Using Children on Advertising Trade Cards – Part 2

Posted on 21 June 2013 by Ferdinand Meyer V

MoosieMountainTC_Gourd

Hi Ferdinand,

Liked the piece you did on using children to advertise products on trade cards. As requested, here are some additional TC’s along with my permission to display any or all of them on your website.

Glad to support your efforts………..Joe (Gourd)

Apple-Touch-IconAA couple weeks ago I posted some really neat young children advertising medicine products on Victorian trade cards. It is an honor to have Joe Gourd to allow us to see some of his cards. Folks, for the most part, these are extremely rare and tough to find cards. Many I have not seen myself. I met Joe at this years Baltimore Antique Bottle Show this past March. Joe is considered one of the Kings if not the King of Bitters trade cards.

Read: Young Children in Antique Trade Card Advertising

Using Children on Advertising Trade Cards

PART II

21 June 2013

BrownsGermanBittersTC_Gourd BrownsIronTCBaby_Gourd BurdockBloodBlueRibbonTC_Gourd BurdockBloodBoy&DogTC_Gourd BurdockBloodSledTC_Gourd BurdockBloodSpillTC_Gourd PrescottsBittersTC_Gourd PricklyAshYellowDressTC_Gourd SulphurBittersBrushTC_Gourd SulphurBittersTC_Gourd VanNessGoldenBittersTC_Gourd NationsalStomachBittersTC_Gourd Hops&MaltBittersTC_Gourd DandelionBittersTC_Gourd BurdockBloodSurpriseTC_Gourd

Posted in Advertising, Bitters, Collectors & Collections, Ephemera, Medicines & Cures, Trade Cards | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Dr. Briggs Worm Destroyer – a real mystery

Posted on 20 June 2013 by Ferdinand Meyer V

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Dr. Briggs Worm Destroyer – a real mystery

20 June 2013 (R•112213 see bottom comment)

Apple-Touch-IconAHere is a weird one that is currently on ebay. A Doctor Briggs Worm Destroyer. This little puppy is as whittled as can be and is as cute as a button. What a bottle! The ebay listing is below:

DOCT. BRIGGS WORM DESTROYER

ebaylogoUnlisted & Mint Dr Brigg’s Worm Destroyer Open Pontil Killer Crude Wavy Whittle

Here is a ONE OF A KIND open pontil medicine bottle that is unlisted in all the catalogs, books, auction sales, etc. You can check Greer, Glassworks, etc and you won’t find it listed. This is a great opportunity to acquire a awesome medicine for your collection. It is an icy blue aqua, round and stands just over 4 inches tall. It is embossed DOCT. BRIGGS WORM on one side and DESTROYER on the other. It has a super crude rolled lip and is hammered with gorgeous whittle and wavy glass. It has a nice sharp and crisp tubular open pontil scar on the bottom. EXCELLENT CONDITION with no chips, cracks, or dings. brandon551 100% Positive Feedback

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“Ladies and gents, this is where you git the Blackfoot Injun Root-ee, the Pain Balm, the Cough Balsam, the Magic Salve and the Worm Destroyer – the fi-i-ive remedies fer two dollars!” The medicine show followed the dawg fight. It hit Briggs City towards sundown one day…”

This is a tough bottle to trace online. Very few leads but some make your imagination wander. For instance, one hit led me to a book called Cupid the Cow Punch by Eleanor Gates who writes about a medicine man, worm destroyer and the tiny Texas town of Griggs. “Ladies and gents, this is where you git the Blackfoot Injun Root-ee, the Pain Balm, the Cough Balsam, the Magic Salve and the Worm Destroyer – the fi-i-ive remedies fer two dollars! The medicine show followed the dawg fight. It hit Briggs City towards sundown one day…” Briggs City is a tiny town in North Texas that is all but gone now. Most likely this is just a red heron. Another lead takes me to Nashville for a Charles S. Briggs who was a surgeon in the late 1800s. Don’t think this is it either.

Looking at AntiqueMedicines.com I do see three separate listing for Briggs bottles.

G E BRIGGS’ RUSSIAN COSMETIC PREPARED BY E. B. G. KINSLOE PHILAD. OP, Greer 280

DR J BRIGGS N.Y. (IN RECESSED PANEL) Chiropodist (foot doctor) at 212 Broadway NY

M.A. BRIGGS TONIC PILLS NUNN BETTER NEVER FAIL TO CURE VALDOSTA, GA

Oh well, just something to think about. Maybe someone out there has some information on ole’ Doct Briggs and his Worm Destroyer?

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Just some neat medicine show writing – Cupid the Cow Punch by Eleanor Gates

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Dr. Peters Worm Lozenges – Testimonial by a Mrs. Catherine Ann Briggs – Schenectady, NY 1842

Read More: Morphine Copy Cat – Dr. Hobson’s Soothing Syrup (similar bottles)

Posted in eBay, History, Medicines & Cures, Publications, Questions, Remedy, Salve | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

MacQueen & Co. Mason’s Fruit Jar Trade Card – Philadelphia, Pa.

Posted on 19 June 2013 by Ferdinand Meyer V

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Out of millions of early ad cards that we have seen offered for sale, this is the one & only ad card we have ever seen which has a Mason’s fruit jar depicted on it.

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Apple-Touch-IconAI really like this trade card currently on ebay showing this Rubenesque lady (Read: The Rubenesque Queens) holding a Mason’s Patent Nov. 30th 1858 fruit jar. I have never heard of MacQueen & Co. or Dr. P.C. Rundio. What caught my attention also was the sellers comment “Out of millions of early ad cards that we have seen offered for sale, this is the one & only ad card we have ever seen which has a Mason’s fruit jar depicted on it.” Wow. The listing reads:

Original Ultra Rare MacQueen & Co. Mason’s Fruit Jar Ad Card Philadelphia, Pa.

