Saturday, December 6, 2014

Fall Finds #4

Early in October an ebay seller from RI contacted me saying he had hundreds of dug bottles in his basement. Needless to say, that got me excited! He did indeed have hundreds of bottles, but many were from Massachusetts. There were however a decent number of RI bottles. A McKenna & Conaty Providence, RI etched wine bottle joined the unlisted the club!


The only other unlisted bottle from the dug bottle group was an A. Hasselbaum Co. Prov. RI crown top. Like the McKenna & Conaty from my last post, this bottle is only listed as a blob top, and this is the second unlisted crown top version I have found!


I discovered a local antique shop had acquired some of the Greer collection bottles. Among many Conaty bottles I found a Sullivan Bros. Providence, RI aqua crown top. This is the only aqua crown top I have seen from this company, and the body is narrower than most examples.


And yes, I did find a McKenna & Conaty Providence, RI blob! This example had “this bottle not to be sold” on the rear heel, which made it unlisted.


On my last visit to the big town dump, I made an amusingly coincidental find. A John Metzger Providence, RI medicine, in the exact style of the one I got 7 posts back! This one was bigger and beat up, but still a pleasant surprise!

Fall Finds #3

The Keene, NH bottle show is always an exciting event, and I was quite happy with my finds. A Frank P. Casey North Smithfield, RI amber blob was the only unlisted bottle I came across. This example has an oval slugplate, as opposed to the two listed examples with round slugplates.


A Hazard, Hazard & Co. Chemist New York & Newport round medicine turned out to be an unlisted version. Newport is one word (the other spells it New Port), and there is a period after Newport. 


The Little Rhody Bottle Club's fall tailgate show was a great success, with excellent weather and lots of buying and selling. I was excited to pick up a Houle Bros. Pawtucket, RI blob. The only documented Houle Bros. bottle is etched, so this is the first know embossed example!


I seem to be on a role when it comes to McKenna & Conaty/ Bernard Conaty bottles. A McKenna & Conaty Providence, RI crown top surfaced at the last Little Rhody Bottle Club tailgate show. That makes two unlisted McKenna & Conaty crown tops!



Also present at the tailgate was a P.H. Corbett Newport, RI etched wine. A scarce bottle to begin with, the etched version had to come home with me!

Sunday, November 30, 2014

Fall Finds #2 (Blog 100)

I just realized this is my 100th entry!  I certainly feels like less.  That means since I started collecting, I have found over 500 unlisted Rhode Island bottles.  That's what I love about collecting bottles.  Unlike more popular collectibles like coins and stamps, there are thousands of undocumented bottles, so each bottle dig or show can turn up something new and exciting!  With no further ado, let us continue!

A new antique shop produced a Bernard Conaty Co. Inc. Providence, RI blob. These are fairly common, and an auction featuring over 100 of them made them even more common. However, this example was an exception. It is clear instead of the usual gray aqua, and the BCC monogram has been placed over an erased monogram, presumably the McK&C monogram from Mr. Conaty's old partnership.


With so many Bernard Conaty Co. Inc. Providence, RI blobs floating around after a recent auction, it was only a matter of time until I came across a variant. This one has no punctuation.


After the Ed Greer collection auction (which I unforgivably missed), I was given a second chance when his relatives contacted me saying there were some bottles that didn't make it to the auction. There were some nice RI bottles, but most I already had. Of course an Everett & Barrons Shoe Dressing Providence, RI was an exception. It had the proper punctuation, except for the comma after Providence. 


I acquired a Robert R. Brooks Co. Inc. Providence, RI crown top in a recent trade. This short-lived company succeeded the Providence Wine Co. in 1914, and went out of business in 1916. This exact bottle is listed with a blob top, but not a crown top.  You have to give the quality control department props for the backwards S in So.


An Antonio Gasbarro Providence, RI crown top off of ebay turned out to be my 9th version. This crown top with 12 oz. embossed on the base is not listed. 

Fall Finds #1

A bottle collector in Cumberland, RI was moving to Florida, and had decided to sell most of his bottles. I saw his ad on Craigslist, and the bottles looked promising. It turned out to be a very good pick, and he was quite fair with his prices. My favorite bottle was a J.A. Hebert Central Falls, RI quart size whiskey bottle. This liquor dealers blob top bottles are semi-common, but I have never seen a rectangular whiskey before!


