# Why Do You Collect Glass?



## photolith (Dec 16, 2019)

So, I collect bottles because they're the most easily findable and or affordable pieces of American/world history that anyone can find. I first found a broken in half hutch in 2009 (in a creek and I knew it was something historic as Ive always been interest in history and knew that was no modern anything) or so while in college as I was doing a geology survey in Arkansas of a creek next to Arkansas Tech University. I still have the broke in half hutch today but its not with me in PA today but still in Texas at my parents house (attached is a photo of the first intact Russellville AR hutch I found about 3 months later in 2010 in the same creek, which I moronically put olive oil at the time thinking it would clear up the glass but have yet to clean out). I've always wondered why Ive obsessed since over antique glass and I can never quite understand it (as theres so many other antiques but none have interested me as much as glass). The pre machine made glass is just so beautiful and it can so connect us so easily to our past and the common peoples past. Historic glass just looks so beautiful in light and proper displays. Historic paintings, high end historic pottery, furniture, guns, etc is only attainable to the very wealthy; meanwhile historic glass is still attainable to us who only have mid income or willing to dig for basically free (as well as fossils and minerals). Anyways, why do you collect glass? Also post your collections or as well as possible you're entire collection in one photo or multiple photos as possible.

Also, why the hell is this forum so dead. When I posted on this forum in the early 2010's it was so lively. Some of my threads get 2k views or more, but yet hardly anyone posts comments anymore. Other forums I post to such as skyscrapercity or skyscraperpage are still very active. It seems that most people now on this forum just peruse and never post and are just looking to others posts to find the value of the bottles (which I largely don't care about  and if you actually care about the history of the bottles you shouldn't care about either). 




Untitled by photolitherland, on Flickr


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## RoyalRuby (Dec 16, 2019)

Great story and nice looking Hutch, as for me, I also just love the look of the early bottles, though I tend to stick to soda and beer related bottles ( mainly Ohio and Pa. bottles), I also like the early inkwells and so far have only one, I have collected early beer and soda cans for many years and still have a sizable collection, but the hobby still seams to be like it was when I first collected, and collecting early bottles has become more favorable for me lately, Yes, I agree, it would be nice to have more comments to threads regardless of what the content of the thread may be. Being rather new to the bottle collecting bug and this forum, it may take me a while to get familiar with it before posting more often.....Also wanted to mention, and maybe you missed it, Slugplate started a thread about the lack of participation on the forum in the "General Chat" section called "bottle enthusiasts", I figure you must have missed it as I didn't see any posts from you there.


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## slugplate (Dec 16, 2019)

I came across the hobby quite accidentally. Walking in the woods one day, Fall of 1999 to be exact, and came across a blob-top Schaefer beer bottle. I knew absolutely nothing about bottles at the time, but I thought I had found gold. It was so unusual that I rushed home, got on the computer and began to do some research. I came to find out it was worth about $12, but to me is was worth a million. From that day forth, I was hunting and digging bottles every chance I could get. After twenty years and over 200 bottles in my collection, my enthusiasm for finding them has not waned.


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## Screwtop (Dec 16, 2019)

I got started into bottles, because I watched my dad digging in an old ditch beside my grandmas house because he saw old glass. He never cared about bottles, he was just doing it for the heck of it. He never found anything he liked, so he quit. I took over digging, and found some 1930s stuff. I was all happy, lol with Squibb aspirin, and some screwtop stuff (hence my forum name). I then walked the creek beside her house and found many 50's pop bottles, and broken older bottles. (which reminds me, I'll be doing a several mile walk of that creek for some good glass).

I guess I just like old stuff. I found the Adventure Archaeology YouTube channel one day, and they got me into collecting straight side Coca Cola bottles. I have a bottle from Birmingham Ala. that Clayton found, and we've actually done research via email together. 

I really, really, really like Civil War bottles, and Blob Top sodas, but I still don't have any yet. 

I guess I got into bottle collecting because they are somewhat easy to find, and I can pick one or two up at an antique shop for cheap. I found a 1930s squat amber 7-up from Dallas Texas once, for $25, when it's actually worth closer to $100. I traded it for a Coke bottle HemiHampton had. That's another thing, I love it when members trade with each other. Kinda like the old days....that I'm not old enough to remember.


