Have Access to old bottling plant that operated from 1870 to 1915

[eddeeeddee]

Hello all you wonderful bottle people. I'm new to the group. Greetings from West Virginia, So I use to be a bottle collector and digger back in my teen age years and early 20's but then collage, a career and life all happened and my bottle digging days went to the way side. Well now I'm retired. Thought I would get back into it.


So I have access to a property that once had an old bottling plant there. Now its a housing area with houses being built in the 30's and 40's. One of the property owner has giving me permission to probe around and do a dig. So as to the age of the glass plant I was given two dates. Supposedly it was in operation until 1870 to 1915 but then I was told it was in operation from 1890 to 1915 and burned down in 1915. Got this info from some old timers that lived in the area. Not sure of the companies name but what I have recovered so far is a stamp on some of the bottles M,G. & G. Co which I believe stands for Massillon Bottle and glass works. I can find no record of that glass company being in West Virginia. I'm not sure if this was an actual glass bottling manufacturing spot or a bottle filling plant or both.


So couple of weeks ago I started doing a survey of the area and I have found an area that contains 100's if not thousand of hutch bottles and old crown tops soda's with all kinds of different embossed labels. I think what I found was an area where they put their rejects. There is tons of broken aqua glass shards. Every bottle I have recovered so far has had the top broken or the bottom blown out. Funny thing I have not recovered any tops yet. So does any one know if they recycled the glass at these plants when they were broken? I can only assume that is what this pile I have uncovered was.


So There are many different labels that are embossed. I'm in the process of recording them. So I can research them later. And got a few pics here. So far I found one that reads ALLEGHANY BOTTLING CO GLEN JEAN W.V. Below that it reads THIS BOTTLE NOT TO BE SOLD and on the back is the M.G. & G. Co.
Then I found two that read LOOP CREEK BOTTLING & ICECREAM COMPANY MACDONALD WEST VIRGINIA with the # 8 on the back heel.


Then that reads P. SCHLLE COLUMBUS O THIS BOTTLE NOT TO BE SOLD


Then WEST CHARLESTON BOTTLING WORKS CHARLSTON W.V. Back heel has the #27


Okay those are several of the bottles I have found but you get the picture. There are 100's more with all different label s. So I have been unable to find any info on these companies and I guess I'm wondering if there is a potential gold mine here???? Are hutch bottles worth more if there is no other ones with the same labels? So next week I start my dig. The property owner told me where he dug out his garden and filled it with garden soil. It was so full of metal and glass that he dug three feet down. There he found 100 or so soda's intact but he gave them all away years ago. So any guidance or info would be appreciated Thank you all so much

h

 

[Mailman1960]

Hello all you wonderful bottle people. I'm new to the group. Greetings from West Virginia, So I use to be a bottle collector and digger back in my teen age years and early 20's but then collage, a career and life all happened and my bottle digging days went to the way side. Well now I'm retired. Thought I would get back into it.


So I have access to a property that once had an old bottling plant there. Now its a housing area with houses being built in the 30's and 40's. One of the property owner has giving me permission to probe around and do a dig. So as to the age of the glass plant I was given two dates. Supposedly it was in operation until 1870 to 1915 but then I was told it was in operation from 1890 to 1915 and burned down in 1915. Got this info from some old timers that lived in the area. Not sure of the companies name but what I have recovered so far is a stamp on some of the bottles M,G. & G. Co which I believe stands for Massillon Bottle and glass works. I can find no record of that glass company being in West Virginia. I'm not sure if this was an actual glass bottling manufacturing spot or a bottle filling plant or both.


So couple of weeks ago I started doing a survey of the area and I have found an area that contains 100's if not thousand of hutch bottles and old crown tops soda's with all kinds of different embossed labels. I think what I found was an area where they put their rejects. There is tons of broken aqua glass shards. Every bottle I have recovered so far has had the top broken or the bottom blown out. Funny thing I have not recovered any tops yet. So does any one know if they recycled the glass at these plants when they were broken? I can only assume that is what this pile I have uncovered was.


So There are many different labels that are embossed. I'm in the process of recording them. So I can research them later. And got a few pics here. So far I found one that reads ALLEGHANY BOTTLING CO GLEN JEAN W.V. Below that it reads THIS BOTTLE NOT TO BE SOLD and on the back is the M.G. & G. Co.
Then I found two that read LOOP CREEK BOTTLING & ICECREAM COMPANY MACDONALD WEST VIRGINIA with the # 8 on the back heel.


Then that reads P. SCHLLE COLUMBUS O THIS BOTTLE NOT TO BE SOLD


Then WEST CHARLESTON BOTTLING WORKS CHARLSTON W.V. Back heel has the #27


Okay those are several of the bottles I have found but you get the picture. There are 100's more with all different label s. So I have been unable to find any info on these companies and I guess I'm wondering if there is a potential gold mine here???? Are hutch bottles worth more if there is no other ones with the same labels? So next week I start my dig. The property owner told me where he dug out his garden and filled it with garden soil. It was so full of metal and glass that he dug three feet down. There he found 100 or so soda's intact but he gave them all away years ago. So any guidance or info would be appreciated Thank you all so muchView attachment 239660View attachment 239661


hView attachment 239659

Welcome aboard, good way to get back into collecting.

 

[John Mount]

sounds like an adventure! i haven't dug myself so i have no advice but good luck, be safe, have fun!