Another new bottle from the Cumberland collector was a Crown Bottling Co. Pawtucket, RI crown top soda. While this is a listed bottle, I have one with a round slugplate, and this one has an oval slugplate. I suppose one must be unlisted!


Another fairly common medicine is a Geo. B. Harris Est. 1860 Centreville, RI. This example has no punctuation whatsoever. That makes it my 5th version!


Ah, yes, this post wouldn't be complete without an Otis Clapp & Son bottle! This one has M.B.W. Millville embossed on the base. The Millville Bottle Works was located in New Jersey, and manufactured a wide variety of bottles.

Thursday, November 27, 2014

Summer Finds #7

The antique shop with 1000 bottles from my last post had a nice group of RI bottles, but most were ones I already have. My favorite RI bottle was a nice unlisted quart blob from the German Seltzer Co. 7 Ticknor St. Providence, RI. This mysterious company is not listed in any directories, but is definitely related to Bernard F. Hirsch, who ran the B.F.H. Seltzer Co. at the same address. This example has 26 oz. Embossed on the front and the base.


A McKenna & Conaty Providence, RI BIM crown top recently surfaced on ebay. A fairly common blob, I have never seen a crown top, which turns out to be unlisted. It certainly has a good look to it!


A recent antiquing trip to New Bedford turned up a very exciting find. Hiding on one dealer's shelf was a Geneva Springs Bottling Co. No. Providence deco soda. A scarce soda to begin with, the only known examples (both unlisted) are in clear and light aqua. This one is in a deep green, which I kind of like a lot!


Another surprise antiquing find was the very elusive QuaKo Acme Bottling Co. Providence, RI crown top soda. I only know of two others, and all three known examples have some damage.  QuaKo was a brand bottled by a number of bottling companies across the US.  Bottles from the Acme Bottling Co. are listed, but not one for QuaKo.


A tidal river walk had sparser than usual finds, but a Augustin Vitale Providence, RI crown top soda made it worthwhile. I have 8 different Vitale bottles, and only one is listed as a blob. 

Monday, November 24, 2014

Summer Finds #6

Well, I'm woefully behind in this blog, but hey, that's a good excuse for me to play catch-up!

Some dumps are just so uninviting that I wonder why I try to dig them. One particular dump I braved this summer was carpeted with poison ivy. In fact, the vines made up for most of the vegetation on some trees. Nevertheless, I nimbly navigated my way to a spot that was relatively clear of the stuff. After pulling 10-15 tires out of the way, I started finding bottles. Suddenly, an Eagle Beverages Bristol, RI deco soda comes out! I didn't know they even had a deco soda, and with embossed eagles, it is already my favorite deco soda from RI!


Completely unlisted medicines (aka a bottle from a druggist who does not have any known bottles) are quite exciting to come across. When an F.M.P. St. Germain Central Falls, RI medicine came up on ebay, I sat up extra straight. With a cool name and uncommon city, I couldn't pass it up!


I'm still hitting the marshes, and they are still producing bottles! My most recent find was a damaged S.H. Farnham Westerly, RI ABM crown top. The real surprise was that it was ABM! Mr. Farnham left the soda business after 1912, making this a very early machine made soda (and consequentially unlisted). For those who are curious, machine made bottles were first manufactured in 1903, but narrow-necked bottles, which were harder to make by machine, didn't make the ABM switch until around 1910. 



Freshly pulled from the marsh, a Burke Bros. 15 to 27 Eddy St. Providence, RI blob looked a little different. Sure enough, this example with an oval slugplate also had EddySt embossed with no space.


A newly opened antique shop featured over 1000 dirty bottles crammed onto tabletops. Many were common junkers, but I managed to find a few gems. A Providence Bottling Co. John E. Good Providence, RI blob would sound common, but the style is uncommon. Most of their bottles feature embossing in script letters, but this one has plain lettering in a slugplate.

Summer Finds #5

A while ago I mentioned the discovery of a brand new RI Codd botte. The Ashworth & Jackson X.L.C.R. Mineral Water Co. Lonsdale, RI instantly took a place as one of the top RI bottles. I wasn't sure what would become of it, but when the digger who found it told me it was going on ebay, I figured it was all or none. It wasn't cheap, but was worth every penny!