Original & ultra rare MacQueen & Co. Mason’s fruit jar advertising card. The card shows a very folksy girl on the front holding a “Mason’s Patent Nov. 30th 1858” fruit jar. The wording at the bottom front edge is “Macqueen & Co. Fruit Jars, Lamps, & c. Nos. 7 and 9 Fifth St., Philadelphia”. The back has a rubber stamped ad for the druggist “Dr. P. C. Rundio of Patterson, Pa.”

Out of millions of early ad cards that we have seen offered for sale this is the one & only ad card we have ever seen which has a Mason’s fruit jar depicted on it. An extremely rare & significant subject to find on an advertising card!!

The card measures 3 31/32 inches long by 2 15/32 inches wide. The corners have in period trim which does not effect the image. The top left corner has a bump & a small tear. Please examine the clear photos that we have provided & purchase based on your own opinion as to the condition. imajgin 100% Positive Feedback

It is odd when I look for the name MacQueen & Company in the Philadelphia directories as I do not readily come across the listing name. I do see a few listings for S. A. MacQueen on 1427 Walnut Street, Watches, Clocks, Jewelry, etc. Obviously the same company. Another listing after the turn of the century says S. A. MacQueen Company – Philadelphia, Pa., Dec 11 1916, Capital $60,000. Manufacture, buy, sell, deal and generally trade in silverware, plated-ware, jewelry, watches, clocks, mahogany, ware, works of ornament and art, paintings and other similar or cognate articles of commerce. Unfortunately these listings are way to late to tie directly back to the trade card. We need to find something in the mid to late 1800s.

It just seems that the one trade card I can find for this company shows a lady holding a Mason’s Fruit Jar. Why wouldn’t she be holding a clock, wearing a watch or eating off a plate? The card clearly says “Fruit Jars”. I just do not see the connection.

Next I searched for Dr. P.C. Rundio from Patterson, Pa. His drug store stamp is on the back of the card. Why is his name on the card? I did find a listing for Dr. Rundio.

The Adams Express Company established an office in Patterson in 1857, with James North as agent. The office was moved to Mifflintown. A post-office was established in Patterson, with James North as postmaster, May 1, 1852; and he held the office five years. Since then the postmasters have been James North, F. J. Mickey, Joseph Pennell, R. E. Parker, Dr. P. C. Rundio, J. B. M. Todd, Samuel Strayer, Samuel Brown, W. W. Copeland, Howard Kirk. (1866)

Here we go. This is an 1866 or so listing. Now we have the right time period. Further research tags him as being born in 1838 and living in Mifflintown, PA in 1860 and practicing as a physician according to the 1860 Federal Census. From the 1870s until 1900 he is listed as living in Williamsport, PA.

It would be interesting to hear from a few of the fruit jar and trade card collectors on this topic.

“I googled hard, and couldn’t find another image of a Victorian Trade Card that pictures a fruit jar. Weird.”

Marianne Dow

MacQueen&Co_TC_Masons MacQueen&Co_TC_MasonsRev

Posted in Druggist & Drugstore, Fruit Jars, Questions, Trade Cards, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

A Riker – Jaynes’ Drug Store Question

Posted on 18 June 2013 by Ferdinand Meyer V
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Riker – Jaynes’ Drug Store – Portland, Maine circa 1913 – Maine Historical Society

“You Are Safe When You Buy At Riker-Jayne.”

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Apple-Touch-IconAOver on the Peachridge Glass facebook page and in response to the Dr. D. Jayne & Son – The Almanac King post, Lori Burns-Joyce said that she has a small, 2-2 1/2″ bottle that says Riker~Jayne’s Drug Store USA and wondered if it was related?

This set off an Internet search that quickly provided the topmost picture of the Riker – Jaynes’ Drug Store in Portland, Maine in 1913. The tagline under their name on the sign is “You Are Safe When You Buy At Riker-Jayne.” Brian Shultis quickly posted the advertisement further below promoting the 92nd Riker-Jaynes Drug Store in the Lewiston (Maine) Evening Journal, on 01 November 1913. Wow, that’s quite an operation. Now all we need to do is link the “Jayne’s” back to Dr. D. Jayne. Shouldn’t be too hard. Has to be the same name.

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Nowadays it seems that there is a Walgreen’s, Rite-Aid or CVS Pharmacy on every corner. The ‘mom & pop’ pharmacy and sundry shop have for the most part, long vanished and have been replaced by the mega chains. As a child, I remember drug stores and small shops on every corner in Towson, Maryland. Many had jars of candy, baseball cards and all kinds of cool stuff to entertain and tempt you as your mother was picking up a prescription or talking to a clerk.

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Advertisement promoting the 92nd Riker-Jayne Drug Store in the Lewiston (Maine) Evening Journal, from 01 November 1913. – Shultis submittal

From what I can see, Dr. David Jayne was operating out of Philadelphia in 1836 as he purchased a drug store at No. 20 South Third Street where he engaged in the sale of drugs and in medical practice, laid the foundation of his subsequent great business in the sale of proprietary medicines.

“has come the announcement that a complete merger of the Riker-Hegerman-Jaynes stores, and of the United Cigar Store Company, with its 1,100 stores is about to be accomplished.”

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Riker-Jaynes Drug Store (bottom right) – Springfield, Massachusetts, c1913 – ebay

At some point I surmise, Dr. Jayne must have crossed paths, competed with and eventually joined up with William B. Riker in the Pharmacy business. It may have been that Jayne simply realized that he needed a stronger retail outlet to spread the name and sell his growing number of products. Riker was a native New Yorker who entered the drug business in 1846. After serving as a clerk for some years, Riker opened a drug store of his own accord on lower Sixth Avenue. After years of service he retired in favor of his son William H. Riker. Before retiring, he founded the William B. Riker & Son Company.

