Meeting Minutes, September 9th, 2012

Transcription

1 Since 1972 Midwest Glass Chatter September 2012 Club Officers Dave Rittenhouse, Pres CR 900 W. Farmland, IN Richard Cole, Vice Pres./Lib 2904 W. Moore Rd. Muncie, IN Colleen Dixon, Treas./M.C W. Brook Dr. Muncie, IN Joe Coulson, Sec./Editor Collingswood Ln. Fishers, IN An Index to the Club Lending Library is available online. Please contact Dick Cole about items which you would like to check out. 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: Colleen Dixon, 2602 W. Brook Dr., Muncie, IN Meeting Minutes, September 9th, 2012 The September club meeting was held at Minnetrista in Muncie, Indiana. Club President Dave Rittenhouse opened the meeting and welcomed 9 members. Colleen Dixon presented the Treasurer s report for September. Expenses included the cost of renewing our Federation of Historical Bottle Collectors membership; the purchase of one copy of the Fruit Jar Annual 2012/2013; and the postage and printing for the club newsletter. There was no income reported for the month. The club continues to maintain a positive bank balance. Dick Cole proposed that the October club meeting be held at the new Club Library location, 2702 W. Euclid Ave, Muncie, Indiana. The motion was seconded and approved. Call Dick for help with directions, or to make an appointment for a visit to the new Club Library ( ). Dick mentioned that the November club meeting will now include a behind-thescenes tour of Minnetrista. Please notify Dick about any special items you would like to see that day (for example, the Ball Universal jar). In addition to being our club Vice President, Dick is also our club Head Librarian. Dick is asking members to donate items like old issues of Bottles & Extras for our club library. Dave gave an update on the planning for our January 2013 Show in Muncie, Indiana. He told us that the Signature Inn hotel chain is under new ownership, and that the Muncie hotel now has a new Manager, Kim. Dave believes that this will not affect our plans for the January Get- Together and room hopping at the hotel. Be sure to make your room reservations early ( ). com/locations/muncie.html Dave is going to mail out Show contracts real soon. Dealer table fees went up slightly due to the Horizon Convention Center raising their price. Show advertising will appear in the October, November and December issues of Antique Bottle & Glass Collector. Dave reviewed the list of upcoming bottle shows. He mentioned the Memphis show on September 29th. See you all at our next meeting, Joe Coulson, Secretary Joe Coulson shared this wooden shipping box for one dozen pint Mason s (GCCo monogram) Patent Nov. 30 TH 1858 jars.

2 Page 2 Show and Tell The theme for Show and Tell for the September club meeting was to bring your first jar (the one that got you started collecting), or your earliest jar. Joe Coulson started off by displaying a common aqua quart Ball (script, dropped a ) Mason (made circa 1910s). This jar was one of several he acquired in the late 1970s and early 1980s from both of his grandmothers. Joe recalled watching and helping his grandmothers with the home canning process (cherries, green beans, grape jelly). He saved those keepsakes and years later re-discovered them. After a quick search on the Internet in the Fall of 2003, Joe learned about our fruit jar club and a little about the jar collecting hobby. He got the jar bug and has been coming to meetings ever since! Joe also shared a couple of recent acquisitions: a wooden shipping box for pint Mason s (GCCo monogram) Patent Nov. 30 TH 1858 fruit jars; and a cobalt blue bottle commemorating the 75th anniversary of the Chattanooga Glass Company ( ) during the time of the U.S. Bicentennial celebration. Colleen Dixon said that she got started collecting jars in the summer of 1966 when she was a teenager. Her aunt had a new hobby of collecting jars at that time (imagine that!), and this was someone that Colleen spent time with. Colleen was at her grandmother s in southern Michigan when she found a few jars by walking the country roads and looking through abandoned houses. Her grandfather had a bunch of jars that they had used in the old days, and he gave those jars to her. She collected jars along with her step mother until mid Her step-mother later sold those jars (without telling Colleen!) in a garage sale. Colleen found out about our club when she saw an article in the Muncie Star newspaper that talked about our first club bottle show held in Muncie in January Our bottle shows where held in Indianapolis before that. Colleen displayed a few recent purchases. Her first jar was a green half gallon reproduction Mason s (Cross) Patent Nov. 30 TH Colleen also displayed an amber half gallon RB #293-5 Ball Perfect Mason (with gripper ribs); a clear pint RB #1347 Jumbo Brand (elephant s head) Peanut Butter; a clear 8 ounce RB # with embossing of an elephant s head only; and a RB #2837 pottery jar Weir Seal No. 4 Western Stoneware Co. Monmouth, Illinois. Dick Cole shared the oldest glass container he has in his collection. It was an unembossed deep aqua bottle with a red iron pontil. It was made sometime during the Civil War period or earlier. Dick told us that he began collecting in the mid- 1970s. He was at an auction at the Delaware County fairgrounds, and there were two jars for sale. The first jar was an aqua quart Trademark Lightning. He decided that

