The Mystery surrounding the Woodgate’s Plantation Bitters

Posted on 6 August 2013 by Ferdinand Meyer V

The Mystery surrounding the Woodgate’s Plantation Bitters

06 August 2012 (Updated 07 August 2013 with Jeff Burkhardt information) (R•061317)

Why yes, I have written about the extremely rare, Woodgate’s Plantation Bitters before, but ahah, now I possess the fourth known example which sits proudly on one of my shelves. This is a tough one to get folks. Two known examples are in amber and two are in an extraordinary olive yellow coloration. Now I am curious about the brand history.

Woodgate’s Plantation Bitters (left) and typical Drake’s Plantation Bitters (D 105 – right). Obvious similarities yet big differences.

And guess what, there is absolutely NOTHING I can find on the Woodgate’s which gets jumbled in with the Drake’s Plantation Bitters which is pictured above for comparison. Obvious similarities yet big differences. 100 to 1 odds that the Woodgate’s was tailgating or piggy-backing on the Drake’s success. What is puzzling and mysterious about the Woodgate’s, is that there is no advertising, no directory listings, no labeled example etc. Only some sparse clues…

1.) The Drake’s was made by Whitney Glass Works in Glassboro, New Jersey.

2.) Woodgate’s Example #3: This was a new find to the market in the spring/summer of 2011, coming out of a home in Northern New Jersey. The irony of it, is that the consignor of this bottle found one of the other two, 40-years ago! (This is what I call the Knock – Knock bottle). I am trying to track down Jim Hagenbuch to expand on this.

3.) Woodgate’s Example #2: The extraordinary yellow olive example is ex. Carlyn Ring who purchased it from Mark Vuono’s father (Charles Vuono) in the very early ’80s and then sold it to Jim Hagenbuch when he purchased the Ring collection. Jim kept the bottle all these years in his collection and I got it from him last year – Sandor Fuss.

4.) If memory serves correct, Woodgate’s Example #1 is in the Ted Krist collection and is also yellow olive.

5.) Why did Carlyn Ring and Bill Ham only list the bottle in amber?

*Examples are numbered by appearance in collections

The Carlyn Ring and W.C. Ham listing in Bitters Bottles is as follows:

W 160 WOODGATE’S PLANTATION BITTERS

// c // WOODGATE‘S ( au ) / PLANTATION ( au ) / BITTERS // 8 ribs // 8 ribs // 8 ribs //
9 3/4 x 3 (6)
Square cabin, Amber, Yellow olive, LTC, Applied mouth, Extremely rare
15 horizontal logs in each of 2 sides. 8 ribs on 3 shoulders

Suggest Bill Ham add apostrophe in WOODGATE’S and Yellow olive as color in next edition of Bitters Bottles Supplement*.

Read: Knock – Knock

Read: Glass Works Auction #93 – Woodgate’s Plantation Bitters makes its Appearance

Example #2: The legendary Woodgate’s Plantation Bitters in yellow olive – Fuss Collection

Woodgate's Plantation Bitters - Glass Works Auction #93

Example #3: “WOODGATE’S / PLANTATION / BITTERS”, (W-160), American, ca. 1865 – 1875, This is a new find to the market, coming out of a home (This is the Knock – Knock bottle) in Northern New Jersey. The irony of it is that the consignor of this bottle found one of the other two, 40-years ago! – Glass Works Auction #93

Color Plate from Bitters Bottles by Carlyn Ring and W.C. Ham. The Woodgate’s Plantation Bitters (Example #2) is pictured on the left. Oddly enough it is not called out by name in the image caption.

Color Plate from Bitters Bottles Supplement by Carlyn Ring and Bill Ham. The Woodgate’s Plantation Bitters (Example #2) is pictured on the left. The extremely rare California Herb Bitters is now in the Meyer Collection. You can see John Feldmann’s “JF” initials beneath the bottle picture noting the bottle was in his collection. The Woodgates is now in the Fuss Collection.

Woodgate’s Plantation Bitters (see above) – Bitters Bottles Supplement

The extremely rare, and unique in color Woodgate’s Plantation Bitters from the Sandor P. Fuss collection. From thirty-six (36) rotational photos by Alan DeMaison for the FOHBC Virtual Museum project.

Posted in Auction News, Bitters, Collectors & Collections, Figural Bottles, Questions | Tagged Fuss, Krist, Meyer, Woodgate's Plantation Bitters | 3 Comments

Yesterday was a Good Bottle Day

Posted on 5 August 2013 by Ferdinand Meyer V

Yesterday was a Good Bottle Day

“What you spend on the peanuts, you save on the bananas”

Ferdinand:

Yesterday was a good bottle day, a very good day. One of my pickers from up north paid me a visit.

The flask, the wickedest color Drakes 6 log I’ve seen, a western glop top whiskey and a few smalls were a package deal. What you spend on the peanuts, you save on the bananas. Both the seller and I are pleased with the outcome.

The Drakes is a kind of weird smoky peach color, hammer whittled, and has the sloppiest top I’ve seen on a six log. It’s got a weird base mark with six dots. Oh, and then there’s the flask;

“found wrapped up in a mid 19th century blanket chest in one of the oldest settlements at the end of the Oregon trail”

GI-47 quart. It’s got a good range of color densities, and a decent swirl of tobacco juice at mid section. All bubbles are intact and it is attic mint. This piece was found wrapped up in a mid 19th century blanket chest in one of the oldest settlements at the end of the Oregon trail.

Colors are a little washed out in the pictures but you get the idea~

B (Bruce Silva)

Posted in Bitters, Collectors & Collections, Digging and Finding, Historical Flasks | Tagged Bruce Silva, Drakes, GI-47 | 1 Comment

The devotion that so many of us feel toward the objects that we collect

Posted on 5 August 2013 by Ferdinand Meyer V

Hello Ferdinand:

My brother-in-law recently came for a visit and while here I showed him some of our more interesting sodas. Of course, I rattled on and gave him a brief dissertation. He later wrote this thoughtful email and I wanted to share it with you because of the included quote from an article by David Mamet. The quote is, as you will see, a lead paragraph from a recent article in The Smithsonian. I thought it was an apt description of the devotion that so many of us feel toward the objects that we collect. Not sure if Mamet’s paragraph would be appropriate for our use but it does seem to capture our “zealotry” and “fanaticism.”

Randee (Kaiser)

*PRG added the imagery.

The devotion that so many of us feel toward the objects that we collect

Hi Sue:

I came across the quote I wanted to show Randee. When the Russians launched Sputnik, the media went into a panic and tried to rile everybody up. From The Nation of November 23rd, 1957, p. 381… “each week a publisher must look for new ways to build circulation in a culture screaming with huckster’s calls. It is all right for journalists to be constantly racing press deadlines, but when they begin to share their professional headaches with the readers, they give the nation a continuous case of ideological jitters”. It can’t be said any better to explain the decrepit news media of today. And this is from 1957.

This morning I was reading an article by David Mamet in the April 2013 issue of The Smithsonian. I thought about Randee telling me the history of glass bottles and the talks he gives to groups. Here is what David Mamet said at the beginning of the article.

“When they were young, I took my two eldest daughters browsing on London’s Portobello Road. Down in the basement stalls, we found a fellow selling empty jam jars. These when full, had held Dundee marmalade. They were now empty, and their apparent similarities fell before his lecture on the evolution of the jar.

We were talked through the early Victorian birth of the great potteries, through the difference in tint from clay mined in the north and in the south; he explained how subtle changes in the lip of the jar were due to increased automation, and he taught us to date the jars by judging the smoothness of the glaze, and the brightness of the ink. It was the best learning experience we three had shared. It has not been surpassed, and, for 25 years, has informed and been the basis of my opinion on education: One may need a special disposition to see the world in a grain of sand, but there was the world on offer in an empty jar of jam to any who gave the enthusiast the first moment of attention.

The antique stalls on Portobello Road, the tables at the flea market and the swap meet, the driveway at the lawn sale are a university in the rough. One will not be harassed there by the schoolmaster, but may be fortunate enough to encounter the zealot, fanatic or fellow lovelorn devotee of the comic book, penknife, cowboy boot, model train and so forth through the very catalogue of the stuff of life.”

