The Hutchinson stopper

blobbottlebob · Jan 13, 2009

Hey Everybody. Here is some of what I learned from cleaning Hutchinson stoppers. I have always loved this style of bottle. It wasn't until I took a closer look at the stoppers that I began to see some unusual things about them. Here's the first thing that I mentioned in another thread. They often polish up to be a sparkling shiny silver finish. I have learned from Ron Fowler (the ambitious expert from Seattle trying to catalog every known US variant) that the finish is a non-toxic tin alloy. This is interesting because one of the things that I had heard was the downfall of the stopper was that it was lead based (and therefore dangerous to the end user's health). Here's two of them polished up.

blobbottlebob · Jan 13, 2009

Many of the stoppers were made of solid brass and then were plated in the silver finish. Here is a couple of stoppers that have lost some or all of the silver color and now show their brass core. Perhaps there is a metalurgist out there who can explain why the silver finish corrodes off of the brass? I would love to know how or why this happens . . .

blobbottlebob · Jan 13, 2009

This next thing, I kind-of had a hunch about. The stoppers come in different lengths. I'd found some early sodas (sometimes called transitional bottles) that seemed to have a longer stopper. The Hutchinson company was marketing their stoppers to bottlers with existing bottle stock. They wanted to make stoppers of various lengths to match these bottles. It turns out that there were at least three distinct sizes (although my picture seems to show four. It is possible that at least one of these is not an authetic Hutchinson brand stopper. More on this later.)

blobbottlebob · Jan 13, 2009

Another odd thing about them is that they came in different diameters. That is, the end piece that fits inside the mouth of the bottle had multiple sizes. This makes sense especially given that the Hutchinson company was attempting to match existing bottle stock. Those bottles were going to have various different opening sizes. (I had never noticed this before I started cleaning them).

blobbottlebob · Jan 13, 2009

The next thing about them is apparent in that last photo. They sometimes have debossing or a stamping on them. It usually appears on the round disc facing downward towards the contents. This is not always the case, though. In fact, my guess is that it is more likely that the stopper will be blank then that it will have writing on it. (The stoppers were less expensive un-stamped. This created incentive for bottlers to buy the 'blanks'.) Therefore, this picture might show the most common style.

blobbottlebob · Jan 13, 2009

Here is a typical Hutchinson brand stopper. It features a ton of tiny lettering that often appears only as a partial stamping. The stamping reads (in a circle)

* W. H. H. * PATD AP. 8 REIS. JUNE 17, 79

blobbottlebob · Jan 13, 2009

Because these stoppers were used for 30-35 years, there was bound to be some variations in the stamping. Here is one that reads, W. H. H. & S. I have seen identical or similar embossing on Hutchinson brand soda bottles.

blobbottlebob · Jan 13, 2009

This next example is an odd one. I only have one like this. Instead of a bottom stamping (it is blank on the bottom), it has raised lettering on the side of the stopper. It reads W. H. H. S.

blobbottlebob · Jan 13, 2009

I'm not sure if this example is from the Hutchinson company or not. It reads, H. C. S. CO. -. I suppose it is possible that this was a stamping used by the Hutchinson company (i.e. Hutchinson Concealed Stopper Co???). However, it may also be the case that this was a competitor's stopper.

blobbottlebob · Jan 13, 2009

From my discussions with Ron Fowler, I learned that the Hutchinson company was notorious for vigorously defending their patents. They would seek to drive out of business any 'infringer'. This stopper is clearly one such example. It is from AETNA. I have seen that name many times on lightning style rubber seals for beer bottles. (While this example looks like AE7NA, I do have others where the T is better stamped).

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