Monroe La. Straight side coke !

[Bass Assassin]

Thanks Iggy. We really don't know if the anniversary bottle was made to look like the 1st one or if it was one bottle style they used for all of the anniversary bottles. We may be at a dead end on this one. Look at the book again and see if all the bottles that are anniversary bottles look the same. At this point i don't believe coca cola knows what type bottle each bottling company used for their 1st year. That would be next to impossible for them to have that infornation for every bottler out there.

 

[sandchip]

Do any of your slug plate bottles have makers marks, date codes, or anything else that might help to date them? According to Cecil Munsey's book, the start dates for the bottlers you listed are ... Hawkinsville = 1903Waycross = 1905Augusta = 1902Albany = 1903Americus = 1905

The shoulder script Augusta has a 7 beneath the script on the bottom. The mid-script Fort Valley and Hawkinsville have nothing. The mid-script Waycross has a 1388 with an A beneath embossed on the bottom. It's difficult to tell if the last digit is actually an 8. Looks like there was some alteration on that character (letter or number). I'll check the others tomorrow. Here's a base script on the back of an Americus Bottling Co. that I found a few years back. Ken Nease told me it was only the third example he had ever heard of. [attachment=americuscoke.jpg] [attachment=americuscoke1.jpg]

 

[SODAPOPBOB]

iggy

Thanks for the picture of the 75th anniversary bottle. I agree with Mark in that most if not all of the anniversary bottles are somewhat generic. I did an image search for the various bottles issued and every one I found was a shoulder script style. I did not find a singe one that featured a mid-body nor a base script. However, several of them were made in amber glass but I do not know if this was a true representation of the bottlers first bottle or just an indication they produced an amber bottle at some point. The attached images are of an original amber bottle from Huntsville, Alabama along with it's 75th anniversary counterpart that is also amber. Buy, again, I'm not sure if this was Huntsville's first bottle or not. According to Cecil Munsey's book, the Huntsville Coca Cola bottler bagan operation in 1902.



Jimbo

Thanks for the information about your slug plate bottles. I tried to make sense of them by using Bill Porter's article about dating early Coca Cola bottles but didn't come up with much other than it appears your bottles are early and possibly pre 1910.



I'm at the point now where I think it highly unlikely we'll be able to precisely date any of the bottles in question here, including the amber and aqua examples from Monroe. But I do believe we will eventually be able to determine exactly when Monroe first began bottling Coca Cola if we look in the right place, which at this juncture I believe will be in Monroe city directories if they can be found in the date range from around 1900 to about 1907. And when I say 'directories' I don't necessarily mean phone directories. There was also what was known as business directories. If the right person finds the right directory, this mystery might be solved in a heartbeat.



Hey, Mark

I'm thinking that 'right person' is you! And if the city or county libraries don't have the right directories, try the (ULM) University of Louisiana at Monroe library. I've seen indications where they have an extensive collection on Monroe history reference books including some directories.

Good luck - we'll be waiting anxiously to see what you "dig up."

1. Original Huntsville, Alabama amber Coca Cola bottle ~ Mid-script ~ Date unknown
2. 75th Anniversary Huntsville, Alabama amber Coca Cola Bottle ~ Shoulder-script ~ 1902-1977

 

[SODAPOPBOB]

For those who are not familiar with Bill Porter's "Coke Bottle Checklist" booklet, it also includes two sections for straight-sided Coca Cola bottles. The first section is for aqua bottles and the second section is for amber bottles. However, its important to note that he does not include any dates, hence there is no indication whether the listings for Monroe are pre or post 1912 when Joseph Biedenharn began his operation. But whether pre-1912 or post-1912, he list both the aqua as well as the amber bottle from Monroe as somewhat common. One note of interest is that for the entire state of Louisiana he list a total of 13 aqua straight-sided bottles but only 3 amber straight-sided bottles, with the 3 amber bottles being from Monroe, New Orleans, and Shreveport. But, again, no specific dates. According to Cecil Munsey's book, the start-up dates for the three Louisiana bottlers that used amber bottles are ... Monroe = 1904New Orleans = 1902Shreveport = 1904

 

[SODAPOPBOB]

Next Question: Did Biedenharn ever use an amber bottle? If so, it should be marked with "Ouachita Coca Cola Bottling Company," and date between 1912 and about 1917. (The first "Hobbleskirts" were issued in the spring of 1917)

 

[SODAPOPBOB]

P.S. I respectfully call into question Bill Porter's indication that amber Coca Cola bottles from Monroe and Shreveport are considered somewhat common. I found lots of pictures of amber bottles from New Orleans, but try finding a picture of an amber bottles from Monroe or Shreveport and you will see what I mean.

 

[SODAPOPBOB]

P.S. / Correction I unintentionally included the Shreveport amber bottle in my last post. Bill Porter list it as rare, so it does not count in my questioning of its rarity. But I do stand firm on the Monroe amber bottle's rarity.

 

[sandchip]

Neither of my mid-scripts from Americus or Albany have any additional markings.

 

[iggyworf]

Yes I believe all the anniversary bottles are generic, with most of them looking like the monroe one. There are some with different designs. I think the amber/clear ones might be random also. But great work everybody on this topic!

 

[SODAPOPBOB]

Based on my personal interpretation of the evidence presented thus far, my new best guess estimate regarding the dates and rarity of the two Monroe, Louisiana Coca Cola bottles in question are as follows ...

Dates:

1. Amber Bottle ....Circa 1904 to 1907

2. Aqua Bottle ......Circa 1907 to 1910


Rarity:

1. Amber Bottle .... Rare +
2. Aqua Bottle ....... Rare ++


Footnote:

I'm rating the amber bottles as less rare than the aqua bottles because two of the amber bottles appeared on eBay at the same time which were from two different sellers in two different states. Whereas the aqua bottle is the only one I'm aware of. Plus, I have found several pictures and references for the amber bottles but no additional pictures or references for the aqua bottle.