And reading this I thought of Randee and Sue and was proud to have spent time listening to you both talk about soda bottles.

Best Regards, Larry Ault

Randee Kaiser – FOHBC Midwest Region Director

Randee Kaiser is a retired health care professional who, along with his wife Susan, is a twenty-five year collector of applied color label soda bottles. Kaiser is an active collector who attends a number of bottle shows and other related events each year. He holds membership in several historical organizations and is currently a member of the Board of Directors of the Federation of Historical Bottle Collectors (FOHBC). The Federation is a national, non-profit organization supporting the collectors of historical bottles, flasks, jars and related items. Many of the organization’s members provide educational programs for interested historical societies, museum groups and other organizations.

Randee is also one of the two co-chairs for the FOHBC 2014 National Antique Bottle Show in Lexington, Kentucky. When I asked Randee for something more than his posted bio he responded…

“Sue and I collect painted label sodas mainly from the 30s thru early 50’s with subject rather than script labeling. We have concentrated on Missouri sodas for about 25 years but still find an occasional treasure that we did not know existed. These account for about 30% of the collection with the remainder being rare, unusual bottles with unique artwork. I also collect embossed sodas from my home town of Webb City, Missouri, including hutchinson, slug plates, straight-side embossed and fancy embossed. Although a small town, Webb City had three sodas companies from the late 1800s to the 1930s.”

Posted in Advice, Article Publications, Collectors & Collections, FOHBC News, History, Jelly & Jam, Soda Bottles | Tagged David Mamet, Dundee Marmalade, Portobello Road, Randee Kaiser, Sputnik | Leave a comment

Saint Jacob’s Bitters – Cincinnati, Ohio

Posted on 3 August 2013 by Ferdinand Meyer V

Saint Jacob’s Bitters – Cincinnati, Ohio

Celebrated St. Jacob’s Bitters, St. Jacob’s Bitters Co., Cincinnati, Ohio

St. Jacobs Bitters, Mihalovitch, Fletcher & Co., Cincinnati, Ohio.

03 August 2013 (R•060719)

My friend and bottle show table mate Jerry Forbes (Big Sur, California) scored a nice, whittled, Saint Jacob’s Bitters at the FOHBC 2013 Manchester National a couple of weekends ago. The bottle is pictured at the top 0f the post. I kind of wish I picked it up myself as it was quite an example.

The bottle listing in Ring and Ham says amber examples are known, but as you can see from Jerry’s example and mine below, you can get some variance in the color range.
The listing in Bitters Bottles Supplement 2 will be updated:

S 13 SAINT JACOB’S BITTER’S // f // f // f // // b // KYGW CO // b // McC
L … Celebrated St. Jacob’s Bitters, St. Jacob’s Bitters Co., Cincinnati, Ohio
8 3/4 x 2 3/4 (6 1/2) 3/8
Square, Amber, Red amber, Yellow, LTC, Tooled lip and Applied mouth, Rare
BAR p100, TMS 359, WAT L114
Trade Mark December, 1882
Variant bottle known with an unmarked base.

Saint Jacob’s Bitters in amber – North American Glass

Kentucky Glass Works embossing on a Saint Jacob’s Bitters base – History of Drug Containers and Their Labels

Frank Wicker notes the following:

There is very little information about this bitters bottle. It’s from the St. Jacob’s Bitters Co. Cincinnati, Ohio. This bitters was trademarked in December of 1882. The photo below of this square amber SAINT JACOB’S BITTERS is a unlisted variant. The bottle has an unmarked base and is not embossed with KYGW Co. or MC C.

Frank Wicker – BottlePickers.com

There is also another St. Jacob’s Bitters from St. Louis, Missouri put out by Julius Falke. For now, I do not see a relationship.

Here is a cool advertisement below for the Celebrated Saint Jacob’s Bitters made by the Saint Jacob’s Bitters Company, Cincinnati from the Carlisle Evening Herald on November 27, 1894. Very late. Hard to tell if this bottle was embossed but it sure takes on the bottle shape of the subject bottles.

Saint Jacob’s Bitters in yellow – Meyer Collection

Saint Jacob’s Bitters in yellow – Meyer Collection

Saint Jacob’s Bitters in amber – historical ebay

Saint Jacob

[Wikipedia] Jacob of Nisibis, died c. AD 338, is a Syriac saint. He was the second bishop of Nisibis,spiritual father of the renowned Syriac writer Ephrem the Syrian, and celebrated ascetic. Jacob was appointed bishop, in 308, of the Christian community of Nisibis in Mesopotamia (modern Nusaybin, located near the Turkey/Syria border). Jacob of Nisibis, also known as James of Nisibis and as Jacob of Nusaybin, is recorded as a signatory at the First Council of Nicaea in 325. He was the first Christian to search for the Ark of Noah, which he claimed to find a piece of on a mountain, Mount Judi (Turkish Cudi Dağı), 70 miles (110 km) from Nisibis.

He founded the basilica and theological School of Nisibis after the model of the school of Diodorus of Tarsus in Antioch. It was not until the 10th century that the “Persian Sage” who had been incorrectly identified with Jacob of Nisibis was finally identified with Aphrahat. Jacob was the teacher and spiritual director of Saint Ephrem the Syrian, a great ascetic, teacher and hymn writer who combatted Arianism.

Much of Jacob’s public ministry, like that of other Syrian ascetics, can be seen as socially cohensive in the context of the Late Roman East. In the face of the withdrawal of wealthy landowners to the large cities, holy men such as Jacob acted as impartial and necessary arbiters in disputes between peasant farmers and within the smaller towns.

Saint Jacob of Nisibis’s relics are in the church he founded in Nisibis. He is commemorated in the Coptic Synaxarion on the 18th day of Month of Tobi (usually 26 January). In the Roman Catholic Church he is commemorated on 15 July.

St. Jacob’s Bitters Company

In 1883 a patent was granted for a Celebrated Saint Jacob’s Bitters by the St. Jacob’s Bitters Co. We see this company list until Mihalovitch, Fletcher & Co. begins advertising St. Jacob’s Bitters in 1884.

Mihalovitch, Fletcher & Co. – St. Jacob’s Bitters

Mihalovitch, Fletcher & Co. ran a large distilling and liquor business in Cincinnati, Ohio from about 1883 to 1918. They specialized in Fruit Brandies. The partners in 1890 were Morris Mihalovitch, Victor Fletcher and Bernie Mihalovitch. Morris established himself in 1874 in Cincinnati.

In 1884, they were advertising a St. Jacob’s Bitters, primarily in New Orleans.

Letterheads list Morris Mihalovitch as President, Bernie Mihalovitch as Vice President, Victor Fletcher as Treasurer, Charles S. Sibbald as Asst. Treasurer, S. F. Mihalovitch as Secretary, Clarence Mihalovitch as Asst. Secretary, and Albert Mihalovitch as Superintendant. They also listed agencies in New York, Philadelphia, Chicago, New Orleans, San Francisco, Louisville, Denver, and Galveston.

The company used the brand names: “Fletcher’s Bitters“, “Golden Wheat”, “Hopewell”, “I.C.U.”, “Lucky Mystic”, “Mihalovitch’s Hungarian Blackberry Juice”, “Moonshine Bourbon”, “Old Bass Island wines”, “Old Kaintuck”, “St. Jacobs Bitters“, and “St. Jacobs Malt.”

This Mihalovitch, Fletcher & Co. 1890 letterhead below, from the Joe Gourd collection, notes both the Fletcher’s Bitters and St. Jacob’s Bitters. The second letterhead is also from Joe’s collection.

