About two years ago I discovered that a bottle embossed Martin's Life Cordial for Dyspepsia & C was an early RI quack medicine. The bottle was auctioned off on ebay and went for far more than I expected, despite heavy stain and a chip. When I posted it on Facebook, another group member posted their example, which was in mint condition. They said they would consider selling in the future. Fast forward to the present and he reached out to me out of the blue! I was initially stunned, grateful that he offered it to me first, but also realizing I would have to make a very good offer. I made my offer, and he accepted! This is easily one of my favorite quack medicines from RI, the name, shape, and age all combine to make it something truly special!
Lightning struck twice when another Facebook collector posted an Andw. J. Smith's Celebrated Croup Syrup Providence, RI that they recently acquired. This bottle is listed as pontiled and is very high on my want list. Surprisingly this example was smooth based! He was open to selling so we made a deal and another very rare RI quack medicine joined the collection!
A friend tipped me off to a construction site that had unearthed a few bottles visible from the road. My best find was a pontiled medicine on top of a dirt pile, but the larger dump was a 1920s-30s era and located in an old foundation. It was a fun dig and a surprise find was a 3-1/2” ABM Davis Vegetable Pain Killer. While technically a NY bottle, this medicine originated in RI before it was bought out in the 1890s. This is the smallest example I have seen, and I hope to find a similar one that is BIM!
I spotted an Albert H. Sydney Co. Providence, RI blob on ebay. This is a pretty common soda, but I noticed it was a slightly different version with a round slugplate.
I bought a large collection from a local old time digger recently. The only catch was he sold most of what he dug, and these were all the leftovers. I was pretty sure a John F. Perry Narragansett Pier, RI crown top was a double, but as a rule I always check to confirm. Surprise, I had it as a blob top but not a crown top!