I recently acquired my third The T.F. Donahue Co. Providence, RI liquor bottle in a trade. This well worn example has a crown top, which is unlisted.


Ebay is full of surprises, and I almost passed one by! I saw a neat C.E. Hornberger Rx for Malaria medicine, and thought it was neat because of the malaria reference. I was trying to think of why the name sounded familiar, and of course, it was a Providence druggist! After a nervous week of waiting, I put in a good bid and it made its way to my mailbox.

In a box of mostly common and unembossed medicines, I finally obtained my first S.J. Briggs & Co. Providence, RI medicine bottle. While Briggs bottles are not rare, they have eluded me for quite some time. This version is an unlisted size at 3-1/2”.


In the same box was a John Metzger Apothecary Providence, RI. This square version is unlisted!

Thursday, October 2, 2014

Summer Finds #4

I contacted a construction worker on Craigslist, and was greeted with a few boxes full of highly mediocre bottles. I overpaid because there were a few RI sodas, including an Eagle Bottling Co. Providence, RI blob. It is not listed with “This bottle to be returned” embossed on the heel.


A Mass. digger gave me a completely unlisted H.A. Bishop PhG Providence, RI medicine. Despite the appalling condition, it is an exciting find!


Yes, another one! This Otis Clapp & Son Inc. has script embossing, which is not listed. The Clapp horde grows!


I was excited to obtain my second RI dose cup recently. It was a David J. Byrne Newport, RI conical style cup. While a later and less sought after style, I still like it!

mirrored image


A quick after work stop at a salt marsh produced a sharp looking Quaker Club Co. Providence, RI soda. It looked exactly like one I had bought last year, only it was missing the period after Co. Both versions are unlisted.

Summer Finds #3

The club's triannual tailgate show in Richmond, RI had a bustling crowd this July. I was able to acquire yet another New England Bottling Co. Westerly, RI crown top soda. This example does not have a capacity embossed, and brings me up to 12 versions!


I spotted yet another Narragansett Brewing Co. Famous Export Lager Providence beer at the show, and with the damage it had, was able to get it for free! This example lacks any kind of punctuation, making it my 14th Narragansett bottle.


A recent scouting expedition brought me to the rivers of Westerly. Pickings were scarce, but I found a riverbank dump that produced a nice J.H. Blackler Westerly, RI soda. These aren't rare, but of the 9 versions I now have, this is the only one with a round slugplate!


A ways upstream I spotted a green bottle sticking out of the mud. I almost wrote it off as a modern beer bottle, but I'm quite glad I did not! It was a beautiful Havens Bott. Wks. Westerly, RI soda. The green examples are fairly rare, and the abbreviated example is also scarce, making this a one of a kind example!


A fellow collector scooped up a box of blobs at a nearby antique shop, and was generous enough to let me have first pick. I was happy to acquire a Thos. B. McLaughlin Woonsocket, RI semi-squat blob. This example has Registered embossed on the heel, but no “this bottle not to be sold” on the rear heel like the listed example does.

Monday, September 1, 2014

Summer Finds #2

June's club meeting produced two nice RI medicines. One was an E.T. Luther Registered Pharmacist Onleyville, RI. There are no examples listed with “registered pharmacist” embossed.


I was happy to finally track down a true aqua Dr. White's Specialty for Diphtheria. This medicine hails from the small town of Adamsville (in Little Compton). While it is fairly common in clear, the early aqua examples are rather hard to find, and unlisted!


Well, as funny as this is, I am still adding Otis Clapp bottles! This time I was able to mix it up with something unusual. This Otis Clapp & Son Boston & Providence is a cobalt screw top jar! It didn't look spectacular on ebay, but in person it is pretty impressive!



My first official tidal river adventure of the season produced a Geneva Springs Bottling Co. No. Providence deco soda. I have this unlisted soda in aqua, but this one is clear.  You will have to forgive its appearance, I haven't finished the cleaning process!


A very common soda, I debated keeping a Star Bottling Co. Pawtucket, RI crown top. After I scrubbed off all the black river gunk, I saw it was an unlisted aqua example. Ok, it stays!