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RIKER-JAYNES DRUG STORES | BOSTON | NEW YORK-BROOKLYN – Shultis Collection

In the 1908 Bulletin of Pharmacy, the business of the Ryker-Jaynes drug stores in Boston was described and illustrated. At that time, there were seven in number. The business was then owned by the William B. Ryker & Son Co. which operated nine stores in New York and Brooklyn, making a total of 16 stores under one management and ownership.

By 1914, it was the Riker-Hegeman Corporation of New York with a drug store chain with 105 stores. It was growing at the rate of more than three stores per month. The average druggist turned over their inventory three or four times per year, while the Riker-Hegeman chain claimed twelve. And they kept growing.

From the American Druggist in 1915, “as as sequel to the recent partial realization of the long cherished plans of George J. Whelan, president of the United Cigar Stores Company, to control a chain of retail drug stores, similar to the cigar store chain which has long been established upon a highly profitable basis, has come the announcement that a complete merger of the Riker-Hegerman-Jaynes stores, and of the United Cigar Store Company, with its 1,100 stores is about to be accomplished.

Liggett_Takeover

Next came the huge mergers with United Drug Company (Rexall) and L.K. Liggett Company. Eventually, more and more mergers occurred leading us up to the sterile Walgreens, Rite-Aid and CVS Pharmacies dominating our retail corners. I dread going in to these places that always seem to be one holiday or two ahead of the real world.

WorldsBiggestDrugCombination

Posted in Druggist & Drugstore, History, Medicines & Cures, Questions | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Rush’s Bitters – Benjamin Rush and Abraham Hilliard Flanders

Posted on 17 June 2013 by Ferdinand Meyer V

Rush's Bitters 2

RUSH’S BITTERS | A. H. FLANDERS

 NEW YORK

Apple-Touch-IconAIn looking at the Dr. D. Jayne’s Almanac’s, I came across a few wonderful Rush’s almanacs that made me think and wonder a bit about my Rush’s Bitters put out by A. H. Flanders in New York. I honestly had no idea the “Rush” was Benjamin Rush, one of the signers of our Declaration of Independence. Once again, every bottle has a story.

BenjaminRushOval

BENJAMIN RUSH

Benjamin Rush (January 4, 1746 [O.S. December 24, 1745] – April 19, 1813) was a Founding Father of the United States. Rush lived in the state of Pennsylvania and was a physician, writer, educator, humanitarian, as well as the founder of Dickinson College in Carlisle, Pennsylvania. His name is represented on the Rush’s Bitters bottle.

Rush signed the Declaration of Independence and attended the Continental Congress. He served as Surgeon General in the Continental army, and was blamed for criticising George Washington. Later in life, Rush became a professor of chemistry, medical theory, and clinical practice at the University of Pennsylvania.

As an Enlightenment intellectual, he was committed to organizing all medical knowledge around explanatory theories, rather than rely on empirical methods. 

Rush was a leader of the American Enlightenment, and an enthusiastic supporter of the American Revolution. As mentioned, he signed the Declaration of Independence, and was a leader in Pennsylvania’s ratification of the Constitution in 1788. He was prominent in many reforms, especially in the areas of medicine and education. He opposed slavery, advocated free public schools, and sought improved education for women and a more enlightened penal system. As a leading physician, Rush had a major impact on the emerging medical profession. As an Enlightenment intellectual, he was committed to organizing all medical knowledge around explanatory theories, rather than rely on empirical methods. Rush argued that illness was the result of imbalances in the body’s physical system and was caused by malfunctions in the brain. His approach prepared the way for later medical research, but Rush himself undertook none of it. He promoted public health by advocating clean environment and stressing the importance of personal and military hygiene. His study of mental disorder made him one of the founders of American psychiatry.

His chief accomplishment as a physician was in the practice of bleeding the patient. 

His chief accomplishment as a physician was in the practice of bleeding the patient. It was said that he considered bleeding to be a cure for nearly any ailment. Even when the practice began to decline, he refused to reconsider the dangers of it. He died at the age of 68 at his home in Philadelphia, the most celebrated physician in America. [Wikipedia & US History.org]

ABRAHAM HILLIARD FLANDERS

Abraham Hilliard Flanders (1827 – 1897) was born in Cambridge, Massachusetts on 27 September 1827 to Thomas Flanders and Ann Hilliard. Abraham married Georgianna B. Tappan and had a daughter Grace. A.H. Flanders passed away on 10 November 1897 in Morristown, New Jersey. Abraham studied at Harvard Medical College and graduated from Union College. Flanders practiced primarily in New York City and built a house on Fort Nonsense, Morristown, New Jersey, where he died.

In 1866, Dr. A. H. Flanders would relocate to Boston, Massachusetts from Cambridge where he would start bottling a line of medical formulas said to be handed down from Benjamin Rush. He simply called his primary brand Rush’s Bitters which was 35% of alcohol by volume (see chart below). By 1869, Dr. Flanders would move his operation to 727 Broadway in New York and then to No. 3 Rutherford Place, Stuyvesant Square, N.Y.

