# just me or does it seems rather quiet so far this year ?



## RCO (May 5, 2017)

flipping thru the site and maybe its just me but it seems rather quiet compared to other years , especially the digging and finding section . barely been any new stories posted since April . which seems odd as it seem like the prime time of year for people to be digging stuff up . 

myself I haven't found any new dumps or sites of interest yet , been back to some older dumps and locations I found in past years but didn't find much new . perhaps need to flip thru some local history books in more detail to identify some new locations , I'm really not sure where else to look here . I've been to so many sites the last few years .


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## RCO (May 5, 2017)

also mention I posted a story about a creek I was going to explore , but haven't been able to yet . seems to be worst spring in terms of water levels here in a few years . still at levels normally seen in late march or early april . and another rain storm is coming this weekend so it could be a while before I'm able to search it 

I've also explored a lot of roadway embankments this spring but really haven't been finding anything good , not even stuff from the 70's or 80's .  just really modern stuff and a lot of beer cans . made a small fortune in returnable deposits if nothing else 


there was also suppose to be a big community yard sale this weekend , in a small town nearby . made a few neat finds there in past but its suppose to rain heavily this Saturday so not sure how many will set up or if I will even make the drive . but if weather improves there will be many more yard sales here in may and could find something at them


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## cowseatmaize (May 5, 2017)

I'm more of a passive collector now-a-days but I did break down and get the Poison Bottle Workbook Vol. 1 & 2 by Kuhn, the new Bitters Bottles by Ring & Ham., American Breweries II by Wieren and about ½ dozen others books over the winter.
I also got back on two wheels after a 25 year absence. .


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## botlguy (May 6, 2017)

It seems to me that we've lost a lot of seasoned collectors to other venues and the remaining veterans are just quiet much of the time. We've had a lot of 1 post wonders and they are not diggers / finders or really that interested. We are, of course, happy to answer their questions. It's the sign of the times I guess.
Jim S.


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## sandchip (May 7, 2017)

RCO said:


> also mention I posted a story about a creek I was going to explore , but haven't been able to yet . seems to be worst spring in terms of water levels here in a few years . still at levels normally seen in late march or early april . and another rain storm is coming this weekend so it could be a while before I'm able to search it



BUT, the good thing is that it's getting flushed out and shifted around, so there's no telling what you'll find when it settles down and clears up.  We've had a pretty dry spring, so our creeks are already slowing down with the black scum starting to coat everything as temps rise.  Sigh...


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## RCO (May 7, 2017)

sandchip said:


> BUT, the good thing is that it's getting flushed out and shifted around, so there's no telling what you'll find when it settles down and clears up.  We've had a pretty dry spring, so our creeks are already slowing down with the black scum starting to coat everything as temps rise.  Sigh...



I'm definitely wondering what i'll find when it settles , the old story I had seen online seemed to indicate they had found the bottle after a heavy rainfall . 

but considering the amount of rain we've had its going to be a while before the levels drop , our rivers here are at spring flood levels , much higher than normal for may


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## RCO (May 7, 2017)

botlguy said:


> It seems to me that we've lost a lot of seasoned collectors to other venues and the remaining veterans are just quiet much of the time. We've had a lot of 1 post wonders and they are not diggers / finders or really that interested. We are, of course, happy to answer their questions. It's the sign of the times I guess.
> Jim S.




I do wonder , are people not digging as much or are people just not sharing or posting what they found . either way stories about new digs seem to be way down and agree 1 time wonders are way up . they likely found the site thru google searches and likely not many other bottle related sites to ask questions on


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## hemihampton (May 7, 2017)

I try to do my part by posting my Privy digs. Which reminds me I got some pics & story to post from Today's find. I don't really see anybody else posting any privy finds. Are me & Tom the only ones digging Privy's? What happened to Cannibal from Hannibal or that guy from Hannibal Missouri that used to post privy finds? wheres the diving for bottles finds? I think alot people left to go post on that thing called Facebook. I don't have Facebook? LEON.


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## saratogadriver (May 8, 2017)

We lost a lot of old regulars to specific sites over on facebook.   There's an antique bottle collectors forum over there, and an early American glass group run by Jeff Nordsy.   There must be a medicine forum somewhere that Matt, who has the website cataloguing ALL known medicines must be there.    it's a real shame the folks who have come and gone from here.   We had a retired glass maker on here who I suspect has passed on.   His knowledge of molds and glass making was simply amazing.

There are still some very knowledgeable folks here, but it is also definitely a quieter place than it once was.

But polite anyway...   Better than many other forums that seem to erupt in flame wars about twice a day...

Jim G


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## RCO (May 8, 2017)

hemihampton said:


> I try to do my part by posting my Privy digs. Which reminds me I got some pics & story to post from Today's find. I don't really see anybody else posting any privy finds. Are me & Tom the only ones digging Privy's? What happened to Cannibal from Hannibal or that guy from Hannibal Missouri that used to post privy finds? wheres the diving for bottles finds? I think alot people left to go post on that thing called Facebook. I don't have Facebook? LEON.