3 Page 3 Show and Tell, cont d on the second jar he would go up to a limit of $25. The jar sold for that amount. It was not listed in the Red Book at the time, so he wondered if it might be a reproduction. The jar was a Brinkerhoff No. 8, which turned out to be a very good jar. Dick has a special collection of Brinkerhoff jars that he has built up over the years. Dick shared a couple of recent purchases. He was shopping in the Off Broadway Antique Mall in Muncie, and he found a clear half gallon Ball Widemouth drinking pitcher for $8. That is a fair price, but this pitcher was the scarce variation with the spout made backwards! Dick s other recent purchase was a Bottoms Up Depression shot glass made of jadeite. The phrase refers to the bottom of your drinking cup or bottle. When you are drinking, and you're almost done, you put the bottom up to get the last of the drink. Someone took this phrase literally, because the jadeite glass had the figure of a nude woman laying across the glass with her bottom up at the bottom of the glass. Sue Wilson described how she got started collecting jars in the late 1990s. She happened to stay all day at an estate auction and paid $1 for a box of jars. The box was mostly full of junky modern Ball Mason jars, but in the corner was a Ball (3-L loop) Mason Improved jar that really caught her eye. At some point she ended up stopping by the late Phil Robinson s place (The Robinson Fruit Jar Museum in Muncie). She remembers talking to Phil about which clear jars would turn amethyst in the sunlight. She bought a Ball Sure Seal from Phil. It did turn purple, and she was very excited! Sue s mother passed away in 2000, and she had many jars. Sue said that the best way to get to know your jars is to wash them! She started looking closer at them, and she began to look them up. A couple of years later she found a box of jars at an antique store. She got the whole box for $3, because she was not able to pick out just one jar. In the box was a Ball Perfect Mason with the word Drey ghosted. Sue said that about six to seven years ago she started going to the Jelly Jammers club meetings. She acquired a really nice s jelly glass that had a very ornate glass lid. She thought it was so pretty, so she started collecting jellies in addition to fruit jars. Sue displayed a clear half gallon RB #1376 Kerr Self Sealing Widemouth Mason. It has very thick embossing and is a heavy jar. Sue also displayed an aqua half gallon wax sealer (made circa 1880s) with a five point star on the base (might be an RB #2713?). Anne Szopa displayed some of the jars that began her and Sue s collection. The first jar was a sun-colored amethyst (purchased 1998 to 1999) RB #249-5 Ball (3-L loop) Mason Improved. This is the jar Sue had described as being found in a box of otherwise common jars. Anne shared a clear pint Ball (dropped a ) Sure Seal. This jar was purchased in on the first or second visit to Phil Robinson s, since he promised that it would turn amethyst if left in the sun and it did! Ann also displayed a clear glass screw top jelly jar (purchased ), half pint, made by McKee, a packer jar for commercial sale of jelly in s; and a