Select Listings:

1883: Celebrated Saint Jacob’s Bitters Patent Listing, St. Jacob’s Bitters Co. – Congressional Serial Set – 1883

1883: Label, July 31st, 1883, “St. Jacob’s Tonic.” St. Jacob’s Bitters Co., Cincinnati, Ohio – New Remedies, Volume 12, Wm. Wood & Company, 1883

1884: Patent listing (below) 3404 for St. Jacob’s Tonic by St. Jacob’s Bitters Company, Cincinnati, Ohio – United States. Patent Office, 1884

1884: Newspaper advertisement (below) Ahead of All Competitors, St. Jacobs Bitters, This Tonic has no Equal, Mihalovitch, Fletcher & Co., Cincinnati, O. – The Times Picayune, Saturday, October 4, 1884

1884: Newspaper notice (below) B. Mihalovitch of Mihalovitch, Fletcher & Co., proprietors of the St. Jacob’s Bitters in town – The Times Picayune, Thursday, November 20, 1884

1885: Newspaper advertisement (below) H. Grossman & Co., Sole Agents for St. Jacob’s Bitters – 1885 Williams’ Cincinnati Directory

1887: Newspaper advertisement (below) Mihalovitch’s Hungarian Blackberry Juice For Men Women and Children. Mihalovitch, Fletcher & Co., – The Saint Pau Glob, Saturday, July 23__1887

1894: Newspaper advertisement (below) Mihalovitch, Fletcher & Co. Distillers of Fruit Brandies, Native Wines, Cased Liquors, 168, 170, 172 East Pearl St. Admission of Furst Bros. & Co. Morris Mihalovitch, Bernie Mihalovitch, Victor Fletcher, Jos. C. Furst, Samuel Furst, – The Cincinnati Enquirer, Saturday, January 13, 1894

1894: Newspaper advertisement (above in post) Celebrated Saint Jacob’s Bitters made by the Saint Jacob’s Bitters Company, Cincinnati, Carlisle Evening Herald, November 27, 1894.

1896: Newspaper notice (below) Fire Record. Two Hundred Thousand Dollars’ Worth of Property Destroyed in Cincinnati. Mihalovitch, Fletcher & Co. distillery destroyed. The Times Democrat, Wednesday, March 11, 1896

Posted in Bitters, Collectors & Collections, History, Tonics | Tagged Cincinnati, Falke, H. Grossman & Co., Jacob of Nisibis, Jerry Forbes, Kentucky Glass Works, KYGW CO, ohio, Saint Jacob's Bitters | Leave a comment

Jerry’s Hippie Dippie Bottle

Posted on 3 August 2013 by Ferdinand Meyer V

Jerry’s “Hippie Dippie“ Bottle

I was sitting at my table at the FOHBC Manchester National show and Dr. Charles Aprill alerted me to a real oddball striated flask somewhere far across the showroom floor, almost as far as San Francisco is to Houston.

When I arrived at the table and saw the bottle I immediately thought of tie-tied shirts, hippies, Mary Jane and my friend Jerry Forbes from Carmel, California. Yes, the “Left Coast”. Jerry saw the bottle, did some quick negotiations and added this wonderful piece to his collection. This bottle is a real treat with all of the colors running in layers throughout the bottle. Tough to photograph, one of those bottles you really need to see and admire in person to see the amber, green, yellow and blue coloration. It was fun to see the bottle in New England after admiring so many olive and amber historical pieces.

For you youngsters, the hippie (or hippy) subculture was originally a youth movement that arose in the United States during the mid-1960s and spread to other countries around the world. The word ‘hippie’ came from hipster, and was initially used to describe beatniks who had moved into New York City’s Greenwich Village and San Francisco’s Haight-Ashbury district. Hippies created their own communities, listened to psychedelic rock, embraced the sexual revolution, and some used drugs such as cannabis, LSD, and magic mushrooms to explore altered states of consciousness. [Wikipedia]

Posted in Collectors & Collections, Color, Digging and Finding, Flasks, FOHBC News, Humor - Lighter Side, Whiskey | Tagged Flask, Hippie, Hippy, Jerry Forbes, striated | 2 Comments

Labeled Wyoming Cordial Bottle

Posted on 2 August 2013 by Ferdinand Meyer V

Wyoming Cordial – Wyoming Remedies

The Great Life Preserving Tonic and Blood Purifier

C. H. Nearing and Mr. Wakefield of Homer, were in the place Monday selling patent medicines, salves, etc.

Here is another bottle that a person at the Manchester National wanted me to photograph. My apologies, as I misplaced the name and my memory of the gentleman who prized this bottle. As a scroll through my show shots, I thought I would spent some special time looking at the Wyoming Cordial prepared only by C. H. Nearing, Homer, NY. No, not a western bottle, just a western name.

A quick search online shows a wonderful example previously sold by Jeff and Holly Noordsy. Apparently the bottle is rare though these are two different examples. The label and graphics are truly spectacular.

RARE HOMER, NY WYOMING CORDIAL WITH ORIGINAL GRAPHIC LABEL – MINT, LABELED “WYOMING CORDIAL / PREPARED ONLY BY C. H. NEARING, HOMER, N.Y.”, aquamarine, rectangular, smooth base, 9 1/8″H x 2 7/8″W x 1 3/4″D, applied square collar, a mint, attic-found bottle that retains some contents residue. American, 1870-1880, rare. It is this bottle’s wonderfully graphic label that truly puts it “over the top.” – Jeff and Holly Noordsy

~~What little I could find is positioned below~~. The four advertisement clippings below were provided by Brian Wolff. Much to my surprise and pleasure, Mark Yates provided a motherlode of material for Homer Nearing. Please read further below.

Clipping under Glen Haven, NY for C. H. Nearing in the Courtland Evening Standard, Friday, January 28, 1894

A Cyclone

The Wyoming Medicines are Sweeping Over Fulton Co., Like a Cyclone. The Sale of Wyoming Cordial in This City Already Exceeds That of Any Other Remedy.

Two testimonials for Wyoming Cordial. One from Vermont (1896) and one from New York (1900)

Wyoming Cordial advertisement

1904, Mexico, New York testimonial advertisement for Wyoming Cordial

HORTON WHO?

by Mark Yates

Horton Nearing and his top hast pitching his Wyoming Cordial

I first learned about Horton Nearing about 4 years ago when I met Sylvia. I was following a lead someone gave me about a rare spring water bottle and arranged to meet Sylvia at her home in Pompey. What a wonderful surprise it was! Sylvia lives in the original house on the her family homestead, one of the original 100 acre land grants known as the Military Tract given to veterans after the Revolutionary War. The house is furnished with heirloom treasures handed down over the 200 years; however the real treasure is Sylvia. She was the Pompey historian for many, many years and her knowledge of local history is legendary. She shared with me her family history, gave me research ideas and the time just flew by.

Obviously, the subject of bottles soon came up and that brings us to Horton Nearing. Horton was a medicine man “back in the day” prior to the Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906 which nearly killed the patent medicine industry. Not much is known about Horton, but I will share what little there is. He was born in 1852 and grew up on the family property in Pompey and died in 1918. He was Sylvia’s grandmother’s brother on the father’s side. He had a wicked, mischievous sense of humor and was well loved and known as an “honest” medicine man in an era of unscrupulous con men. He may have been a carpenter for a while and it is not known if he went to college to learn medicine or chemistry.

Sylvia does have his ledger (see picture below) which has many handwritten notes and recipes for different medicines from the 1890s. His medicines were put up in rectangular bottles with ornate paper labels. Unfortunately, label only bottles do not survive the test of time well and only a few examples are known. One of the bottles was on ebay several years ago that had beautiful depiction of an Indian princess and advertised WYOMING CORDIAL which was bottled in Homer, NY. He also made WYOMING CATARRH CURE and WYOMING COUGH SYRUP

Example of the ledger that Sylvia had which has many handwritten notes and recipes for different medicines from the 1890s. His medicines were put up in rectangular bottles with ornate paper labels.

I read a letter from Horton written in 1892 while he was visiting in Pittston, PA describing his fascination with the beauty and history of the Wyoming Valley and the story of the great Indian massacre of settlers there in 1778. This apparently had a profound effect on him and most likely led to his decision to name his medicines. Sylvia still has a scrap book with some of these original labels and coupons as well as some wonderful photos showing a very dapper, bearded man with a top hat holding a bottle of the Wyoming Cordial. These photos were the originals used to advertise the medicine. Sylvia clearly enjoyed telling me about Horton, and in dramatic fashion she saved the best for last… She brought out to show me his mortar and pestle used to mix the medicine as well as the wonderful top hat Horton was wearing when he posed for the photos over 110 years ago. It almost felt as if he was there in the room with us.

Sylvia still has a scrap book with some of these original labels and coupons as well as some wonderful photos showing a very dapper, bearded man with a top hat holding a bottle of the Wyoming Cordial. These photos were the originals used to advertise the medicine.