I don't have a facebook account anymore either , I had ones years ago but never liked the site much and found around here it had simply turned into a gossip generating site . where people went to check out what people were doing just to be noisy . 

have no idea what sort of bottle groups are available on facebook . the only other bottle site I know of is for Quebec bottles , is a French bottle site . but I don't speak French and only occasionally find a bottle from quebec , don't really know how many members it has . 


think it might be too cold for diving ? its only May , I don't even go swimming here till June . although if you had dive gear , could go in earlier I guess . and places in the US that be a lot warmer than where I'm from


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## RCO (May 8, 2017)

my weekend was also a washout , I didn't get to do anything which is odd for me . normally I'd be all over the place but this weekend , weather was absoloutely  horrible here . rainy and cold , is normally a huge community yard sale first Saturday in may in a smaller nearby town. but this year it was mostly rained out and only a few people even set up , even the vendors who set up indoors in a seniors centre and church had nothing of interest at all . 

weather here has been very inconsistent so far this year , seem to get a few nice days , then get a few horrible days , this week appears to be nicer so should try and get out somewhere


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## JustGlass (May 8, 2017)

I think when the format of this web site changed was a big down fall. Seem to lose a lot of bottle people and it's really never been the same since. I guess some people don't like change. Just my opinion. I admit that when I don't see many new daily post I tend to wander. Still this is the site that gave me much knowledge in the bottle field and I'm very thankful. I tend to wander but still view and will always like this site.


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## RCO (May 17, 2017)

I found where one of our former members went to , was searching for info on a bottle design and saw there is a " New Jersey bottle forum " which " epackage " seems to have moved to . I remember he always used to post about bottles from Patterson NJ  


https://njbottles.com/index.php


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## CanadianBottles (May 17, 2017)

Oh I always wondered where Epackage had gone to, used to see him around here all the time.  

I haven't been out at all yet this year, maybe tomorrow I'll go check out a large dumpsite I just learned about, not sure if it's diggable, I wanted to wait until the leaves were dense enough that I wasn't visible from the road and nearby apartments.  We've got the Great Glebe Garage Sale coming up in a week and a half, RCO if you're able to make it to Ottawa I'd definitely recommend you check it out, it's better than some antique sales!  Not fantastic for bottles although I did pick up an embossed local milk with the matching lid there a year or two back, and some insulators last year, but great for other antiques.  I got an advertising sign for two bucks last year!


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## Bob Apples (May 27, 2017)

As far as I'm concerned, this is the best site on the net!


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## Gunsmoke (Jul 1, 2017)

I agree a lot with what Jim says in the fact that there are many other venues out there for bottle talk, (social media). I also believe a lot of the old posters (myself included) have simply gotten older. In spite of what my profile says, I have been a member since 2003. Had many posts under my former user name Gunsmoke47. I flat can't dig anymore due to my back and I suspect many of the others are the same to some degree. I live vicariously now through what I can buy and what other people dig and find, but it's not the same as sharing stories and posting pictures of what has been found by your own hands. I only hope the younger class of diggers/collectors will continue to post and share pictures so this old man can continue to remember the good old days! lol! Kelley


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## GLASSHOPPER55 (Sep 1, 2017)

RCO, I thought the same thing. Like others said, the format change seemed to coincide with many of the "old guard" disappearing (Sick Rick, Joe the Crow, etc.) but I've seen a few posts by Rick after that. Still, ABN is an invaluable site with many great posters on here which I love reading.  I know I don't do nearly as much digging nowadays like I did years ago, not so much for health or age reasons, but I just can't find good dumps anymore. So I read about everyone elses adventures on here.


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## stephengray (Sep 1, 2017)

I had left the forum for quite a while, not because of any of the sites on FB, but because the job I got was very time consuming and just didn't have the time (or energy) to post anything. I did every once a while but it was a long dry stretch.


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## saratogadriver (Sep 5, 2017)

It picked up quite a bit in the summer, with some great bottles posted by a woman cleaning up a family estate.  And it's awesome to see Stephengray back on here.   I'm enjoying some of my time on a couple of the facebook groups, but I don't think any of them are as accessible as this forum, and I think the format is better here too.  More conducive to actual conversation rather than the typical FB soundbites.

Jim G


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## botlguy (Sep 5, 2017)

I agree with the other Jim, no wait, I'M the other Jim, that FaceBook is far less interesting than this forum. Perhaps a bit more sophisticated in the QUALITY of bottles but I prefer my buddies here.
Jim S   (the OTHER Jim)


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## saratogadriver (Sep 6, 2017)

botlguy said:


> I agree with the other Jim, no wait, I'M the other Jim, that FaceBook is far less interesting than this forum. Perhaps a bit more sophisticated in the QUALITY of bottles but I prefer my buddies here.
> Jim S   (the OTHER Jim)




You are far and away the more frequent poster.  I'd definitely say I'm the "other Jim".    I collect inks and the family has a pretty extensive collection of same between me and my father.  Mom collects VT bottles of all shapes and forms.   

We have retained some great people on here, while we've also lost some, which necessitated my trip into the FB groups.   I like to have access to people like Jeff Noordsy, who are SO knowledgeable on higher end glass.

Jim G


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## CANNIBALFROMLOUISIANA (May 13, 2020)

Interesting..... This is the former cannibal from hannibal, now cannibal from Louisiana, (Missouri that is.) I lost somehow the ability to sign in to my account and even after reinventing myself had log-in issues, so I just moved on. I logged in a few times to view posts, but it seemed to get silly with serious and lengthy debates on whether or not to wipe dirt from fresh finds while in the field! Others were about digging dumps not as old as I am! Made me feel bad, if not old! Ha! Well, I turn 70 next year and still slingin' dirt as I like to say cuz I never know when I can't. Jim from Idaho, you still alive? Tried emailing to no avail. I know a good number of us ain't gonna be around a hell of a lot longer as the average age for this hobby is about 80! That said, this past October I dug a unique privy 10 feet long, 6 feet wide and 10 deep, shaped like a football! I dug 300 undamaged bottles, most embossed from early 1870's to mid 90's to a 1855 home. Part of the tally were 25 Doyle's Hops Bitters, ( and I never had dug one whole one before) 7 embossed pumpkin seeds, 35 un-embossed 3 piece mold whiskies, 4 Safe cures, 3 Sanford's Radical Cures, and one Keeley's Gold Cure for Drunkenness 3/4 full! I will return with some pictures. Took me all of 6 days to dig solo, and the homeowners wanted none of it! Interesting part is it looks like it was never dipped as there was no scraps at all from before the 70's, so I know there is an older hole there as there is a clear 20 years missing. The original property was sold where the barn and likely older privy sits waiting and plan to try for permission from the current owners later this summer. If it is half as full as the newer privy, look out! This was a very well to do family in the day. During this co-vid crap, I've been digging in a large local dump and found some cool local stuff and searching for a rare stenciled jug. Found an unlisted one broken of course, but still have about half the dump left to go. Dates from 1890-1925ish. Lost of fun and never know what is gonna pop out of the ground next. Lastly, I have submitted 4 stories to the FOHBC which can be found in their issues. I just wish I could post videos. I took over 30 short (under 5 minutes) videos, jumping to the chase as the bottles came out in hoards from the football shaped privy. I included the only shot of me in the hole with one of the embossed pumpkinseeds, Hart's Herbal Rock, Rye & Barley.


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## hemihampton (May 13, 2020)

I missed your privy digging stories, for awhile seemed like I was the only one still digging them. Wonder where you went. Since you been gone seems like the new Trend is people getting excited over 1970's Miracle Whip jars & 1980 Ketchup bottles, ect, ect. LEON.


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## ROBBYBOBBY64 (May 14, 2020)

hemihampton said:


> I try to do my part by posting my Privy digs. Which reminds me I got some pics & story to post from Today's find. I don't really see anybody else posting any privy finds. Are me & Tom the only ones digging Privy's? What happened to Cannibal from Hannibal or that guy from Hannibal Missouri that used to post privy finds? wheres the diving for bottles finds? I think alot people left to go post on that thing called Facebook. I don't have Facebook? LEON.


I never have been or want to be on facebook. Remember myspace? Never on that either. I hope everyone that is not posting is in good health. The virus just took one of my good buddys. He was only 38. Never seemed sick anytime i saw him. A total shock to me and everyone who knew him, very sad. People may not want their privies dug. 6 feet is not enough when there is a chance they might die. They don't want anyone on their property.  On a happier note i got a ton of bottles i resently got. I just need to clean them up before i post them. ROBBYBOBBY64.


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## cyberdigger (May 14, 2020)

Hey everybody,
I stopped collecting for a while to go back to college and change my career, and now I'm back into the bottles... NJ shore town beers & sodas to be specific.
I was very active here from 2009 to 2013ish.. for me those were the good ole days before facebook and other crappy social media took over the internet. But even then there was a camp who thought the best days of ABN had come and gone already, so that's a personal POV we all have relative to our own experiences.
I didn't like the format change here at first, but now I can tell it's not much different really.
Worst of all is when they made me a moderator, that was hell. Suddenly people were accusing me of being power hungry and assorted BS I've tried to forget.
I don't think I'll be the chatterbox I used to be, but I'll be around...
ChARLIE


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## DFW Digger (May 14, 2020)

Glad to see your back charlie.


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