4 Page 4 Show and Tell, cont d clear pint Drey Perfect Mason altered to Ball Perfect Mason ( Drey ghosted) (purchased , and found in a box with other Ball Perfect Mason and common jars). Mike Mosier brought a couple of wax sealer jars from his collection: a light green pint RB #2368 Pint Standard; and an aqua quart unembossed wax sealer with a circular depressed area (almost looks like a label space). Mike said that his wife likes wax sealer jars. Lou Ebert described how he got started collecting, although he is not sure when he first purchased a jar just for himself. Lou said that he was in grade school in the 1940s, and a guy in class brought some bottles. Lou started walking up and down alleys, and picked bottles out of the trash. He eventually threw all of those bottles away though. In 1973 Lou was doing some family history research. He was at an event at a hotel in Shenandoah, Virginia. Ironically there was a bottle and jar show going on in an adjoining room. He thought it was a bit odd, but he didn t think much more about it at the time. In the early 1980s Lou s brother showed him a Swayzee s Improved Mason. Lou s parents had lived in Swayzee, Indiana from 1934 to His grandfather was in charge of the shipping department at Swayzee Glass Company. Lou s brother asked him to pick up Swayzee jars at antique shows for his daughters. Lou has always spent a lot of time visiting antique shows and similar events. Lou remembers that it was at the semi-annual flea market in Friendship, Indiana that he first met Phil Robinson. Phil invited him to visit his jar museum in Muncie. Lou brought a few items to share: a clear glass advertising paperweight, Established 1869 Thos. Evans Co. Lamp Chimneys. Glassware. Pittsburgh, PA. Incorporated 1887 ; a clear glass lamp chimney MacBeth No. 21 Pearl Glass Nu-type Chimney / Macbeth-Evans Glass Company (Western Division) Marion, Indiana, U.S.A ; the cardboard carton for the previously mentioned lamp chimney (copyright 1922, box made by Lindly Box Co., Marion, Ind. U.S.A.); and an information sheet for the lamp chimney. Lou gave us a short company history on the glass company that made the lamp chimney: The Thomas Evans Co. of Pittsburgh came to Marion, Indiana in 1893 and built a factory which had three 15-pot furnaces. In 1899 the Thomas Evans Co. merged with the George A. Macbeth Co. to form the Macbeth-Evans Glass Co. At that time the new firm absorbed the American Lamp Chimney Co. of Toledo, Ohio, who held the rights to make lamp chimneys on the Owens machine. The Marion Leader- Tribune on July 13, 1923 stated that the company was making fruit jars and will manufacture caps. The Marion Chronicle on July 16, 1923 stated the newest line of manufacture was caps for fruit jars made of metal with white glass liners. That article made no mention of fruit jars. Macbeth-Evans was listed in city directories through 1927, but not Lou mentioned that it was not until the late teens and early twenties that many homes had electricity. Lou also said that it was the Julian Toulouse book that showed him there were other jars made in Grant County, Indiana. Dave Rittenhouse told us that in 1963 he brought home a jar that he had found near an oak tree. He noticed it when he bumped into it with his foot while squirrel hunting. It was an aqua half gallon Mason (shepherd s crook) jar. His mother snatched it, and put it on a shelf. Dave said his parents liked antiques. They got jars cheap from farm auctions. Dave said that he was more into bottles at that time. He switched to mostly collecting fruit jars at some point after getting a copy of the Red Book. He liked the fact that so much info was right there at his finger tips. There really wasn t anything published on the bottles (mostly regional) that he had collected. Dave said that he bought and sold a lot of items at flea markets, and that is where Dave ran into Phil Robinson. Phil kept reminding Dave about the club meetings! Dave also shared a couple of the earliest-made jars in his collection: an aqua quart R. ARTHUR S PATENT JANY 2ND 1855 (this jar came from the George McConnell collection); and an aqua quart ten panel petal jar (corker), with an iron pontil.

