Missoula Bottling Works blob top

[b.ecollects]

Hello. I found this bottle at a local antique store. It's from Missoula, Montana. I can't find any information on this bottle other then the company name, which is embossed on the bottom.

On the bottom, it says:
S B & G CO
No 18

I would like to find out more about the age and the company who made it. Thank you.

 

[willong]

This blurb is from: https://sha.org/bottle/closures.htm#Hutchinson Spring Stopper

"Dating notes: True applied finishes on Hutchinson soda bottles date the bottle from about 1880 to 1885. Applied finishes on Hutchinson bottles are relatively uncommon. Tooled finish Hutchinson bottles date from the mid to late 1880s to the effective end of production for this style in the mid 1910s, with most bottles dating between the late 1880s and 1912. It is estimated that at least 90% of Hutchinson bottles have tooled finishes dating them in this range (Elliott & Gould 1988; empirical observations). Between 1900 and 1915, tooled crown finish soda bottles slowly but surely began to dominate the market and by 1915-1917 most soda bottle production was machine-made bottles with crown cap finishes (Fowler 1981 & 1986; Feldhaus 1986; Elliott & Gould 1988; Peters 1996; Markota 2000; Lockhart pers. comm. 2003). The W. H. Hutchinson & Sons company ceased production of the stoppers in 1920 by which time production was almost totally to supply those few bottlers still using Hutchinson sodas made some year before (Elliot & Gould 1988). (Note: Some references list 1912 as the end date which seems unlikely since the Illinois Glass Co. was still listing over 40 different molds for Hutchinson style soda bottles in 1911 [IGCo. 1911; Munsey 1970])."

Visit the site for more information.

You might have to research the bottling works company locally if you can't find digitized copies of old Missoula City (or business) Directory online.

I found clearer photos of the same bottle online--it appears to tooled finish rather than applied. Therefore, if you can find directories for Missoula around 1890, that would likely be a good time frame to begin. Look through vintage newspapers too--you might find an advertisement with an address. Sanborn Fire Maps might not show the company name, but "bottling works" or synonyms for same will identify buildings occupied by such firms.

 

[willong]

A company by that name was in business in 1936 and mentioned in a Polson newspaper. Probably the same company still in business, but much later than the era of your bottle.
--------------------------------------
The following is some historical background that was presented in a 2014 public meeting related to industrial land use; (it is getting late, so I will not try to edit the unusual line breaks--they are artifacts of the copy, cut and paste operation.)

"2. Commercial and Industrial Land Use: History
Most of the early commercial and industrial activity in the area took place in the hub surrounding
the original Northern Pacific Railway Depot at the north end of Harris Street (Orange Street). In
the 1890's, businesses in the North First Street area included hotels and boarding houses, a
grocery store, the North Missoula Bakery, Urlin's lumber yard, and two steam laundries. A few
blocks to the east, Northern Pacific Railway (NP) erected a cluster of section houses, water
tanks, and repair shops. Industrial uses filled in the lots along the rail lines and at the edges of
the new residential areas. Businesses and services scattered north of the tracks into the growing
residential blocks. They included the Missoula Bottling Works, the Northern Pacific Beneficial
Hospital, and the Garden City Brewing Company.
When Northern Pacific Railway moved the passenger depot to North Higgins Avenue in t 899,
solid brick warehouses were constructed in the area of the old depot to serve the growing
wholesale grocery and produce business. The Lindsay Fruit Company Building (later Pacific
Fruit), the Day Produce Building, and the Ryan Fruit Company Building, all built between 1909
and 1917, reflected the commercial growth in this era. In the 1920's, NP constructed a large
roundhouse at the east end of the neighborhood; this area is now the partly abandoned Burlington
Northern Railroad yard.
The construction of the Burlington Northern Railroad (BN) southbound rail line to the Bitterroot
in 1889, the Bitterroot Railroad Spur Line, inspired a conunercial development corridor through
the Westside. The Sanborn Fire Insurance Company maps, from 1902 through 1921,
documented a bewildering variety of warehouses and small industry in the area, with the
Missoula Mercantile Company emerging as the primary landowner..."

I think that information gives you a good start on finding the information you seek.

Happy Hunting!

PS: I just took a quick look at the north end of Orange Street on latest Google Earth images. A railroad turntable is visible close by--seems like the location described. WL

 

[willong]

UPDATE:

I had B&W copy of 1890 Sanborn for Missoula saved on my computer. Turns out that the bottling company was identified by name, as well as the owner. See attached:

 

[willong]

On the bottom, it says:
S B & G CO
No 18

I got busy on the bottling company instead of the bottle manufacturer. (I own land about thirty miles east of Missoula and was intrigued by the thought of local hutch bottle.

Hopefully, another member can help you out with manufacturer information.


WL

 

[b.ecollects]

I got busy on the bottling company instead of the bottle manufacturer. (I own land about thirty miles east of Missoula and was intrigued by the thought of local hutch bottle.

Hopefully, another member can help you out with manufacturer information.


WL

Thank you very much for the information! I will keep notes and do more research on my part!

 

[willong]

Thank you very much for the information! I will keep notes and do more research on my part!

Found this online:

S.B.& G.CO…………………….Streator Bottle & Glass Company, Streator, Illinois (1881-1905). The Streator plant eventually became part of the American Bottle Company, then later Owens Bottle Company, and finally part of the Owens Illinois Glass Company (Plant #9). “S.B.& G.CO.” is one of the most commonly seen marks on handblown beer bottles from the late 1800s and early 1900s. Many, many private brewers and bottlers from the Midwest and eastern United States had bottles specially made for them by Streator. The mark is also seen on other bottles of the period, including pickle bottles, soda bottles and other containers

 

[hemihampton]

It almost looks like a Baltimore Loop Seal Bottle in the shape of a Hutch, I have a few of these. LEON.

 

[willong]

It almost looks like a Baltimore Loop Seal Bottle in the shape of a Hutch, I have a few of these. LEON.

Leon,

I found photos of what appears to be the same style bottle at an online auction site. Can you determine the closure type for sure from the attached photos? (It does look like there's an internal seat tooled into the lip; but I'm not that knowledgeable on closure types.)


WL

PS: EDIT on 11 FEB: After checking the SHA bottle site section on closure types and looking again at the shape of the internal cavity tooled into the neck of the bottle visible in the photo on the right (below), I believe you are correct about the bottle being a Baltimore Loop Seal type.

 

[Sodasandbeers]

For information on manufacturer marks on glass and pottery soda and beer bottles. You can use my web site:
Soda And Beer Manufacturers

Als tons of other information