Since meeting with Sylvia, I did some searching and learned that he lived in Cortland during the late 1880s and in East Aurora in 1916 and found newspaper ads for his Wyoming Cordial in central NY papers from 1893 to 1904, but none after that. Perhaps the Pure Food and Drug Act ruined his business after all.

Nearing’s original mortar and pestle used to mix the medicine as well as the wonderful top hat Horton was wearing when he posed for the photos.

Posted in Cordial, History, Medicines & Cures, Remedy, Tonics | Tagged C. H. Nearing, Homer, Horton Nearing, Mark Yates, New York, Pompey, Wyoming Cordial, Wyoming Remedies | Leave a comment

Mailbox Letters – August 2013

Posted on 2 August 2013 by Ferdinand Meyer V

Please feel free to send any antique bottle or glass questions to ferdinand@peachridgeglass.com. The information will be posted if relevant or of interest to the readers. I will try to answer or wait for another reader to respond. Quality images are very important. Thanks! If you want to see previous questions,go to “Mailbox Letters” in “Categories” on the right column of each page.

Perky – Pet (embossed hummingbird) Since 1958

Hi Ferdinand. Hope you and your family are doing well. My wife and I were at Lowes Home Improvement Store. While walking down a aisle at the store, out of the corner of my eye, I spotted what looked like a bright red up-side-down Warner’s Cure bottle. After making a sharp bee-line turn and heading toward the bottle, this is what I found. Pics attached. A brand new bottle that is embossed Perky – Pet (embossed hummingbird) Since 1958 / Lititz, Pa. The price was $17.99 My wife had to have it to hang in our wooded area.

Frank (Wicker) www.bottlepickers.com

Irish Ginger Beer and Stone Stout Bottle Book

Greetings everyone, Just a quick update on the Irish Ginger Beer and Stone Stout Bottle Book. The last eighteen months have been somewhat of a trial with negotiations with NAMA to photograph bottles within their possession (which incidentally were to prove fruitless), the ill health of my good friend and joint editor Eugene Markey and a thousand and one other challenges. However the deadline for material has arrived and the final curtain on photographs and information regarding new bottles will descend on the last day of September. So please would any outstanding offers of photos of new bottles be followed up and the necessary information forwarded to me as a matter of urgency. Thanking you all for the help and support previously given.

Sincerely, Neil Cutcliffe

Mossley Rectory 558 Doagh Road, Newtownabbey
email: rathdunebottles@hotmail.co.uk
Tel 028 90 832726

Website: Irish Ginger Beer and Stone Stout Bottles

Unembossed Imperial Levee Find

Hi Ferd, I’m hoping that you can help me a little bit. I came across this bottle at a local yard sale here in Sacramento. Unfortunately, it’s not green, blue, or even embossed. If I’m correct in my research, this appears to be an un-embossed version of the Imperial Levee bottle. The bottle is free from any nicks, chips, or cracks – and appears to be an iron pontil as well. If it is an Imperial Levee bottle, what would be a reasonable value to expect out of a bottle like this? Thank you in advance for any help/information you can give me.

Kevin Korper

PRG: Great find Kevin! Always a favorite. You could get between $2,200 and $3,000, maybe a bit more if the bottle really sang.

Read: James Noyes – Hollywood, Mississippi & the Imperial Levee

Warrock Confectioner – Jacksonville, Florida

Doing some research and ran across this advertisement. I know you are a graphics man.
1879 Jacksonville City Directory. Pretty cool, didn’t see any Bitters related items. – Bobby (Hinely)

PRG: Bobby: You are right. This is pretty cool. The peppermint or candy cane sticks reminded me of getting a cut lemon and half a stick of peppermint at fairs and carnivals in Baltimore as a child. The peppermint stick would be inserted in the lemon like a straw and you would suck the lemon juice. My wife though I was nuts when I mentioned this memory to her this morning. In Texas you ask for big Dill Pickles before movies. I think that is weird. She tried that on the east coast at a theatre and they looked at her like she was a Martian. Nice to see you at Manchester.

Veterinary Clinic Bottles

My wife worked for a veterinary clinic and acquired a set of various bottles. I was wondering if you thought anyone at the Houston Bottle Show may be
interested in taking these of her hands. You know many folks and we were just asking.

Peter Marshall

Baby Feeder Question

Hi. Found you on the internet. Could you tell Me about this baby bottle? Made by Evans Eclipse, Made in England. My Parents came from Ireland. I believe My Mom said it was hers when she was kid. I’m in Missouri now. Thanks! – Phil

PRG: Suggest you pursue question or visit website of American Collectors of Infant Feeders (ACIF)

Boy Holding Clock Figural

I have been searching for 50 years for any information on my glass bottle my
daughter found it for me on your site. It is the boy holding the clock on his
shoulder. What can you yell me about it? I Am so thrilled to find you. Sue

Restoration of the WWII Destroyer HMS Cavalier

Hallo, I am one of the several Ships Volunteers working on the restoration of the Memorial and Historic WWII Destroyer HMS Cavalier in the Historic Dockyard at Chatham.

I have taken on the job of restocking the Naffi shop onboard with appropriate items 0f the 1960’70’s era. I am thinking in particular of the Quix Ink, Black or Blue Black. This ink was so significant to us for we all wrote many letters home with our Parker pens and Quix ink while well away from our loved ones. I wonder if you can find a source of donors of those famous rectangular squat bottles, or even a good small advertisement showing them. I have many shelves to fill and hopefully look forward to a succsesful response while appreciating your help.

Mike J. Fleet.

N. K. Brown’s Iron & Quinine Bitters

Dear Ferdinand,

I happened across your site while looking for images of either or both of the bitters mentioned in the letter written by Robert B. Watkins of Kernersville, NC, which you have on your site. I grew up in Kernersville and in the last few years have written two local history books with a friend of mine.

Read: N. K. Brown’s Iron & Quinine Bitters – Burlington, Vermont

We have just completed a third book and it has a story in it about this same Robert B. Watkins called “A Hot-Headed Druggist.” I would very much like to find an image or two of these Bitters to illustrate this story in the book, but have been unable to find one that seems to have no copyright issue attached to it. I thought you might have a suggestion for me.

By the way, I lived in Maryland from 1967-1987 and attended law school at the U. of Maryland School of Law in Baltimore and later became a member of the Maryland bar. I am retired now and living in NC again.

Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated. I should add you have a great website and can see why people get so interested in collecting bottles and such.

Michael L. “Mike” Marshall

PRG: No problem to use any pictures with a caption Meyer Collection.

All Laxative Stomach Bitters Question?

Greetings!! Was hoping you could help me figure out what to do with
this bottle (see attached pics). It is full and the seal is intact. The
label is in nice shape but loose in a couple places. Tried to sell it
on E-Bay but they wouldn’t take it because of the alcohol content and
someone else said to pour it out and sell the bottle but I hate to ruin
the authenticity of the piece. Help! What do I do? Thanks for your help!

Skip Ellis
Bradenton, FL

Skip: This is a later bottle as far as what I collect. I certainly would not empty the bottle.

Augauer Bitters Wanted

Hello, Mr. Meyer. I read with interest your article about Augauer Bitters. If you happen to know of anything else for sale, I would be interested, although my funds are limited. Augustin Gauer was my g-g-g-grandfather, and I’m looking for some items for my mom. Thanks!

Janet Payne Beck

Read: Augauer Bitters and the Gauer Family – Chicago

Janet: Please watch ebay and I will also keep my eye out for an example. They are not pricey.

Dear Ferdinand & Elizabeth,

I am currently producing an editorial of glass making history, which is envisaged to be published in USA. My own expertise of glass spans 45+ years and I am consulted by many due to my knowledge. I would like to include American glass within my editorial, and my current research has led me to your site.

With your permission I kindly ask to include one of your a photographs and its attribution for the perusal of the publishers, which may or may not be used, however full credit and acknowledgment to yourselves would be included if used. Please get back to me at your convenience.

Best regards
Colin Boone

www.rubylane.com/shop/classyglassantiques

Hundreds of Quality Jars

I have hundreds of quality jars that belong to my mother that I am wishing to sell to a collector or dealer in one lot. I am in Owensboro Kentucky. Please pass the word and let me know if anyone is interested. I have pictures I can forward. Thanks

Allen Lake

Not a common sense type Inkwell

Mr. Meyer:

I recently found your website. I’ve only been collecting inkwells, mostly common sense-types, for about six months. A week ago I purchased one because it caught my eye. It’s not a common sense type. In fact, I was unable to match it with anything on the internet. That is, until I found your website. The inkwell I found – see attached – looks a lot like one pictured on your site as C-1173.

The inkwell I have is light green with 14 ribs and it measures 2 inches high by 2 1/8 inches in diameter. I’m bringing it to your attention because you seem to have a passion for all things glass. Any insights you can provide will be greatly appreciated. Frank E Wiedmann

NOTE: Gray mark on the inside of the base is actually a dead spider which came with the inkwell.

Subject: William James Moxham

Dear Sir,

I came across a posting of Barron Moxham Whiskey Label that read as quoted below on your website, headed Mail Box February 2013. It was as shown as being signed by a Jane Melbourne. Moxham is a very unusual name and I thought I knew of all his descendants. I am William Moxham’s Great Grandson and it is fascinating to think that there is a Jane in Melbourne of that line. There is a Jane Moxham in Sydney but she is unwell and I doubt she is doing anything about the family tree often passing on to me material which the Sydney Jane says I might do more with the she.

Can you please tell me what you can about how I can contact this Jane in Melbourne. If you feel that there are privacy issues which need to be respected can you please pass onto the Melbourne Jane my email address and ask her to contact me telling her I too have been researching William both in Australia and his British Naval Records.

Can I please thank you in anticipation of your forth coming help and in thanking you I acknowledge that passing on information like this is not your primary interests.

Dr Kenneth E Moxham
Adelaide Australia

Read: Advertising pieces provided by Michael Dolcini

Chevalier Angelo M F Gianelli

Dear Mr. Meyer,

I am a great great granddaughter of Chevalier Angelo M F Gianelli. I read your wonderful web page about his bitters and their bottles (read: Royal Italian Bitters by A.M.F. Gianelli – Montreal), and his life. Until now I only had info regarding his activities as Italian consul to Canada. So it was fascinating to hear about his restaurant, his cure for rheumatism etc. I am writing not only to thank you for this invaluable information but also to ask if you might have come across any information as to his wife’s name, especially her birth name. I am researching the family tree and it would be a huge help if you happen to have any information you can direct me to about her.

Much appreciated, Lesley Forrester
Stirling, Ontario, Canada

PRG: I am coming up with Fanny Catherine Compain

More….

Dear Mr. Meyer,

My name is Deborah Gianelli and Angelo M. F. Gianelli was my great-grandfather. Of all of AMF’s children, my grandfather, Charles A. Gianelli was the only one to leave Canada and become a citizen of the U.S. I grew up in New York and now live in New Jersey (and work in NYC).

I believe you have been in touch with my “cousin,” Lesley Forrester. She and I spoke for some time yesterday (for the first time), and she told me about the beautiful bottles that still exist from the business AMF had in Canada. Despite having an amazing scrapbook belonging to my grandfather that contains quite a bit of information about his father, I never knew about this business. My father told many stories about his family, but I did not know that AMF was a businessman in Canada before becoming the Italian Consul General.

The bottles and their history intrigue me, as I’m sure you can understand. Are any of them still for sale? I just thought I’d inquire. My father, Alfred Gianelli, was born in 1900 and was 52 when I was born. I have no American Gianelli relatives (whom I knew) still living. I do not know the Canadian relatives at all. So I have been on sort of a mission to connect some of the dots and know more about my heritage.

Thank you for any information you can provide about these exquisite bottles.

Best regards,

Deborah (Deborah Gay Gianelli)

PRG: Deborah: How interesting and fun it must be to learn more about AMFG. His bottles are tough to find and usually break the $1,500 mark in good condition. I paid over $1,500 for mine (pictured above) in 2005. I will keep my eye out. If you have any more support info, maybe you could send a digital copy my way. F

Fraser Canyon Find

Hello Ferdinand, My name is Jill and I am currently working with a field school that was doing some research in the Fraser Canyon, British Columbia, Canada. We stumbled upon a broken glass bottle and are trying to identify it. Since we only have a portion of the bottle this has proven to be very difficult. It is an aqua, rectangular bottle, with an open pontil on the base. There is embossing on both the side and what we assume to be the front of the bottle. I have attached three photos of the bottle. If you are able to help us identify the bottle that would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you in advance, Jill

Posted in Advice, Mailbox Letters, Questions | Leave a comment

Daily Dose – August 2013

Posted on 1 August 2013 by Ferdinand Meyer V

August 2 0 1 3

Some ramblings and thoughts…

Saturday, 31 August 2013

Last day of another hot dry month. The local news last night said Houston, which is typically semi-tropic, is 5 feet +/- under rain level since Hurricane Ike. Galveston is 8 feet+/ deficient.

Submitted the above art to the FOHBC Lexington National committee. Win, Place and Show awards will be given for each bottle category. If you remember we had the Shootout at the 2012 Reno Expo and the Bottle Battle at the 2013 Manchester National. We will also have a themed, judged event on coolest hat.

“Run For The Roses” Bottle Competition

The “Run for The Roses” bottle compitition will be held at the Hyatt Regency on Friday, August 1^st after the Banquet. There will be three categories. Each category will have three judges. The categories are:

Midwestern Swirl Decanters
Historical Scroll Flasks
Wax Sealer Jars

Security will be provided.

For additional information contact: Jamie Houdeshell, phone: 419.722.3184, e-mail jhbottle@hotmail.com.

Friday, 30 August 2013

Finally got the two unlisted GERMAN ARMY BITTERS (lightning strikes twice) posts up. One for the German Army Bitters from Ironton, Ohio and the second for the Dr. Nauman’s German Army Bitters.

The Price’s Patent Texas Tonic post was updated with new material from James Viguerie. THIS IS CRAZY. Getting in material for a Foote’s Texas Tonic Bitters and a Prindle’s Texas Tonic Bitters from James.

Tommy Mitchiner Death

Ferd,

Just wanted to let everyone know about the death of long time collector, digger, and friend, Tommy Mitchiner. I don’t know the details but he had been sick for several years but always bounced back.

Tommy was one of the pioneer diggers (he started 50 years ago or longer) in the south especially the Savannah area. Over the years he collected many different categories. Years ago he had a run of Kelly’s that were outstanding. He also had as fine a collection of John Ryan’s as has ever been assembled. He loved the John Ryan’s so much that is what he named his son, John Ryan Mitchiner.

Over the last few years he concentrated on Georgia Hutchinson sodas. He had
hundreds different ones.

Tommy was one of the nicest people I have ever met. The hobby lost another great one.

Thanks

Jack (Hewitt)

Read: Rare Hutchinson’s enthuse Georgia collector

Thursday, 29 August 2013

Looks like we may have a name(s) for the scammers. Read about Steven Dujardin on growing SCAM post.

Like this wagon picture. The original Mayer Bottling Plant. Charles Mayer is standing in front of wagon with hat and vest on. The wagon to the right appears to be driven by Joseph Drackert. He owned the Drackert delivery, hauling and storage company in Hammond and delivered the bottles for Charles. The two young boys are probably Charles’ sons. ** (Hammond Brewing Co. Indiana)

Wednesday, 28 August 2013

Make SURE you keep up with the daily UPDATES to the SCAM log.

Lot 821 in the 1990 Swanson sale. Terrific eagle print, lovely gold band and most of the side seal. Not a US lid but made for this market. Just a wonderful thing! – Greg Dean

Tuesday, 27 August 2013

Another SCAM coming out of the same locale as the other recent scams. Thanks to Bruce at Western Whiskey Tool Top Gazette for spotting. Added to Scam catalog post. This person is very resourceful in the variety of scam techniques.

Yet another unlisted bitters surfacing. That being a Humboldt’s German Bitters from Chicago. Stay tuned.

Monday, 26 August 2013

Back to school today for the junior pops. Certainly a sign that the summer is coming to a close. Maybe some rain at Peach Ridge this morning which we desperately need.

