Hires “medals and medallions”

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SODABOB

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Charles Hires died in 1937 ...

Hires Charles Elmer Photo.jpg


Hires Obituary Philadelphia Inquirer Aug 1, 1937 (1).jpg


Hires Obituary Philadelphia Inquirer Aug 1, 1937 (2).jpg


Hires Obituary Philadelphia Inquirer Aug 1, 1937 (3).jpg


Hires Obituary Philadelphia Inquirer Aug 1, 1937 (4).jpg


Hires Obituary Philadelphia Inquirer Aug 1, 1937 (5).jpg
 

SODABOB

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Educated Guess / Inconclusive

As the title implies, the following dates for the two bottles in question are an educated guess based on what I believe to be very close approximates. Probably the only way we will ever know for certain is if one of these particular bottles turns up that has some type of makers mark or date code embossed on it. Even though I have scoured the Internet without success in search of one with some type of identifying mark, that doesn't mean that one won't turn up eventually. Maybe my bottle has something on it that will help, but I'm not holding my breath that it will. I will let you know after it arrives.

Csa's Bottle ~ 14 Oz ~ circa 1920 to 1925

Hires Root Beer Bottle Embossed Medals Forum Member Csa Nov 2020.jpeg



My Bottle ~ 6 1/2 Oz ~ circa 1925 to 1930

Hires Bottle with Embossed Medals 6.5 OZ eBay November 2020.jpg


Thanks to everyone who participated and/or took an interest in this discussion.

Bob
 

SODABOB

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P.S.

Even though this bottle was not a part of the original discussion, it often popped up in my searches and I though I would share it with an accompanying ad. Some collectors refer to it as the Bowling Pin or Ten Pin bottle. I do not know when it was first introduced or how long it was in production.

1912

Hires Root Beer_East_Oregonian_Pendelton Oregon_Thu__Jun_16__1912.jpg


Hires Root Beer_East_Oregonian_Pendleton Oregon_Thu__Sep_26__1912_.jpg


This particular bottle also has Coca Cola embossed on it and sold on eBay in 2013 for $2,000


Hires Ten Pin Bottle Coca Cola eBay Sept 2013 $2000.jpg
 

SODABOB

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Csa

Even though this bottle is not for sale or trade, I thought I would share it and give you an idea what I am into. Its currently my favorite and most valuable bottle, estimated at about $250 in near mint condition.

Navajo Land Fine Beverages ~ ACL ~ Gallup, New Mexico ~ 1940s

Navajo Land ACL Bottle 1940s Gallup New Mexico.jpg



Speaking of ACL bottles, this pdf is to an article that Bill Lockhart and I did in 2019 - which took us a full year to compile.
 

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SODABOB

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Happy Thanksgiving

I received my bottle yesterday - but there is no makers mark or other marks on it to indicate when it was made or where it came from. But that's ok, its in fairly good shape with only a few flea bite. The thing I like best about it is that I think it and Csa's bottle - both of which have the embossed medals - seem to be on the rare side. I put this group of bottles together to illustrate their differences - especially on the shoulder areas. The earlier bottles have a more pronounced shoulder, whereas the later bottles have what I call sloped shoulders. The reason I mention this is because it might serve as a clue when it comes to approximately dating them, especially when you compare an actual bottle to ads that can be dated. As you can see, the dates I placed at the bottom are circa, which is another way of saying approximate.

The bottles shown are as follows ...

1. From an Ad - 1897
2. Actual Bottle
3. Csa's Bottle
4. From an Ad - 1920
5. My Bottle
6. From an Ad - 1931

Have a GRRRRREAT Five "R" Day

Bob

Hires Bottles circa 1900 to 1930.jpg
 
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Csa

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THanks again for the forensic work, you should charge 10$ per bottle for appraisal/history work. :) I think what you concluded makes sense. I'll keep looking for more of these bottles, and let me know if you're interested down the road in adding the 14 oz as a brother to the 6.5 ounce. Your article on ACLs was fantastic. That is one group that my digs/surface finds is very lacking in. I found a "star beverage" ACL from Newark NJ, that almost all the remaining paint fell off of when I brought it home, and a Fanta but that's about it. I do wish my site had more of these. In the soda's and beer areas it's mostly cliquot club bottles. Found one cool spring water bottle with fancy embossing too, from Watchung Spring Water, but the top is snapped off.
 

SODABOB

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Csa

Thanks - I have a little more information I'd like to add to this discussion - which I will post later - but want to share this Hires bottle first that's currently on eBay that looks identical to yours. It's priced at $40 but I wouldn't be surprised if someone offered $10 they would accept it. They say it has a crack on the bottom, but I can't make it out all that well and is probably not a major problem. Check it out ...

Vintage Hires Root Beer Clear Glass Soda Bottle 14oz Embossed Antique Early | eBay
 

SODABOB

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For starters is this closeup of the embossed medals on a 6 1/2 Oz bottle like the one I have - and possibly the same as those on Csa's 14 Oz bottle. I won't take credit for this photo - which I found on the Internet. I tried capturing a similar photo of my bottle, but my camera doesn't have the necessary settings to zoom in this close and remain focused - especially when you take into account that the center medal is the size of a nickel. Even weirder is that I couldn't see this much detail when I examined it with a 30X loupe magnifier. Whoever took this photo must have used some type of micro lens - and the original mold engraver must have been a master.

Hires Bottle 6.5 Ounce Embossed  Medals.jpg
 

SODABOB

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Csa

I couldn't find a bottle like mine with a paper label, but I did find one like yours ...

Hires Bottle 14 Oz with Paper Label.jpg
Hires Bottle 14 Oz Paper Label.jpg
 

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