ATTENTION! FORUM MEMBER squirtbob ~ EARLY SQUIRT BOTTLING NEWSPAPER ADS

[SODAPOPBOB]

Bob

I looked for the three Illinois towns you asked about but unfortunately the newspaper archives do not include newspapers from any of those locations. I even searched some neighboring town newspapers but did not find anything related to Squirt for Peoria, Joliet, or Quincy, Illinois. The only thing I did find, which I found on Google and you probably already know about, is that Derges Bottling in Peoria, Illinois bottled Squirt at one time.

But the good news is, I found another 1938 Squirt bottler that I somehow missed seeing during my initial searches. The bottler I'm referring to is ...

Buster Bottling Works ~ Alton, Illinois

I posted two 1939 ads for this bottler earlier (which I am re-posting here), and at the time thought 1939 was the earliest date when they started bottling Squirt. But then I found the ad below from 1938. Even though two of the ads do not have Buster Bottling Works in the text, I know it was them because of other references I found connecting them to Squirt. Plus, there's no way that there was more than one bottler of Squirt in Alton in late 1938 and early 1939. Somewhere along the line the name Buster Bottling Works became Squirt Bottling Company. The earliest date I could find for the Squirt Bottling Company in Alton is 1950.

1. The Alton Evening Telegraph ~ Alton, Illinois ~ December 22, 1938
2. The Alton Evening Telegraph ~ Alton, Illinois ~ February 9, 1939
3. The Alton Evening Telegraph ~ Alton, Illinois ~ May 8, 1939

 

[SODAPOPBOB]

P.S. The earliest newspaper listing I can find for "Buster Bottling Works" in Alton, Illinois is 1929

 

[SODAPOPBOB]

To summarize ... We now have three 1938 Squirt bottles! 1. Manitowoc, Wisconsin / Manitowoc Bottling Works2. Menasha, Wisconsin / Twin City Bottling Works3. Alton, Illinois / Buster Bottling Works

 

[squirtbob]

More good finds. I'd gladly pay more than 15 cents for 3 of the 1938 bottles. Surely someone out in this bottle world has one. Buster Bottling in Alton, Il would be great as my brother worked at the Alton OI plant there for years.

 

[SODAPOPBOB]

Bob Go to this link for a 195? Directory and type Squirt in the search box. Then click on the GO box and wait for the results. https://archive.org/details/industrialresour01peor What do you know about Derges Bottling in Peoria, Illinois? I can't seem to find exactly when they started bottling Squirt.

 

[squirtbob]

Bob, The following pictures will show you what I know about Derges. Interesting that the Glenshaw bottle has absolutely nothing on the lip ...but the date indicator "R" is on the bottom ...meaning 1946. It's probably only a coincidence that the number 45 (close) appears below the number 700. I have a couple Glenshaw bottles marked like that. The cap is also marked Derges Bottling Peoria, IL and it would be from the same era.

 

[squirtbob]

Bob Regarding one of the wooden crates you posted a picture of ... Compare the wording on the crate to the wording in this ad from ... The Manitowoc Herald-Times ~ Manitowoc, Wisconsin ~ September 2, 1938 1. Crate2. Ad

Here's one that will test your detective skills. This box for which you previously found a similar ad has on each side the following "Phone Lebanon 4211" , no city or state is listed. I'm referring to the crate that has the red and blue print

 

[SODAPOPBOB]

Bob I haven't found that exact phone number yet, but the initial indicators point to ... 1. 1940s-1950s2. Lebanon, Pennsylvania3. Krim Beverage Company ... and/or ... Ma's Bottling Company

 

[SODAPOPBOB]

No "Lebanon 4211" yet, but still searching - and still leaning toward Lebanon, Pennsylvania ~ * ~ 1. Lebanon Daily News ~ Lebanon, Pennsylvania ~ December 18, 1958 I'm not sure if Krim Beverages and Ma's Bottling were one company with two different names or if they are two entirely different companies. This ad is a little confusing. ~ * ~ 2. Lebanon Daily News ~ Lebanon, Pennsylvania ~ December 28, 1966 I'm not sure when Ma's Bottling first started bottling Squirt, but they won an award in 1966

 

[SODAPOPBOB]

And then there's this guy ... http://www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/great-vintage-wooden-squirt-soda-box-lebanon He says the box is from Lebanon, Pennsylvania but I think he might be guessing. Especially the part where he says it was made by ... The Lebanon Bottling Company