Finds of the day and precarious question.

[Jimmy Langford]

So today I was going down a back road with a family member in a very rural area and stumbled across a old abandon homestead. Since it wasn’t fenced off and it was a quite rural area I poked around for about 10 minutes. Quite honestly this is the best day of my barely one year career in the bottle world. I think that if even a long time bottle collector would be stoked to find this place. I went to the small square shed of the grown over homestead and peaked through one of the many large cracks in it. What I saw was amazing. 100+ bottles lying on the floor. Absolutely everywhere! I found a large space to craw in and started picking for around 5 minutes. I would describe the quantities of things from what I could see like this (mind I was only in one space of the small shed and bottles where under things); 1900s/1910s (4/10) 1920s/1930s (7/10) 1940s/1950s (6/10) 1960s/1970s (7/10). Sadly I didn’t have my phone on me so I didn’t get any photosHere are some of the things that I found.

Cleaned​

1933, Plant 7, Mold #3, Owen Illinois large apothecary bottle. Just looking at it, it seems like it holds a gallon and a half. Would you agree ? That’s a $50-$80 bottle too!!! I can’t exactly find this particular bottle in the 1933 Owens Illinois catalog. I have found similar sets but it just doesn’t seem like this one made it in the 33 catalog. Too late. Unless the drawings are slightly off.

Ball Ideal 1910-1923 logo jar. Yeah yeah I can already hear it. That’s super duper common. Well it’s pretty. Okay ? And anyways how could I leave this being a big jar fan? This particular example has never been underground and is sparkling clean. Very elegant strong embossing too. The closure wire is missing but that would be fun to replace in the future. This beaut is a number 3. No number 13’s today :/

1940s Anchor Hocking food product jar.
I know what your thinking. Why in the hell would someone pick that up and take it home. Well I think it deserves a home and I think it’s a nice jar. This isn’t something I would pick up in a antique store though. It doesn’t even talk a Mason jar lid.

Uncleaned
I strictly use bottled water and filtered water for bottles which I have personally ran out of. Our house doesn’t have a water softener so it is hard. There are 2 problems that rise when using mineral water to clean glass items. Increased agitation with minerals on glass and mineral build up.​

(Left to right)

Amethyst 1910s food product bottle ​

It’s machine made. What would have been in it? Horse radish, mayonnaise, mustard, mini pickles, olives, etc... ? Was this type of bottle used for multiple food products?

Ball Ideal Mason 1910-1923​

Another ideal Mason. The closure wire is still present but the glass lid is gone. I have replacements so I can put one on after I dissolve the rust with salt and vinegar.

Vinegar or syrup bottle

Later French’s mustard jar

1960s Lady Betty prune juice.

My question ​

Almost all bottle diggers have trespassed before. Where this is at is on a property but the county road passes though the property. Where the old homestead is, is totally unfenced. If a road passes through where are the boundaries? I personally don’t see anything wrong with poking around on a abandon house that is unfenced. I intend to return but is there a legal defense for me since no boundaries are set on a property where which a public road goes though?

 

[Bottle 2 Rocks]

The large brown bottle usually held something like camphorated oil from some pharmacy supply co.
Probably a good idea to get permission-its always someones owned land and you never know they might show up with a gun or call it in as trespassing. These old houses may be a holding place or hoarding storage for some land owners-I have seen it before, they may still want the stuff there and then maybe not, just too busy to deal with it.

"If you see land for sale buy it because they ain't making it no more" Samuel Clemens

 

[J.R. Collector]

I personally always bring and old bottle with me to help explain why I am exploring an old abandoned home. It always works, but I dont break open doors of these old homesteads, they have to be open or semi collapsed. If its obvious no one could or does live there then I feel my picking up of old trash doesn't hurt anyone really. If anything I am trying to rescue parts of history that who otherwise be destroyed. I also make sure my holes dug are cleaned up and refilled before I leave.

 

[Bottle 2 Rocks]

I personally always bring and old bottle with me to help explain why I am exploring an old abandoned home. It always works, but I dont break open doors of these old homesteads, they have to be open or semi collapsed. If its obvious no one could or does live there then I feel my picking up of old trash doesn't hurt anyone really. If anything I am trying to rescue parts of history that who otherwise be destroyed. I also make sure my holes dug are cleaned up and refilled before I leave.

I have some old friends that were arrested for going into broken down dilapidated buildings on what they thought was abandoned property to collect bottles and whatever else, so you just never know, better safe then sorry- get that permission first and you don't need to look over your shoulder every 30 seconds or so.

 

[Jamdam]

Sorry, that’s B&E. Take them back, find the owner, and beg forgiveness.

 

[brent little]

Well hope you have a great time collecting .Not so sure I would of gone into this property Bottle 2 Rocks has a pretty good point. We ALWAYS got permission first. Its pretty easy once you have been in it for a while. I have people come to my office and my collection is on the walls. They STILL look at me like im "some kinda nut" .lol

 

[J.R. Collector]

I have some old friends that were arrested for going into broken down dilapidated buildings on what they thought was abandoned property to collect bottles and whatever else, so you just never know, better safe then sorry- get that permission first and you don't need to look over your shoulder every 30 seconds or so.

Agreed. I have always been lucky so far.

 

[nhpharm]

Wandering the land is pretty defensible but entering a dwelling, no matter the condition, could get tricky. I do need to know where you are getting $50-$80 for those big machine made supply bottles. I lugged a tooled top one with a ground stopper to bottles shows for years with a $5 price tag and finally sold it this year! The machine made ones I put in my dollar box...and they do sell, but not quickly.

 

[Jimmy Langford]

Wandering the land is pretty defensible but entering a dwelling, no matter the condition, could get tricky. I do need to know where you are getting $50-$80 for those big machine made supply bottles. I lugged a tooled top one with a ground stopper to bottles shows for years with a $5 price tag and finally sold it this year! The machine made ones I put in my dollar box...and they do sell, but not quickly.

Actually I don’t sell my bottles but maybe $30? Isn’t it not very common to find ones in this size?

 

[Jimmy Langford]

Sorry, that’s B&E. Take them back, find the owner, and beg forgiveness.

Haha yeah right. The property had a county road running through it, wasn’t fenced off, and there was a hole in the side of the shed that I was able to fit through. I don’t think that fits the definition of breaking and entering.