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The bitters and medicines that he produced would bare the name Rush’s embossed on the bottles and packages, capitalizing from Benjamin Rush’s fame. Along with Rush’s Bitters there was Rush’s Pills, Rush’s Sarsaparilla and Iron, Rush’s Sarsaparilla and Buchu, Rush’s Vegetable Pain Cure, Rush’s Lung Balm, Rush’s Restorer, Rush’s Female Remedy, Rush’s Catarrh Remedy, Rush’s Fever and Ague Compound, Rush’s Acoustic Oil, Rush’s Cream Liniment and Rush’s Syrup. There were others who would use the name Rush but Dr. A. H. Flanders was the most successful. Dr. Flanders would publish Rush’s Almanac and Guides to Health. He was listed in drug catalogs up to 1894 and advertisements till 1907. (Reference Bottle Pickers)

Read: Dr. Rush by Dr. Richard Cannon

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

R 124  RUSH’S BITTERS, Circa 1869 – 1885

RUSH’S // BITTERS // A. H. FLANDERS / NEW YORK // f //
8 7/8 x 2 3/4 (6 5/8) 1/4
Square, CM, Applied mouth and Tooled lip, 3 sp, Amber – Common; Aqua – Rare

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Rush’s Bitters in a yellow amber – Meyer Collection

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Labeled Rush’s Bitters in amber – Tony Marostica

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Rush’s Bitters – Rush’s Sarsaparilla and Iron Trade Card – Meyer Collection

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Rush’s Pills – Rush’s Sarsaparilla and Iron Trade Card – ebay

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Stamps were issued for A.H. Flanders M.D. for Rush’s Medicines from November, 1869 through June 2, 1883. – www.rdhinstl.com

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Rush’s Almanac and Guide to Health Almanac – 1869

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Rush’s Almanac and Guide to Health Almanac – 1872

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Rush’s Almanac and Guide to Health Almanac – 1875

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Rush’s Almanac & Guide to Health Almanac – 1881

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Rush’s Sarsaparilla and Buchu bottles – photo source unknown

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RUSH’S / A. H. FLANDERS. M. D. / NEW YORK / BUCHU / AND IRON – Shultis Collection

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Rush’s Bitters Alcohol Content at 35% – Report of the Women’s Institutes, Part 2, Ontario. Dept. of Agriculture, 1906

Posted in Bitters, Ephemera, History, Medicines & Cures, Remedy | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Dr. D. Jayne & Son – The Almanac King

Posted on 15 June 2013 by Ferdinand Meyer V

Dr. D. Jayne & Son Family Medicines Philadelphia

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Apple-Touch-IconAI was spinning around the Internet earlier today and came across three really neat Internal Revenue Proprietary Stamps (pictured below) for Dr. D. Jayne & Son from Philadelphia. Of course I had heard of Dr. Jayne as a bottle collector but I wanted to know a little more. Much has been written on this famous company that was in business for over 100 years. I won’t go deep there but I will reference you to a fine past article by John (Digger) Odell that I enjoyed reading (further below). My interest, as a artist, student of architecture and stamp collector was in some of the ‘cool pieces’ that carry the Jayne name.

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DAVID JAYNE

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Jayne Building circa 1870 – Hagley Museum & Library

David Jayne (pictured above) was the son of Ebenezer Jayne (died 1826) who was a Baptist minister. His place of birth in 1799 is given variously as Stroudsburg, Bushkill or Middle Smithfield, Pennsylvania, all towns along the Delaware River.

In 1818, Jayne began the study of medicine at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia. After completing his studies he began to practice as a rural family doctor in Salem, New Jersey in 1822. He first started introducing his own medicines around 1830. He eventually moved up the river in the mid 1830s to Philadelphia, where he purchased a drug store on South Third Street.

Jaynes business grew rapidly as Dr. David Jayne’s “Family Medicines” and by the late 1840s he had successfully marketed eight proprietary medicines including Jayne’s Carminative Balsam, American Hair Dye and Jayne’s Hair Tonic. Jayne’s Alterative was then introduced in 1851. In 1855 Dr. Jayne joined with his sons David W. and Eben C. Jayne as well as John K. Walker to form the firm Dr. Jayne & Son. Why he did not put “Sons” in the name is not evident.

In 1843 Jayne produced and distributed one of the first medical almanacs in America. He used the annual almanac as an effective marketing tool to promote the Dr. Jayne brand. Over the next ninety-seven or so years they printed and distributed more than 500 million almanacs with the last one being published in 1940. These almanacs, in the second half of the 1800s and out, were used primarily as a means to push his patent medicines.

By this time Dr. Jayne’s was a large drug company located at 242 Chestnut Street in the heart of Philadelphia. The cover of the Dr. Jayne’s Medical Almanac clearly displayed the large, 10-story building the company constructed between 1848-1850 to house its expanding business. At the time, Dr. Jayne’s building was one of the most conspicuous buildings in Philadelphia. Unsurprisingly, it continued to adorn the cover of Dr. Jayne’s almanac for many decades. (references: An Annotated Catalogue of the Edward C. Atwater Collection of American Popular Medicine and Health Reform: A-Z Supplement, Philadelphia Area Center for History of Science, Hair Raising Stories)

Read: Dr. David Jayne and his Family Medicines (John Odell)

C o o l   P i e c e s

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Dr. D. Jayne & Son Private Die Stamps – The one-cent blue, two-cent black and four-cent green private die stamps were first issued in January of 1863. The one-cent was last delivered on February 19, 1883, the two-cent on March 6 and the four-cent on February 7 of that year. Several copies exist printed in orange and red, but it is not certain these were ever put into use. – www.rdhinstl.com

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Dr. Jayne’s Tonic Vermifuge advertising

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Dr. Jayne’s Tonic Vermifuge and Dr. Jayne’s Sanative Pills advertising, circa 1880 – Hagley Museum & Library

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Dr. David Jayne Residence, Chestnut Street, S.E. corner of 19th – King’s Views of Philadelphia. Illustrated Monographs. Part 5

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Dr. D. Jayne & Son Medical Almanac and Guide to Health – 1872

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Dr. D. Jayne & Son Expectorant Reverse Painting on Glass Sign – Cowan’s Auctions

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Dr. D. Jayne & Son Medical Almanac and Guide to Health – 1881

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Dr. D. Jayne & Son Medical Almanac and Guide to Health in German – 1887

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Dr. D. Jayne & Son Alterative Reverse Painting on Glass Sign – Cowan’s Auctions

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Jayne’s Expectorant for Coughs due to Colds, Dr. D. Jayne and Son, 1920 – Smithsonian Institution, National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center

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Dr. D. Jayne & Son cancellation on block of nine Proprietary stamps. The six stamps on the left are of a single font different from the three stamps on the right. – 1898 Revenues

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Jayne’s Vermifuge, Dr. D. Jayne and Son, 1938 and after – Smithsonian Institution, National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center

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Dr. D. Jayne & Son Medical Almanac and Guide to Health – 1896

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A Handbook on How to do Pickling, Dr. D. Jayne & Son – 1917

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Finally getting away from using their building on the cover. Jaynes Almanac and Medical Guide to Health – 1937

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Jaynes 1939 Almanac and Medical Guide – 1939

Posted in Advertising, Druggist & Drugstore, Ephemera, Hair Tonics, History, Medicines & Cures, Publications, Tax Stamps, Tonics | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Mishler’s Herb Bitters Advertising Wall Clock

Posted on 15 June 2013 by Ferdinand Meyer V

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Mishler’s Herb Bitters Advertising Wall Clock

Benjamin Mishler & Samuel Brubaker Hartman

13 June 2013 (R•050314)

Glass Apple-Touch-IconAWorks Auctions has a really cool advertising clock in their current Auction 98. I wish I had more wall space. We already have a old ticking and gonging Ansonia wall clock, Cuckoo Clock, and two mantle top clocks. Lot of work when you have to keep the time right and rewind. Sounds cool when they all go off. Every once in a blue moon, they all gong at once. The Glass Works description:

‘Mishler’s Herb Bitters / Purifies The Blood / Improves The Appetite / Sold Here’, (Maltz fig. 47), Baird Clock Co. Plattsburgh, New York, ca. 1890 – 1895, wood construction with hard paper mache faces and lettering, 30”h, original clock face, glass window, pendulum and key. Excellent overall condition and in perfect working order.

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Mishler’s Herb Bitters / Purifies The Blood / Improves The Appetite / Sold Here’, (Maltz fig. 47), Baird Clock Co. Plattsburgh, New York

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Mishler’s Herb Bitters / Purifies The Blood / Improves The Appetite / Sold Here’, (Maltz fig. 47), Baird Clock Co. Plattsburgh, New York

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Mishler’s Herb Bitters / Purifies The Blood / Improves The Appetite / Sold Here’, (Maltz fig. 47), Baird Clock Co. Plattsburgh, New York

Benjamin Mishler & Samuel Brubaker Hartman

Mishler’s Herb Bitters – Lancaster, PA

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Dr. Benjamin Mishler’s Medicinal Herb Bitters advertisement – 1867 Balto City Directory

Benjamin Mishler was born on 12 August 1814 and died on 08 June 1876. His wife was Elizabeth Lesher, born 07 November 1817 and died 12 June 1890. Children, Lyman, graduate of West Point Military Acadamy. First lieutenant, Fifth Infantry, United States Regulars. Killed at the battle of Valverde, New Mexico, February twenty-first, 1862; Henry L., Hannah (Mrs. Strachan), Miss Elizabeth Strachen, a daughter, resides in Lancaster, Secretary and Treasurer of the Standard Caramel Company. Mary Lola Strachen lives in New York.

M 99 Mishler's Herb Bitters (un-fancy square) - Meyer Collection

M 99 Mishler’s Herb Bitters in a gorgeous apricot puce color – Meyer Collection

Benjamin Mishler (father John Mishler) and his brother Isaac had a liquor business around 1855 and a distillery in East Cocalico Township, three miles northeast of Reamstown (Old Lion Brewery & Distillery). It was during this time that Mishler’s Herb Bitters first made an appearance. The bitters were apparently the invention of Benjamin, for in 1859 he sold his interest in the liquor business to his brother and devoted himself to making the nostrum. The manufacturing was carried out in a building on the southeast angle of Center Square, now called Penn Square, in the very heart of Lancaster, Pennsylvania.

Benjamin had many original ideas, was an enterprising man and accomplished things which other men would not have had the courage to attempt. One of his successful undertakings, which at the time created quite a sensation, was the erection August first, 1873, of a two-story brick building with eight rooms in Lancaster, completed in ten hours. The foundation had been laid before the erection of the building. More than one hundred mechanics were working on the building at one time.

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Samuel Brubaker Hartman, M.D.

Samuel Brubaker Hartman, M.D. would purchase the firm from Benjamin Mishler around 1867. He would become the sole proprietor of this bitters and he took over the manufacturing. The firm included Junius Kauman and Henry Lehman who was the manager. Dr. S. B. Hartman would also trade mark Mishler’s Herb Bitters in April of 1871. By 1879 the company reorganized as Mishler’s Herb Bitters Company. The company had two locations, one in Pittsburgh and the other in Lancaster.. By then, Dr. Hartman engaged in private practice in Pittsburgh for several years after he retired from active participation in the manufacture of Mushler’s Herb Bitters. In 1888 he moved to Columbus, Ohio and soon thereafter established the Peruna Medicine Company.

Mishler's Keystone Bitters (fancy square) - Meyer Collection

Extremely rare Mishler’s Keystone Bitters – Meyer Collection

Benjamin Mishler would eventually join his son Henry Mishler in Producing H. L. Mishler’s Keystone Bitters. This product was trademarked in April 1871. This firm was located at 17 W. King Street Lancaster, Pennsylvania.

Read More: Mishler’s Keystone Bitters – Stencil and Bottle

[reference Bottle Pickers and An Annotated Catalogue of the Edward C. Atwater Collection of American Popular Medicine and Health Reform and Patent Medicine Tax Stamps by Henry W. Holcombe]

MishlerRevenue

Mishler’s Herb Bitters Revenue Stamp – The six-cent stamp was the first to be issued, in January of 1868. It was last issued in May of 1875. 133,515 were issued on old paper and 1,033 on silk paper. The copy above is on silk paper. – www.rdhinstl.com

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M 99 Mishler’s Herb Bitters in lemon yellow – Meyer Collection

Mishler’s Herb Bitters: 

A Certain Remedy for Dyspepsia, Liver Complaint, Loss of Appetite, Nervous Affections, Intermittent Fever, Fever and Ague, General Debility Or Weakness Caused by Exposure, Imprudence Or Excess, Coughs and Colds, Diarrhoea, Headache, Cholera Morbus, Rheumatism Or Pains in the Limbs, Cramp in the Stomach, Neuralgia, Diseases of the Skin, Such as Scrofula, Ulcers, Etc., and All Other Diseases Arising from a Disorganized Or Diseased Stomach Or Impurity of the Blood. As a Blood Purifier and Tonic, Or General Appetizer, These Bitters are Also Without a Rival and Should be Kept in Every Family. 

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M 101 Mishler’s Herb Bitters in orange amber – Meyer Collection

MishlersAd1

Mishler’s Celebrated Herb Bitters advertisement – The Tribune Almanac for the Years 1838 to 1868 – New York Tribune 1866

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Mishler’s Herb Bitters advertising trade card. Girl with Doll. Mishler’s Herb Bitters stock cards are rather available. – Joe Gourd Collection

MishlersHerb Stock 1F

Mishler’s Herb Bitters advertising trade card. Girl with Tambourine – Joe Gourd Collection

MishlersHerb Stock 3

Mishler’s Herb Bitters advertising trade card. Sand Scoop – Joe Gourd Collection

MishlersHerb Stock 4

Mishler’s Herb Bitters advertising trade card. Drummer Boy – Joe Gourd Collection

MishlersHerb Stock 1R

Reverse: Mishler’s Herb Bitters advertising trade card. Mishler’s Herb Bitters stock cards are rather available. – Joe Gourd Collection

MishlersHerb Private front

This private design, Mishler’s Herb Bitters trade card is quite rare. – Joe Gourd Collection

MishlersHerb Private back

Reverse of private design, Mishler’s Herb Bitters trade card – Joe Gourd Collection

Read More: Mishler’s Keystone Bitters – Stencil and Bottle

Read More: Mishler’s Herb Bitters & Prof. Parker’s Pleasant Worm Syrup

Read More: Reeds Gilt Edge Tonic Clocks

Posted in Advertising, Auction News, Bitters, Ephemera, History, Liquor Merchant, Medicines & Cures, Tax Stamps | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

The bottles I ordered from Dogriver came today

Posted on 14 June 2013 by Ferdinand Meyer V

DogRiverJim3

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The bottles I ordered from Dogriver came today

14 June 2013

Hi Ferd,

The bottles I ordered from Dog River Glass came today. I have enclosed a few photos. Let me share my thoughts on this group.

The small pickle bottle is not as nice as the bottles he made years ago. Or should I say he sold years ago. The bottle has a thick base in the corner on one side which is common on repro bottles. It is smooth base and the bottle is stained which makes it look older. It is not square and is a bit lop sided. It is a little under blown. Most collectors who have been around would think it was a fake in my mind.

The pepper sauce bottle is an interesting bottle. It feels slippery to the touch. It also is a smooth base bottle. Top is like some bottles I have seen that are old. It is blown more fully in the mold. The base has been ground to make it stand even. The glass has a look like the uranium bottles that clevenger made years ago. I can not find my black light but it sure looks like it would glow. Most collectors who have been around would think it looked funny to be old.

The barrel bitters is a bottle that truly worries me. I have collected bottles for over 35 years and collected bitters about 25 years ago. If I ran into this bottle at a flea market I would think it was old. It is one of the best repro bottles I have ever seen. It is a olive green type color. Embossing looks good (I don’t have a real one to compare it to). The applied top is done well. It has some grime on it like it needs to be washed. There are shallow bubbles like old barrels have. The only thing that looks at all funny is the top of the lip. It looks a bit polished or something. Most barrels have alot of lines and mold marks in the lips. There is no way the average collector would think this is a fake if they had not heard about these being made. I guess the major bitters collectors may spot something wrong. To me this is as good as it gets. Clevenger made some killer Booze Bottles back in the 1930’s and this bottle is at that level. Please note the boxes they came in. They look like recycled cardboard and are like alot of boxes that things are shipped in from off-shore countrys. Buyers beware.

Jim Bender

Note: Jim Bender is the FOHBC Membership Director and is a passionate collector of Union Clasped Hands historical flasks. Jim also has a couple hundred reproduction bottles that he has collected over the years and is an authority on the topic. Thank you Jim for staying on top of this.

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DogRiverJim1

DogRiverJim2

Read: Drake’s Plantation Bitters and other Reproductions out in the market

Read: More on Reproductions from Jim Bender and Bruce Silva

Read: Will the real Drake’s Please Stand Up?

Read: Repros? A Legitimate Place in the Hobby?

Posted in Bitters, Figural Bottles, News, Pepper Sauce, Pickle Jars, Questions, Reproductions, Scams & Frauds | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Will the real Drake’s Please Stand Up?

Posted on 14 June 2013 by Ferdinand Meyer V

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Apple-Touch-IconAHad a FED Board meeting conference call last night. One of the topics was reproductions. As I thought, there is not much we can do as far as stopping a person from reproducing a bottle but we should encourage a mark, such as a debossing (not embossing) to distinguish the reproduction from the original. If the original intent is not fraud and is being noted and sold as a reproduction, this is legit. As long as we have an original desirable item, there will be a person who wants to reproduce it. Of course it is the scammer and next generation(s) buyer that we should be concerned about. Knowledge and education is critical. As Dick Watson said, there are a number of small-scale glass craftsman just looking for the opportunity and challenge to reproduce an original. We will be putting on a display at Manchester regarding this topic. Thanks to Jim Bender for heading this up. I get lots of spam e-mails in my quarantine report each night. Here is an interesting one that caught my attention. As we know, many bottle reproductions are made overseas. Not saying fraudulent reproduction is their intent, but you can see the opportunities.

Dear Manager,

This is Susan from Xuzhou Yongzhen International Trading Co.,LTD., Which is a professional manufacture of glass bottles. Our factory is located in Mapo Glass Container Industrial Park, which is the glass bottle production base. The company has passed the ISO9001:2000 international quality management system.

The company has a great variety of glass bottles, such as glass jars, wine bottles, beverage bottles, perfume bottles, pickles bottles, preserve jars, honey bottles, health bottles, glass cups, glass saucer, and so on. What’s more, we can also design and manufacture according to the customers’ requirement.

Best regards

Susan Lee

Xizhou Yongzhen International Trading Co.,ltd. Email: li@yzgarlic.com Website: www.yongzhentrade.com Address: Xuzhou city,Jiangsu Province,China Telephone:0086-516-83848799 Fax: 0086-516-83848788 Mobile: 86-15896429011

RedFlag

Read: Drake’s Plantation Bitters and other Reproductions out in the market

Read: More on Reproductions from Jim Bender and Bruce Silva

Read: Repros? A Legitimate Place in the Hobby?

Will the real Drake’s Please Stand Up?

Hi Ferd, wanted to send these photo’s in to the guys in the know, I am not, at least on the Drakes. The one on the right is one I just got off Ebay #xxxx (Please Don’t Publish this Auction #, I don’t want to get in trouble) and the one on the left I got a while back. This recent info on the fake Drakes has freaked me out so can you check these out and give me any ideas of whether they are real or not? I talked to the seller and I believe the one on the right is good, its the slightly smaller 4 log I am wondering about?

The info that caused this I took off your site written by trellcott and it says: Setting the repro St. Drakes beside a bonafide, original one, I see some very subtle differences. Most obvious are the sizes of the label spaces; the repro has smaller space, about 2/3 the size of the original. The repro has indented, or concave sides along with the logs on all 4 sides. The embossings are very similar on both bottles.

So here is some pictures, feel free to look them over and I can do more if you need them. The bottle on the left is the suspect? the one on the right is the new one I just got and is?

Left weighs: 1 lb, 2.5 ounces, 10 1/8″ tall, Base is 2 1/2″ wide, the label space is 1 1/4″ wide (This is the flat of the space where the label would have actual sat) it looks to be a 4 log and has bulged sides and waves in the glass, there is wear from use on the base.

Right Weighs: 1 lb, 1.9 oz’s, 10 1/8″ Tall, 2 7/8″ wide, the label space is 1 5/8″ wide actual label space, wear marks, bubbles, some haze came from an old Drakes collection. Looks to be a 5 log.

So I hear the fake Drakes is noticeable by size, both in height and the label space, any base markings (Mold Lines) what about by weight? Color? I have two 4 logs which are both about the same size, which are smaller than my other ones, but heavy in the glass and crude, Your thoughts? and thanks for taking the time to look at this stuff.

Rick Hall

I am probably just freaking out, I Hope. :c)

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Posted in Advice, Bitters, Figural Bottles, FOHBC News, News, Questions, Reproductions, Scams & Frauds | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Terrible and Sad News – Tom Doligale RIP

Posted on 13 June 2013 by Ferdinand Meyer V

Tom

13 June 2013

Apple-Touch-IconAWith a suddenness that I thought not possible, we have lost one of the newer generation, pioneering collectors that brought so much to the hobby we all love. He illuminated our special world. I myself feel a special connection to Tom as we both specialize in color runs and ‘cornering’ a specific area. With Tom it was his love and passion for Udolpho Wolfe’s Aromatic Schnapps that was so fun to watch. I feel lucky to have met and corresponded with Tom over the years and to have connected with him at some of the FOHBC National Shows where we talked bottles and socialized.

TomArticle

For now, the best way for me to pay tribute is to re-list some of his posts and to relay some of the comments from his friends that I have received by e-mail or I have picked from the facebook bottle forums which Tom enjoyed so much.

Tom Doligale Posts on PRG:

Tom Doligale and his Udolpho Wolfe’s Aromatic Schnapps

The many apostrophes of Udolpho Wolfe’s – Tom Doligale

Tom Doligale collection of Colored Squares

TD27

The Udolpho Wolfe King – Tom Doligale

TOM DOLIGALE PASSED AWAY THIS MORNING. Stephanie wrote me and I share it with greatest sadness.

I am stunned. Stephanie wrote me last night that Tom was “holding his own” and I thought that was hopeful. Rest in peace, dear friend Tom. I will miss you very much, the whole bottle community will feel this horrendous loss.

Dana Charlton-Zarro

Tom Doligale was a true friend. Always upbeat and happy and loved his bottles! It was so fun to send a picture or email- he loved to see pics of bottles, places I travelled etc. He would send me bottle pics, car show pics, etc.