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6 Page 6 Memory Lane by Junne Barnett In September 1984, before there was an organization of collectors of jelly jars, Alice Creswick had a list of jelly jars printed in her column, with a note that Betty Landis was interested in forming a group of these collectors. The group was named Jelly Jammers, and is still a very active group. If you have any old magazines, articles, written stories, etc. send them my way. This gives me something to do! 9840 S. 375 W. --Junne Barnett Edinburgh, IN [Editor s note: the following article is an excerpt from Alice Creswick s fruit jar column in the September 1984 issue of Antique Bottle World, and it is reprinted with permission from Jerry McCann.] JELLY TUMBLERS The June 21, 1978 issue of the Antique Trader Weekly contained an article titled, The Great Tumbler War written by Dr. James S. Measell. In his article, Dr. Measell mentioned Doyle & Company of Pittsburgh, who advertised the original tin-top jelly jars. These were patented by William Doyle of Birmingham, Pa. on March 4, (In our Oct jar column, we pictured the original patent model for these jars.) Atterbury & Co. of Pittsburgh was another early manufacturer of jelly glasses, and Dr. Measell s article included an ad showing a number of their jars. Also mentioned is the jelly glass patented on July 28, 1874 by Mark J. Bennett of Braddocks, Pa. This patent also covered Bennett s idea for a register label. These jars were made by the Crystal Glass Co. of Pittsburgh. In his article, Dr. Measell mentions the Queen Jelly Jar patented by John Adams in 1873 (reissued in 1874) under which the King Jelly Glass (Red Book No. 1452) and the Queen indexical jelly tumblers (Nos and 2547) were made. Our own research of the patents shows there was indeed a fair number of patents issued for jelly glasses during the 1860s 70s. Some of these jars are listed in Red Book No. 4: (Red Book numbers) National (2336) Queen ( ) Crystal (732) King (1452) Ripley (3234) Atterbury, etc. Others are included in our manuscripts for our research editions. The old variations would naturally be greatly treasured by jelly glass collectors, but there also are enough latertype jelly glasses made by various glass makers to keep the Jellie Jammers hunting for a long time! Among companies which were making them in the mid- 1920s were: Athens Glass Co., Morgantown, W.Va. Beaver Valley Glass Co., Rochester, Pa. Pa. Bryce Bros., Mt. Pleasant, Canton Glass Co., Marion, Ind. Capstan Glass Co., Connellsville, Pa. Central Glass Wks., Wheeling, W.Va. Consolidated Lamp & Glass Co., Coraopolis, Pa. Co-Operative Flint Glass Co., Beaver Falls, Pa. Crescent Glass Co., Wellsburg, W.Va. Dorflinger & Sons, White Mills, Pa. Duncan & Miller Glass Co., Washington, Pa. Economy Tumbler Co., Morgantown, W.Va. Federal Glass Co., Columbus, O. Fostoria Glass Co., Moundsville, W.Va. T.G. Hawkes & Co., Corning, N.Y. Hazel-Atlas Glass Co., Wheeling, W.Va. Huntington Tumbler Co., Huntington, W.Va. Imperial Glass Co., Bellaire, Ohio Indiana Glass Co., Dunkirk, Ind. Jenkins Glass Co., Kokomo, Ind. Kerr Glass Mfg. Co., Sands Springs, Okla. McKee Glass Co., Jeannette, Pa. Macbeth-Evans Co., Charleroi, Pa. Glass Monongah Glass Co., Fairmont, W.Va. Mound City Glass Co., Lumberport, W.Va. Ripley and Co., Pittsburgh, Pa. Rochester Tumbler Co., Rochester, Pa. Smalley, Kivlan & Onthank, Boston, Mass. U.S. Glass Co., Pittsburgh, Pa. Upresit Products Corp., Long Island, N.Y. Wellington Glass Co., Cumberland, Md. (Note: The Ball Co. was not on the listing ) What has prompted me to mention jelly glasses was a letter from Betty Landis, of Rt. 1, Box 8A, Hinton, VA 22831, about the Jellie Jammers. This is a growing group of collectors who are interested in jelly or jam containers. The Federation Letter has mentioned this group, and Junne Barnett also wrote about them in the Midwest Club s newsletter. Efforts are being made to establish a newsletter especially for the Jellie Jammers.

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8 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 ADDRESS SERVICE REQUESTED WE RE ON THE WEB! This Depression shot glass gives a new meaning to the phrase Bottoms Up. This piece is made of jadeite and was manufactured by the McKee Glass Company. It is marked Pat under the feet. Announcements Upcoming Club meetings: December 2nd, 1:30pm, Cantina at Minnetrista in Muncie Annual Christmas Party; Bring a gift for Dirty Bingo Our 2013 Winter Show will be Sunday, January 13th at the Horizon Convention Center in Muncie, Indiana. This is the Big One for fruit jars. Come join the excitement with fellow collectors for a weekend filled with fun. Upcoming Midwest Bottle & Jar Shows: 28 October 2012 (Sunday) Glendale Heights, Illinois 1st Chicago Bottle Club s 43rd Annual Show & Sale of antique bottles, fruit jars, pottery, advertising, postcards and collectibles at the Ramada Inn & Suites Convention Center, 780 E. North Avenue (1/2 block west of I-355), Glendale Heights, Illinois, Sunday, 28 October, 9:00 am to 2:00 pm, (dealer set-up 7:00 am). $3.00 admission. NO EARLY ADMISSION. Hotel reservations: Info: John & Claudia Panek, P.O. Box 287, Deerfield, Illinois Tele: paperbottle1@aol.com The next North American Glass auction will open November 19th. Many fine fruit jars will be for sale: The Jelly Jammers continue to put a lot of effort into their website, the Jelly Jammers Cupboard. Check it out: The Federation of Historical Bottle Collectors website is a great resource. Our club is a proud member of the FOHBC. One of the useful tools on the Federation website is the bottle show listing: