EARLY SODAS OF THE CAROLINAS
The Bottles & Proprietors
Charleston, Columbia, Georgetown, Hilton Head Island, South Carolina
Statesville. Weldon, Wilmington, Wilson, Winston, North Carolina
By David Kyle Rakes (Author) & Ferdinand Meyer V (Designer). Published by Peachridge Collections, LLC.
Foreword by Jamie Westendorff
“The Charleston I grew up in was a prime place to dig for bottles. From 1835 to 1860, Charleston was one of the wealthiest cities in the United States and a perfect place for soda water vendors, but the Great Fire, the Civil War, Reconstruction, and the much later exodus to the suburbs stole a lot of that glory. However, it made it easier to find bottles because of vacant homes, demolition, and easily obtained permission.
“As a teenager, I grew up in the city and was lucky enough to walk out of my bedroom into my backyard and dig an 1830s privy that yielded a Charter Oak Historical flask and an eight-sided green Smith and Co. soda. Needless to say, I was hooked for the balance of my life. Meeting and befriending other diggers and learning more were the next steps and some of my best decisions. Friendships have been lifelong, and the hobby is still consuming.
“Early on, Leon Robinson was my digging partner, and he and the Holcombes had written the only publication on Charleston sodas. At the time, most diggers did not know the rarer of the two. Cosgrove or Fields. The publications seemed to tell the story of sodas in Charleston but nothing to the depth of David’s book. I have always picked up tidbits of educational material on the soda industry in Charleston and always thought I would publish something, but it takes a skilled writer, a lot more research than I have, and a team to assemble the book images. I am pleased with this new book; it answers many questions about why some went into business, their years in business, and the bottles they produced that we now collect in our great hobby.
“As a college boy, I remember doodling soda sketches on the left-hand column of my notes. When I thought I drank too much, I would say the names Dawson and Blackman, Steinke and Kornahrens, and Christian Schlepegrell as a sobriety test; now, at my older age, I say them as a senility test.
“After college and marriage, I continued to work for my father as he did. I was a plumber and later started a catering company. I plumbed all the restaurants in downtown Charleston, so you might say I worked under all the great chefs in town. Both vocations were keys to the backyards and more digging and collecting.
“Baltimore and Savannah have beautiful sodas, but, in my opinion, Charleston has the more varied shapes with round, eight-sided, ten-sided mug bases and even a ten-pin. David’s book even demonstrates my opinion. Charleston sodas are prizes in collections all over the country, and rightly so. I am so excited about this new book and can only say if you are ever in Charleston, come look me up. After a few drinks and some fried shrimp, I might even have you saying Dawson and Blackman, Steinke, Kornahrens and Christian Schleppegrell.