I sell on eBay under the name chipsbottles and I was selling some of my old casino chips to a guy in KY. One day he wrote and asked about the bottles part and said he used to live in Chicago and he and friends would find bottles digging years ago. He had an assortment but liked the Wolfe’s Schnapps. He later sold all his bottles and moved near Louisville. We hit it off right away emailing about bottles and I would send him some pics and link to my site and that’s all it took, the bottle bug big Tom hard and he lived bottles from then on. He met a wonderful woman named Stephanie and she enjoyed travelling to shops helping him find bottles, etc. He loved the outdoors and I know they both would camp and have the best times. My wife and I went to see Tom in 2009 and took him a display cabinet that I found in a shop here in Montana. The huge oak cabinet barely fit in the minivan but we made it to KY and I helped him set it up with his Wolfe’s Schnapps collection. He proudly displayed his bottles at home and at the Mansfield show we went to together in 2011 I believe the year was. We shared a table and had a great time. Later at his house we did a bunch of bottle trading and showing off the bottles we had bought at the show. We hung out with friends at the show and had such a great time during and after.

I barely knew Tom when he told me his brother and friends like to come to Montana to snowmobile ride. When he invited me I knew I had to go to meet this new best friend. We all had some much fun we are still talking about it! Sadly Tom didn’t come to the ride this year in Feb. and the Leukemia struck while we were all out riding. I sent him a text with a pics. of us on our sleds. He said he was not feeling well and his brother talked him into going to the ER. The shock of the horrible blood disease floored us all. Prayers were sent and positive thoughts as this was a man who would beat this. He beat if for months. He remained positive and strong. The shock today that the disease got the best of him has broken my heart. There could not of been a kinder, more positive, more fair wonderful person than Tom Doligale and all his friends will remember this as an example of a how a person should be and how others should be treated. Tom many of us will see you again someday so probe those pits as if there’s bottles in heaven we will find the best ones!

I have so many stories to share, pictures etc. and will do so another day. Im going digging and staying up in the hills for the night.

James Campiglia

I’m stunned…I’m gonna write a brief article story about Tom Doligale and the only 2 known examples of the QUADS as he called them. Udolpho Wolfes Aromatic Schnapps Schiedam embossed on all 4 sides Tom told me about these bottles and I owned them both and recently sold him one, I still have the other. Now it means more to me and reached another interest level. Thanks for what you posted, class act as always. Pretty sad over this one, can’t explain it….

Rick Ciralli

A dark day indeed… Tom will certainly be missed.

This is heartbreaking. My condolences to Stephanie and Tom’s family and friends. I only met Tom a couple of times, but he really became a good friend to so many of us through these pages. I was looking forward to enjoying some time with Tom in Manchester… he will certainly be in our hearts.

Michael George

I am truly speechless…..I feel as though I just lost what could have been the best friend I would have ever known. Sadness does not even describe what I am feeling right now. I will miss you dearly my friend. As will countless others.

Dave Kam

Really Sorry to hear about Tom’s passing, I never met Tom in person, but, carried on a running conversation on both the phone and via email for several years now. He bought out the last of my Good Wolfe’s Puce Schnapps several years ago. Great sense of Humor and always willing to share knowledge, RIP Me Amigo

Rick Hall

I was like Rick Hall … Tom and I talked on the phone some and I sold him a bottle or two and you knew he was someone you wanted to be friends with. I had no idea things went this bad this quick. Too Good …Too Young… TOO VERY VERY SAD !!!!

Mark A. Turner

I was really looking forward to meeting Tom at “The Office” (otherwise known as JD’s Tavern) at this summer’s National Show. We will raise a toast for sure. Good guy gone too early. Sad.

Jeff Noordsy

How tragic, I’m sorry to hear this. His contributions here and in the bottle collecting world in general will be missed. My condolences to his family and friends.

Matthew Tigue Levanti

It would be nice if someone could bring a Udolpho , a framed picture & a couple of candles or such to Manchester for a tribute to Tom.

Edward D. Nikles

I can’t believe it. He was just here…He was such a “bright light” to these bottle groups. I will miss him. Our deepest condolences to Stephanie.

Jeff Burkhardt

I am very saddened by this news. Tom was great to chat with, and he will live on in my memories, as a fine fun loving bottle collecting brother. To the Wolfe Man.

Steven James Anderson

It seems like he was just posting here, a few days ago. He certainly lived life and made the most of it, from what I could tell.

Bill Heatley

I know this always sucks the life out of us at first but, we collectors…we are a family. Warts and all but family. Those closer to Tom, honor him for us all. Those who were further, we understand, though the names we think of my be different, still the same damn pain. Love, prayers, thoughts for all his family.

Danny Catherino

I never met Tom either but I remember having a question about a Wolfe’s that I was unfamiliar with and he emailed me and went into great detail about it, much more the you would think and I remember thinking how nice of him it was to help and give me all the great info he did. He will be missed in many ways. Prayers to his family in this time.

Tim Henson

Just heard this news. I’m still I’m shock! I never had the privilege of meeting Tom. But had talked back and forth with him several times. He was the most knowledgeable person on Wolfe’s I had ever talked with. I so looked forward to meeting him at a future Show. We will meet Tom, just in a different place. God speed Tommy! Condolences to his Family and Loved ones. So sorry to hear this.

Brian Shultis

He also loved his unembossed squares we were happy to add the tilted one and others to his collection.

Maureen Crawford

Humility and forgiveness, signs of a great man! Never met Tom, except through this page, but our posts back and forth were warm ones. May God rest his soul!

James Becker

Posted in Collectors & Collections, News, Schnapps | Tagged | 1 Comment