Found out last week that United Airlines, which has a major hub in Houston, has stopped direct flights into Reno. How am I going to get Coco to Downieville. Have a flight reserved into Sac now. Thought about taking one of Elizabeth’s horses!

What’s this I’m hearing about three Alex Von Humboldts found in or near Downieville?

Great new incoming material from James Viguerie regarding Morning Call Bitters.

Hearing that the first readers and Fed members are getting their copy of the Sep Oct issue of Bottles and Extras. Totally dedicated to the Manchester National. I hope you enjoy.

Sunday, 25 August 2013

Quiet here early Sunday morning. Dogs are all up and on my first cup of ground French Roast. Made a connection and getting in lots of good material from James Viguerie in a broad spectrum ranging from a Horse Shoe Bitters comment (read comment at bottom of post), info regardig two rare Southern medicines (read: Two rare and early ‘Southern’ Bottles) and Texas Druggists (see above picture).

Also, if you can believe it, finishing up posts on two unlisted bitters, both with a similar name! I’ll give you a hint with the above flag, coat of arms and seal.

Friday, 23 August 2013

Working out of Peach Ridge today. Elizabeth and Adriana just left for a 3-day horse event outside of Fort Worth. Two of the junior pops (my grandkids) are here with me…and six dogs and a cat.

How many of you were contacted by the scammer yesterday with the fake image? Looks like two versions were circulating.

Hi Ferdinand, Just wanted to let you and the collecting community know that the Pittsburgh double eagle picture was swiped from my website. www.antiquebottlesales.com. It can be found under the “sold items” at the bottom of the flask category on my page. Thanks,

Matt Lacy

Liking this Oxygenated Bitters package on ebay. Ex: Greer bottle and handbill. Just love those aqua pontiled bitters.

Read: Oxygenated Bitters – A Sovereign Remedy

Passing of Ronald Rasnake of Ft Pierce Florida

It is with great sadness in my heart that I have to report to you all the passing of my Honorary Brother, Mr. Ronald Rasnake of Ft Pierce Florida. He and I were very close friends for over 40 years. He is another long time Deland M-T Bottle Club member, a longtime FOHBC member and the holder of the largest Pictorial Case Gin Collection Archive in the world. My deapest Sypathy goes out to his lovely wife Sue and their children. I just found out a few minutes ago from his close friend in Ft Pierce and I just got off the phone with his wife Sue. Ron died of a sudden heart attack on August 16th and was laid to rest yesterday. My Brother you are another Antique Bottle Colelcting ICON that will be missed by many a collector around the world. I for one will sorely miss you. The fun times and jokes and bottle finding stories we used to share. Please pass on to all whom you know in the bottle collecting community that we have lost another great bottle collector and dear friend. Thank You.

Dwight A. Pettit Jr., SMSgt, USAF (Ret)
President Deland Florida M-T Bottle Club

http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/tcpalm/obituary.aspx?pid=166523735#fbLoggedOut

Thursday, 22 August 2013

Bitters News: Gary Beatty (North Port, Florida) scored twice on ebay recently with a Morning Call Bitters and a Home Bitters.

Hi Ferd, I got a Morning Call Bitters off eBay ‘Buy It Now’. 35 people were watching it so I had to make a decision fast. It is medium to dark amber. Not as pretty as yours but no damage. Probably a couple days on my tumbler just to fine tune it. It has not been dug? (who knows for sure?) But no scrapes or scratches. It is still pretty rare is it not? And was it from Cincinnati or St. Louis? Best regards, Gary

Ferd, here is the Morning Call. It does not need a tumble. I cleaned it with Ka Boom! You can put it on the PeachRidge if you want. I paid $700, did I over pay? Is it a Cincinnati or St. Louis Bottle. Best Regards, Gary

Gary’s XR bitters is NOT the same bottle as my unlisted Morning Call Bitters. I will be developing a post here on the Morning Calls. Gary also picked up a nice looking Home Bitters from St. Louis for $45. Also chasing info on a Home Bitters cylinder.

Got a phone message about a Brooklyn Bitters showing up at a recent bottle show. Haven’t tracked that one down yet. Not even familiar with the bottle. Still need to make a connection for information on a the Winfrees Bitters, W 135, 136 and 137. An example is pictured under 15 August of this month.

Hi Ferd, I just got a email from a guy yesterday about a Lange & Bernecker Eagle Bitters, It appears he stole the pictures from your website where you have them listed as the Meyer Collection. I looked at the pictures of the bottle and I knew it did not look right. I forwarded you a copy of it so you could see. Thanks, Theo (Adams)

They have taken my bottle pictures and dropped it in the friggin’ chicken coupe!

Read: The XR Celebrated Eagle Bitters – St. Louis

Also getting info in on a Milburn’s Kola Bitters from Winchester, Virginia from Tom Leveille.

Wednesday, 21 August 2013

Sad day yesterday finding out about Carl Sturm passing. Carl was a fixture at bottle shows and was a long time Fed board member. RIP Carl. That is Carl at the 206 Balto Bottle Show above.

Joe Gourd, the bitters trade card king, sent in two pieces that were added to the The Home Bitters post. Need to stay more connected to Joe.

Texas meds, drugstore, bitters, and mineral waters on my mind of late. Tons of incoming material to review. How about that Texas Hutch display by David Cole?

Tuesday, 20 August 2013

The best I have ever seen! – Jeff Noordsy

Look at this stunning group of USA HOSP DEPT bottles that Jeff and Holly Noordsy posted. Shut the door!

See more: Pictures at an Exhibition – Noordsy Gallery

Sunday, 18 August 2013

Michael and Alice Seeliger from Brooklyn, Wisconsin spent the night at Peach Ridge last night. Spent a good part of the day assisting Mike take exacting color measurements of my 6-log Drakes run and various other bottles. Need to evaluate all this information now. That is Mike on the right reading a color graph from a greenish Drakes in front of me on the left. We set up in a dark, back hallway to the laundry room as to not have any other natural light influence.

After the Houston Bottle Show. Saturday night at the house, left to right, Brad Seigler, Michael Seeliger and myself

Friday, 16 August 2013

The Houston Bottle Show starts this afternoon with the action tomorrow. This show is starting to grow again and get some attention. I am specifically looking for elusive Texas bitters examples and material and Texas colored drugstore bottles. Picked up my first bottle on ebay back in July, that being the Irion Drug Store from Tyler, Texas.

Picked up a Dr. Harter’s Cherry Bitters from St. Louis on ebay yesterday. I have many Dr. Harter examples but not this baby. Looks a bit raw but apparently there are no problems.

My Texas bottle buddy, Brad Seigler tipped me off on an advertisement for Dansby’s Cotton Patch Bitters from Terrell, Texas that was placed in a Clarksville, Texas newspaper in 1887. This is the first material I could get my digital hands on for this XR bitters. Never even seen a picture of the bottle. Read: Texas Bitters List

Thursday, 15 August 2013

Raining in Houston last night and this morning. First time in a month or so with this drought. Feels odd.

Yesterday was an odd day too with lots of incoming emails and calls on bottle and go withs. Much was put on PRG Mailbox. There was two separate communications on rare Virginia bitters bottles. One being a Burdwells Virginia Bitters from Richmond and the second on a Winfrees Bitters from Petersburg, VA. Stay tuned.

Wednesday, 14 August 2013

“half-pint, the only specimen known in this size. It turned up about three years ago and is in the collection of the author”. We are happy to share that we will be offering this flask in our Premier Auction 106 which opens…..” >> Revisit Post

The Folksy, Girl on a Bicycle Historical Flask post updated again with two new pics from Cody.

Tuesday, 13 August 2013

I like it when a post generates new material. In this case I am speaking of the The Folksy, Girl on a Bicycle Historical Flask post. Mark Vuono sends this killer pic of a pint in sapphire blue and David Whitten expands on the flask origins.

Latest on the American Life Bitters.

I keep the bottle in a safe deposit box, as soon as I get time to make it into town I will get it and try for better pics for you. I understand the scams you are talking about but rest assured I do have the bottle and this is legitimate. My mother has dementia and that alone is a full time job, plus I do have a regular job, so getting into town, which is 100 miles round trip, is not something I do anymore than I have to. It’s just to difficult on Mom and I can’t leave her alone and go that far away. I’ll try for Wednesday or Thursdayof this week to get it for the pictures. I don’t get much of a chance to get on this computer either so I’m sorry it has taken me so long to reply. Yes I have contacted others and have had offers to auction it off, one ‘kind’ gentleman offered me $20.00, I laughed and refused his offer without a second thought, guess he thought I was to stupid to know it’s value. So the scams and rip offs go both ways.

Monday, 12 August 2013

Remember BAM and this cover? Caused quite a stir. Finally picked up my XR Catawba Bitters – St. Louis square.

Saturday, 10 August 2013

Jerry Forbes and I were talking yesterday about hotel and rooming accomondations at far away bottle shows and the conversation turned to the amusing aspect of some dealers ‘shacking’ up in a $49 motel room to save money. Nothing wrong with that I guess, but these guys are dealing in some big money bottles. How bout’ them Bears!

Did I miss any Bitters books? Check out the GI-89a Lafayette Masonic flask over at Mailbox Letters.

Friday, 09 August 2013

ANTI-HAIR. For you guys. A nice little present? In case your girlfriend or wife has a beard, mustache, hairy eyes or a wart on her cheek with an outcropping of hair. Makes kissing more pleasant, I think. You can really tell a difference!

Tom Marshall posted this picture of his “Runner-Up” Utility Bottle in the Manchester Bottle Battle. Stunning example and picture.

Thursday, o8 August 2013

You may have seen my plug for the Houston Antique Bottle Show on the home page (see image on left). I used some old historical art representing early commerce in Houston. I felt like using the art below as it is 102 degrees here and we may go out and drink margaritas Friday night before the show. Whiskey too! Might be in poor taste huh?

Wednesday, 07 August 2013

Please remember to keep an eye out on Mailbox Letters each month. Sometimes some interesting incoming material. I receive quite a few letters | emails regarding ancestry which is often interesting and fruitful.

Just heard that we’ve lost another member of the bottle community. Mark Legare passed away 3 days after he attended and set up at the FOHBC National show in Manchester NH. Here’s a link to his obituary where you can sign the guest book for the family. I was able to chat with Mark at Manchester and at Keene last year. He wanted so bad to have and article in Bottles and Extras but his pictures were so blurry and low res. We finally put an article in with his cat picture a few issues back.

Mark Legare at 2013 Manchester National

http://www.neunfuneralhomes.com/memsol.cgi?user_id=1054547

Tuesday, 06 August 2013

Downieville California in the beautiful Sierra Nevada Mountains on the Forks of the Yuba and Downie Rivers. As I sit here in my studio in downtown Houston, preparing to walk the dogs on the rush-hour congested morning streets, I look at the above picture of Downieville and I sigh with relief. I hope I can find a way to go to this bottle show next month. One of my absolute favorites. More Info

Monday, 05 August 2013

Hi there Ferdinand

Back from our ‘tour of the US’ ……. flew San Fran to New York, New York to London – home Friday morning.

BIG thank you all round, & congrats on the Manchester Expo – always impressed with what/how you do things over there (interesting contrast to UK in many ways).

The award! Well, as I said “my mum would have been sooooooo proud!” Still highly ‘chuffed’ to have received such, alongside so many distinguished collectors, most I have met. It will take pride of place in the office.

Is there any chance of a higher res image of the attached jpeg – Englands Antiques Trade Gazette want to use it for this weeks edition?

Secretary Clare and magazine editor Guy Burch kept much of what was going on a closely guarded secret – unsure whether to congratulate them, or murder them!

Spent some time trawling thro’ your images on Peachridge site – great spread. How could I get hold of some of the photographers images from the show – possibility of a disc (will gladly refund cost of posting).

All the best for now.

Alan Blakeman
BBR

Yosemite was just greeeeeeat as ever!

Sunday, 04 August 2013

It seems that after the two big shows each year, that being the FOHBC National and the Baltimore Bottle Show, I usually get a picture from Jerry Forbes with some of his takes from the show. This year the Manchester National was no different. Jerry scored BIG. Read: Jerry Forbes Does it Again

Here is another picture of that Concentric Ring Eagle historical flask.

Saturday, 03 August 2013

Wyoming Cordial post updated with incredible new material from Mark Yates. What did you all think of that striated flask that Jerry picked up at Manchester? Reminded me of the Swirls, Whirls, Twists & Twirls display at the Reno Expo.

Friday, 02 August 2013

Just added these two babies to the Bitters Spotting (and more) at Manchester post.

Can you believe it? I still have not unpacked my boxes and bottles from Manchester. Hopefully, this weekend.

Nice to see that Jeff Wichmann has moved. Pictures above from his moving announcement. I liked his old shop and the neighborhood. Hopefully I can see the new location soon.

Thursday, 01 August 2013

I find myself in Green Bay, Wisconsin today for business. In the 50s temperature-wise this morning. Was near 100 degrees when I left Houston yesterday. Had to stop and say hello to two legends and send the pics to my grandson Nicholas. He wanted an Aaron Rodgers jersey too. There were actually “cheese heads” with RV’s in the stadium parking lot having a tailgate gathering at 8:30 am.

Posted in Advice, Daily Dose, News | Tagged Daily Dose | Leave a comment

Birmingham Bottle, Advertising & Folk Pottery Show

Posted on 31 July 2013 by Ferdinand Meyer V

Birmingham Bottle, Advertising & Folk Pottery Show

27 July 2013

The Alabama Bottle Collectors’ annual show was another huge success with 100 paid Dealer tables. In addition, we had 36 Early Buyers during Friday afternoon’s setup period. At the FREE pizza buffet for Dealer and Early Buyers Friday evening, over 125 people were served. General admission on Saturday topped 500 as estimated by several dealers. Local collector and general antiques dealer Reggie Swiney said “I had a great show…the public was there to buy.” Reggie also suggested that we charge admission but our club feels strongly that we should maintain our “FREE Admission” policy.

“This was the year of firsts…the 1st year with 100 paid tables, the 1st year with zero cancellations or no-shows and the 1st year I had a volunteer handle Early Buyer registration…

When asked about the show’s highlights, Tom Lines, the (permanent) Show Chairman, said “This was the year of firsts…the 1st year with 100 paid tables, the 1st year with zero cancellations or no-shows and the 1st year I had a volunteer handle Early Buyer registration…Thank You Steve Holland!!!” Asked if the Manchester Show the previous weekend impacted the Birmingham Show, Lines remarked “We had 3 dealers that attended our show last year that didn’t return because they went to Manchester. But we had 3 other dealers that did both shows despite being over 1,200 miles apart. Plus we had 13 new dealers that set up for the first time this year. So bottom line, there was little to no effect.”

As for the merchandise offered for sale, the general consensus was there were plenty of things for everyone to buy. Mississippi bottle and antiques dealer Alan Balliet said he acquired 50 bottles and flasks for re-sale at the many antique shows he attends. And good sales were reported by a number of dealers. Tampa, Florida’s Charlie Livingston said it was his best show all year. Tom Lines lamented missing a small Sandwich smelling salts bottle in a greenish canary yellow, an exceptional color for a smelling salts! Several museum quality pieces of Alabama folk pottery were offered by Tommy Burke including 3-4 decorated Sand Mountain churns and bean pots.
North Carolina’s Tim Adams came for the first time along with traveling companion Vern Huffstetler from South Carolina with each reporting excellent sales. Not being avid pizza fans, Tim and Vern found The Bright Star, a nationally renowned Greek restaurant in downtown Bessemer for their real meal. When asked about it the next morning, Tim said “Even if I didn’t sell anything next year, I’d come back just to eat at The Bright Star”. Georgia’s Tom and Mabel Hicks are also Bright Star fans as is New Orleans’ Jim Corvin. But, hey, the pizzas were good too!

Our 2 club displays this year featured Alabama mineral waters in one lighted showcase and a selection of Marion County’s Rye Pottery in the other case. Collectors were solicited prior to the show to bring a piece or two from their collections to place in the respective displays. Even though one collector slated to bring several unique mineral water bottles fell ill several days before the show and was unable to attend, the display still boasted 3 more unique mineral waters including an iron pontiled Talladega Sulphur Springs, a Baileys Mineral Springs from Florence and a Hydrostill from Birmingham plus a great selection of other known bottles. The Rye pottery display also had some bang-up examples of Jimmie Rye’s pieces.