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## WesternPA-collector (Dec 19, 2019)

photolith said:


> So, I collect bottles because they're the most easily findable and or affordable pieces of American/world history that anyone can find. I first found a broken in half hutch in 2009 (in a creek and I knew it was something historic as Ive always been interest in history and knew that was no modern anything) or so while in college as I was doing a geology survey in Arkansas of a creek next to Arkansas Tech University. I still have the broke in half hutch today but its not with me in PA today but still in Texas at my parents house (attached is a photo of the first intact Russellville AR hutch I found about 3 months later in 2010 in the same creek, which I moronically put olive oil at the time thinking it would clear up the glass but have yet to clean out). I've always wondered why Ive obsessed since over antique glass and I can never quite understand it (as theres so many other antiques but none have interested me as much as glass). The pre machine made glass is just so beautiful and it can so connect us so easily to our past and the common peoples past. Historic glass just looks so beautiful in light and proper displays. Historic paintings, high end historic pottery, furniture, guns, etc is only attainable to the very wealthy; meanwhile historic glass is still attainable to us who only have mid income or willing to dig for basically free (as well as fossils and minerals). Anyways, why do you collect glass? Also post your collections or as well as possible you're entire collection in one photo or multiple photos as possible.
> 
> Also, why the hell is this forum so dead. When I posted on this forum in the early 2010's it was so lively. Some of my threads get 2k views or more, but yet hardly anyone posts comments anymore. Other forums I post to such as skyscrapercity or skyscraperpage are still very active. It seems that most people now on this forum just peruse and never post and are just looking to others posts to find the value of the bottles (which I largely don't care about  and if you actually care about the history of the bottles you shouldn't care about either).
> 
> ...


 Quite a few people do need to know values of bottles for a variety of reasons. I'm a buyer and seller so I need to know if I'm overpaying for something or also charging too much for something. I found you and added you on Flickr by the way.


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## WesternPA-collector (Dec 19, 2019)

I didn't catch this post until today. I got into collecting bottles in the 1990's. I can't remember the exact year but I felt like I needed to find all the bottles I could before the chance to find them went away. For example things can change. Floods happen, forests grow up more, construction debris or dirt fill can be dumped on prime bottle hunting locations. Sadly this had happened with some of my spots already. I like the idea of preserving history and the stories that bottles tell. Plus the adventure of just being in the woods, not knowing what you will come across next. Life slows down out there.


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## RoyalRuby (Dec 20, 2019)

WesternPA-collector said:


> I didn't catch this post until today. I got into collecting bottles in the 1990's. I can't remember the exact year but I felt like I needed to find all the bottles I could before the chance to find them went away. For example things can change. Floods happen, forests grow up more, construction debris or dirt fill can be dumped on prime bottle hunting locations. Sadly this had happened with some of my spots already. I like the idea of preserving history and the stories that bottles tell. Plus the adventure of just being in the woods, not knowing what you will come across next. Life slows down out there.


I went back to some of my best spots in western Pa. for old beer cans back in early June this year, I hadn't been to most of these spots in over twenty years, I found mostly that the spots are now covered with large "no trespassing" signs, or simply seam to have disappeared, I ended up searching an old roadside I had been down before back then and found a few cans, but nothing too great, was kinda sad really.


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## slugplate (Dec 20, 2019)

WesternPA-collector said:


> I didn't catch this post until today. I got into collecting bottles in the 1990's. I can't remember the exact year but I felt like I needed to find all the bottles I could before the chance to find them went away. For example things can change. Floods happen, forests grow up more, construction debris or dirt fill can be dumped on prime bottle hunting locations. Sadly this had happened with some of my spots already. I like the idea of preserving history and the stories that bottles tell. Plus the adventure of just being in the woods, not knowing what you will come across next. Life slows down out there.


Honestly, my wife enjoys it just as much as I do. She likes anything that gets me out of house for a few hours. Plus, she loves anything made in cobalt colored glass. I don't tell her prized Milk of Magnesias and Bromo Seltzers are as common as plastic water bottles, she loves them and that's all that matters.


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## WesternPA-collector (Dec 20, 2019)

I still love those type of cobalt blue bottles myself. Not worried about the value of them but how they look and display.


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## photolith (Dec 21, 2019)

^ 
I have loads of those Bromo bottles, I also realize they aren't worth a crap but they still are pretty. So whatever, I only care about preserving their history, not worried about the value. I only worry about the value when I buy bottles  and want to know Im not getting ripped off. Although I know enough now after ten years to know roughly about what most things are worth.


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