 

[hemihampton]

Hi & welcome to site. I'd try to dig some intact ones in or near that guys Garden. Broken bottles have very little value or most people don't want them or collect unless rare. I'm the exception, I got lots of broken Bottles but most of them super rare ones. Your dump reminds me of my A.R. Andrews Soda Bottle Dump, Hundreds & Hundreds of them & 99% of them have broken off tops. As far as I remember the Massilion Glass Maker was in Massilion Ohio. LEON.

 

[eddeeeddee]

Hi & welcome to site. I'd try to dig some intact ones in or near that guys Garden. Broken bottles have very little value or most people don't want them or collect unless rare. I'm the exception, I got lots of broken Bottles but most of them super rare ones. Your dump reminds me of my A.R. Andrews Soda Bottle Dump, Hundreds & Hundreds of them & 99% of them have broken off tops. As far as I remember the Massilion Glass Maker was in Massilion Ohio. LEON.

do you think the broken tops are from when they were being processed???

 

[UnderMiner]

Perhapse they broke the tops off to reclaim the stoppers? I know you can push a hutch stopper into the bottle but can you pull one out? I don't think so, they were designed specifically not to come out once they were in. I would bet you aren't finding any stoppers with these bottles which would give credence to this theory.

Another theory is someone has already dug here in the past and simply left all the broken bottles. Or the bottles were broken by accident at the time they were new and simply disposed of.

You certainly have a gold mine worth digging regardless!

 

[eddeeeddee]

Perhapse they broke the tops off to reclaim the stoppers? I know you can push a hutch stopper into the bottle but can you pull one out? I don't think so, they were designed specifically not to come out once they were in. I would bet you aren't finding any stoppers with these bottles which would give credence to this theory.

Another theory is someone has already dug here in the past and simply left all the broken bottles. Or the bottles were broken by accident at the time they were new and simply disposed of.

You certainly have a gold mine worth digging regardless!

Thanks for your thoughts. as far as the stoppers there are lots of these things that look like cut in half paper clips. I have probed six spots so far and hit something that hard like glass but there some pretty big chunks of old riveted iron around here to so not sure if I'm hitting glass or what.

 

[hemihampton]

When I was talking about broken tops I was mostly talking about & thinking about the Crown Tops, You did say you found Crown Tops with broken off tops didn't you, Like my AR Andrews with broken crown tops lots of different theory's but nothing seemed for sure. As for Broken Hutch tops? Hutch's being so thick they don't break easy so not sure why's there'd be a bunch of hutchs with broken off tops. It's cheaper to buy new spring stoppers then to buy a new hutch bottle after you broke it to get spring stopper. LEON.

 

[Len]

Hi E.
Everything interesting at your site. "Heavy riveted iron" sounds like it might be from a boiler/kiln or the building itself (fire door?) Good luck with your dig. Keep us posted. Its good to see people getting back to their early interests when retirement kicks in. Welcome to our club. --CT Len

 

[jeanie]

Hello all you wonderful bottle people. I'm new to the group. Greetings from West Virginia, So I use to be a bottle collector and digger back in my teen age years and early 20's but then collage, a career and life all happened and my bottle digging days went to the way side. Well now I'm retired. Thought I would get back into it.


So I have access to a property that once had an old bottling plant there. Now its a housing area with houses being built in the 30's and 40's. One of the property owner has giving me permission to probe around and do a dig. So as to the age of the glass plant I was given two dates. Supposedly it was in operation until 1870 to 1915 but then I was told it was in operation from 1890 to 1915 and burned down in 1915. Got this info from some old timers that lived in the area. Not sure of the companies name but what I have recovered so far is a stamp on some of the bottles M,G. & G. Co which I believe stands for Massillon Bottle and glass works. I can find no record of that glass company being in West Virginia. I'm not sure if this was an actual glass bottling manufacturing spot or a bottle filling plant or both.


So couple of weeks ago I started doing a survey of the area and I have found an area that contains 100's if not thousand of hutch bottles and old crown tops soda's with all kinds of different embossed labels. I think what I found was an area where they put their rejects. There is tons of broken aqua glass shards. Every bottle I have recovered so far has had the top broken or the bottom blown out. Funny thing I have not recovered any tops yet. So does any one know if they recycled the glass at these plants when they were broken? I can only assume that is what this pile I have uncovered was.


So There are many different labels that are embossed. I'm in the process of recording them. So I can research them later. And got a few pics here. So far I found one that reads ALLEGHANY BOTTLING CO GLEN JEAN W.V. Below that it reads THIS BOTTLE NOT TO BE SOLD and on the back is the M.G. & G. Co.
Then I found two that read LOOP CREEK BOTTLING & ICECREAM COMPANY MACDONALD WEST VIRGINIA with the # 8 on the back heel.


Then that reads P. SCHLLE COLUMBUS O THIS BOTTLE NOT TO BE SOLD


Then WEST CHARLESTON BOTTLING WORKS CHARLSTON W.V. Back heel has the #27


Okay those are several of the bottles I have found but you get the picture. There are 100's more with all different label s. So I have been unable to find any info on these companies and I guess I'm wondering if there is a potential gold mine here???? Are hutch bottles worth more if there is no other ones with the same labels? So next week I start my dig. The property owner told me where he dug out his garden and filled it with garden soil. It was so full of metal and glass that he dug three feet down. There he found 100 or so soda's intact but he gave them all away years ago. So any guidance or info would be appreciated Thank you all so muchView attachment 239660View attachment 239661


hView attachment 239659

What a great way to restart your hobby...