Have some old bottles need help

[botlguy]

Not likely a beer as it is not listed as such by Byron Martin. It MAY be a beer sleeper though.

 

[surfaceone]

Howdy Jim,

Who am dis "Byron Martin," please? I see he has a Small Book on Beers, but this is the first I've seen him cited. Please give a book reviewish idea on his focus.

Thank you sir.

 

[botlguy]

Being the 'puter dummy I am I will tell you here what I know and if you can make use of it you might want to add the info on that Library site.

Byron & Vicky Martin were / are superior quality folks that assembled the top Western Beer collection around back in the early 1960s. They lived in the San Fernando Valley section of Los Angeles and had an actual bar room called "The Achin Back Saloon" set up in their basement where they displayed the beer bottle and memorabilia collection. One early morning in about the mid-60s they lost the bulk of the bottle collection to a rather intense earthquake. Undaunted, they began the process of building another collection along with other bottle interests such as Fire Grenades. They wrote and published a very nice reference book called : HERE'S TO BEERS" in 1973. I'm not sure if this is the original copy but I got mine (replacement copy) directly from them in 1996. Their address at that time was: P.O. Box 838, Angeles Camp, California 95222

I highly recommend this book for anyone interested in Western (Calif., Oregon, Wash.) beer bottles produced from 1880 to 1910 or the history and story of same. It does concentrate on "Blob Top" type bottles.

 

[Jolat]

Thanks for the info. Is this a "blob top" bottle? Any info on Jos Mezcler in that book?

 

[botlguy]

From the information provided here by more astute members of this forum, I am sure that the bottle is from a Western company. I am assuming (dangerous) that the LA stands for Los Angeles but that seems pretty well established. So, no, neither that bottle nor the name Jos. Mezcler appear in the book. The bottle is definitley referred to as a "Blob Top" which would date it before 1910 (generally speaking, there are no absolutes). I have no doubt that it is either a Beer or Wine bottle and in my opinion it really makes little difference except to a specialist. I think it's a nice piece that a collector of Los Angeles area bottles would have strong interest in. I know one or two if you would like me to check. Is it available or are you seeking only information?

 

[Jolat]

Thanks Jim,
I would definitely like to get in touch with some local collectors. I have 2 or 3, 30 gallon trash cans filled with old bottles. I also have about half dozen glass arrowhead water 5 gallon bottles. If you don't mind, send them my email address. Kardawg2009@gmail.com
Thanks

 

[surfaceone]

I have 2 or 3, 30 gallon trash cans filled with old bottles.

Hey John,

Sounds like you've got the makings of a wonderful Show & Tell thread there. I'd encourage you to put up some more photos of embossed, colored, unusual, etc. bottles that you'd suspect might interest the bottle folk, or that you like...

Here's a great site: http://www.sha.org/bottle/ that might help you in identifying some of those gallons of bottles...

 

[Jolat]

Will try post more pics. I posted pics of a milk bottle and another bottle that was said to be something pharmaceutical. They are on another thread here I posted last night. The bottles in the cabs are super dirty, but I'm thinking that all you "bottle dogs" are use to that. I'll try to clean up a few more and post some pics......

 

[deenodean]

Yes, post those drums of bottles for the experts to decipher!