CHARLES RYAN EMBOSSED SODA

[SODAPOPBOB]

HELP!

I think I have met my match. This one stumps me. I'm usually a pretty good researcher, but cannot find anything specific related to a bottle I aquired today. The dealer I purchased it from even brought it to me, as he was in the neighborhood anyway. But he's stumped too.

It's a "Charles Ryan" embossed bottle from North Adams, Massachusetts. It is in absolute pristine mint condition, with no case wear whatsoever, and looks brand new. On the neck it reads "Registered," with "8 FL OZ" on the lower shoulder. The name embossment is what I call a slug plate, with "This Bottle To Be Returned When Empty" embossed on the back-side heel.

I am fairly certain it is non machine made, and has heavy seams and an applied lip. The color is the most beautiful aqua blue you have ever seen. The bottom edge rounds inward, with a concave-like base.

My initial research produced nothing worth mentioning. Nor is there anything currently on e-bay or elsewhere like it. I strongly suspect it was made pre 1910. And may very well be the oldest crown-top bottle currently in my collection.

If you recognize this bottle, please let me know anything and everything you know about it. I truly appreciate the help, and will look forward to your replies. I'm keeping my fingers crossed on this one, but won't be too disappointed if it turns out to be as common as dirt.

Thanks much,

SODAPOPBOB

(One of two photos).

 

[SODAPOPBOB]

Dang! I forgot to put a check mark in the little box.

 

[SODAPOPBOB]

(Two of two photos).

 

[cyberdigger]

Looks to me like a 1920's -30's returnable.. the bottle design and the "8 fl oz" embossing put it there..
..if you think this is the oldest crown top in your collection, Bob, you got another thing coming, literally.. I still feel bad you never got the Anheuser bottle which vanished into USPS air.. this time I will invest in delivery confirmation.. []

 

[SODAPOPBOB]

cyberdigger ~

That 8 oz embossment got me to wondering about it's age too. But based on everything I know (or don't know) about embossed bottles, it sure looks non-machine / blown in a mold (BIM) to me. I know there are exceptions all the way down the line, but were they honestly still making bottles in the 1920s and 30s with tons of bubbles and heavy-heavy seams on them? Please believe me, I am not trying to turn a pumpkin into a carriage here. It's just that it has all the earmarks of being very early.

But I will stand corrected if you say so. (Seriously). And to show you I am a good sport, I post the following regarding the 8 oz.

Thanks,

SPBOB

On March 3, 1913, Congress passed H. R. 22526, generally known as the Gould Amendment to the Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906. Although the Pure Food and Drug Act demanded a great deal of labeling information, it did not require the inclusion of volume specification. The Gould Amendment corrected that oversight when it stated that the "quantity of the contents be . . . plainly and conspicuously marked on the outside of the package in terms of weight, measure, or numerical count" but continued to explain that "reasonable variations shall be permitted." Although the law went into effect immediately, it clarified that "no penalty of fine, imprisonment, or confiscation shall be enforced for any violation of its provisions as to domestic products prepared or foreign products imported prior to eighteen months after its passage" (U. S. 1913:732). In other words, the industry actually had a grace period in required compliance until September 3, 1914.

 

[cyberdigger]

Good info.. So Gould amendment puts it at 1914, basically... that is not out of BIM range.. and one thing the bottle has going for it is the rather old looking slug plate.. it could indeed be BIM, but ..in my 'dammed if I'm wrong' opinion.. it is not older than 1913..

 

[SODAPOPBOB]

Okey dokey, then. I will settle for that whether I like it or not. Despite all of my past research regarding early crowns, etc; these embossed bottles without makers marks and dates still haunt me. So let's move on to the brand. What do we know about Charles Ryan? Personally, I know zilch!

Thanks again,

Bob

 

[TJSJHART]

I FOUND THIS ARTICLE WHEN I SEARCHED THE NAME CHARLE RYAN SODA BOTTLE http://www.fohbc.com/PDF_Files/CharlesMatzen_BBaab.pdf

 

[cyberdigger]

[8|] Chas Ryan is not a brand.. he was the proprietor of a bottling works.. the "brand" of contents would have appeared on a paper label..

 

[blobbottlebob]

How about the neck and side of the crown? Do they show any mold seams? I do have a hutch with the volume on it (but I think it is rare - at least from around here). The registered language also feels new to me.??