. She has made a real difference to our club. Joe Coulson paid a recent visit to Charles and Brona Williams at their new condo. They are doing fine after recent health issues which required a short hospital stay. Charles has a very nice office setup in his new place with lots of space and a copier and a comb binding machine. Some of you may have received copies of the Muncie Glass Factories or Port Family monographs from him. Charles is a long-time fruit jar research supporter, and it was good to see him back at it again.