James Cormany, winner of this year’s free dealer table, holding the (not-so-coveted) “Ugliest Trophy Ever” that has to be displayed on his table during show hours.

An annual highlight at the show has always been a drawing just for dealers to win a free sales table, actually to be reimbursed for one table. The only catch is that they have to display what’s been dubbed as the “Ugliest Trophy Ever” on their table throughout the duration of the show. This year’s winner was local collector and dealer James Cormany, also a Rye pottery expert having authored the only work ever written on the history of the Rye family.

Looking into 2014, the show date will be Saturday, July 26th with setup on Friday, the 25th. Historically, the club holds their show the 4th Saturday of July each year. And, again, the 2014 FOHBC National Antique Bottle Show at Lexington, KY will be within a week but this time, the Birmingham Show precedes the national show. Please mark your calendars now!

Posted in Bottle Shows, Club News, News | Tagged Birmingham, James Cormany, Tom Lines | Leave a comment

How to win a Stoddard Double Eagle Historical Flask

Posted on 31 July 2013 by Ferdinand Meyer V

How to Win a Stoddard Double Eagle Historical Flask

What is was: There will also be a raffle for a quart sized, double eagle flask from Stoddard, New Hampshire to benefit the Virtual Museum. The show co-chairs (Michael George and Maureen Crawford) were given the authority to buy a flask or equivalent piece of glass with a $1,000 anonymous donation. THe FOHBC will sell six $1 raffle tickets for $5. The winner will not have to be present. The person making the $1,000 donation did not want public recognition.

Fine Print: *FOHBC officers, show chairpersons, and their spouses/partners or children are not eligible for the $5,000 promotion. Any consultants to the FOHBC are also not eligible. FOHBC officers, show chairpersons, and their spouses/partners or children are eligible for the Virtual Museum raffle.

1. Attend the Manchester National as a Dealer, Collector or Guest.

2. Buy a Raffle Ticket

3. Try to Attend the Exciting Announcement Drawing

4. Be Jonathan Melnick from Sarasota, Florida. Congratulations Jonathan!

Posted in Advice, Bottle Shows, Flasks, FOHBC News, Historical Flasks, News, Virtual Museum | Tagged Double Eagle, Jonathan Melnick, raffle, virtual museum | Leave a comment

The Mystery surrounding the Woodgate’s Plantation Bitters

06 August 2012 (Updated 07 August 2013 with Jeff Burkhardt information) (R•061317)

*Examples are numbered by appearance in collections

W 160 WOODGATE’S PLANTATION BITTERS

// c // WOODGATE‘S ( au ) / PLANTATION ( au ) / BITTERS // 8 ribs // 8 ribs // 8 ribs // 9 3/4 x 3 (6) Square cabin, Amber, Yellow olive, LTC, Applied mouth, Extremely rare 15 horizontal logs in each of 2 sides. 8 ribs on 3 shoulders

*Suggest Bill Ham add apostrophe in WOODGATE’S and Yellow olive as color in next edition of Bitters Bottles Supplement.

Yesterday was a Good Bottle Day

“What you spend on the peanuts, you save on the bananas”

“found wrapped up in a mid 19th century blanket chest in one of the oldest settlements at the end of the Oregon trail”

*PRG added the imagery.

The devotion that so many of us feel toward the objects that we collect

Saint Jacob’s Bitters – Cincinnati, Ohio

Celebrated St. Jacob’s Bitters, St. Jacob’s Bitters Co., Cincinnati, Ohio

St. Jacobs Bitters, Mihalovitch, Fletcher & Co., Cincinnati, Ohio.

03 August 2013 (R•060719)

Saint Jacob

St. Jacob’s Bitters Company

Mihalovitch, Fletcher & Co. – St. Jacob’s Bitters

Select Listings:

1883: Celebrated Saint Jacob’s Bitters Patent Listing, St. Jacob’s Bitters Co. – Congressional Serial Set – 1883

1883: Label, July 31st, 1883, “St. Jacob’s Tonic.” St. Jacob’s Bitters Co., Cincinnati, Ohio – New Remedies, Volume 12, Wm. Wood & Company, 1883

1884: Patent listing (below) 3404 for St. Jacob’s Tonic by St. Jacob’s Bitters Company, Cincinnati, Ohio – United States. Patent Office, 1884

1884: Newspaper advertisement (below) Ahead of All Competitors, St. Jacobs Bitters, This Tonic has no Equal, Mihalovitch, Fletcher & Co., Cincinnati, O. – The Times Picayune, Saturday, October 4, 1884

1884: Newspaper notice (below) B. Mihalovitch of Mihalovitch, Fletcher & Co., proprietors of the St. Jacob’s Bitters in town – The Times Picayune, Thursday, November 20, 1884

1885: Newspaper advertisement (below) H. Grossman & Co., Sole Agents for St. Jacob’s Bitters – 1885 Williams’ Cincinnati Directory

1887: Newspaper advertisement (below) Mihalovitch’s Hungarian Blackberry Juice For Men Women and Children. Mihalovitch, Fletcher & Co., – The Saint Pau Glob, Saturday, July 23__1887

1894: Newspaper advertisement (above in post) Celebrated Saint Jacob’s Bitters made by the Saint Jacob’s Bitters Company, Cincinnati, Carlisle Evening Herald, November 27, 1894.

1896: Newspaper notice (below) Fire Record. Two Hundred Thousand Dollars’ Worth of Property Destroyed in Cincinnati. Mihalovitch, Fletcher & Co. distillery destroyed. The Times Democrat, Wednesday, March 11, 1896

Jerry’s “Hippie Dippie“ Bottle

Wyoming Cordial – Wyoming Remedies

The Great Life Preserving Tonic and Blood Purifier

C. H. Nearing and Mr. Wakefield of Homer, were in the place Monday selling patent medicines, salves, etc.

A Cyclone

The Wyoming Medicines are Sweeping Over Fulton Co., Like a Cyclone. The Sale of Wyoming Cordial in This City Already Exceeds That of Any Other Remedy.

HORTON WHO?

Perky – Pet (embossed hummingbird) Since 1958

Irish Ginger Beer and Stone Stout Bottle Book

Unembossed Imperial Levee Find

Warrock Confectioner – Jacksonville, Florida

Veterinary Clinic Bottles

Baby Feeder Question

Boy Holding Clock Figural

Restoration of the WWII Destroyer HMS Cavalier

N. K. Brown’s Iron & Quinine Bitters

All Laxative Stomach Bitters Question?

Augauer Bitters Wanted

Hundreds of Quality Jars

Not a common sense type Inkwell

Subject: William James Moxham

Chevalier Angelo M F Gianelli

Fraser Canyon Find

August 2 0 1 3

Some ramblings and thoughts…

Saturday, 31 August 2013

Friday, 30 August 2013

Tommy Mitchiner Death

Thursday, 29 August 2013

Wednesday, 28 August 2013

Tuesday, 27 August 2013

Monday, 26 August 2013

Sunday, 25 August 2013

Friday, 23 August 2013

Read: Oxygenated Bitters – A Sovereign Remedy

Thursday, 22 August 2013

Wednesday, 21 August 2013

Tuesday, 20 August 2013

The best I have ever seen! – Jeff Noordsy

Sunday, 18 August 2013

Friday, 16 August 2013

Thursday, 15 August 2013

Wednesday, 14 August 2013

Tuesday, 13 August 2013

Monday, 12 August 2013

Saturday, 10 August 2013

Friday, 09 August 2013

Thursday, o8 August 2013

Wednesday, 07 August 2013

Tuesday, 06 August 2013

Monday, 05 August 2013

Sunday, 04 August 2013

// c // WOODGATE‘S ( au ) / PLANTATION ( au ) / BITTERS // 8 ribs // 8 ribs // 8 ribs //
9 3/4 x 3 (6)
Square cabin, Amber, Yellow olive, LTC, Applied mouth, Extremely rare
15 horizontal logs in each of 2 sides. 8 ribs on 3 shoulders

Suggest Bill Ham add apostrophe in WOODGATE’S and Yellow olive as color in next edition of Bitters Bottles Supplement*.