Oldest ACL Royal Crown Cola Bottle?

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judu

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soryy, trying to figure out how to post pictures....is this a 37? ....its in rough shape as it was dug...not sure how to read the owens-illin. ....
 

lblackvelvet

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Here are four of my RC bottles I have that are not packed away. Two are 1936 and one bottle has no pyramids at all from W. Va.
 

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bottlingco

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lblackvelvet,The ones that have "copyright 1936" on the ACL are not actually 1936. That means the label design was copyrighted in that year. The date of the bottle is most likely to be embossed into the glass on the bottom of the bottle. Your oldest one is the trapezoid embossed on the neck. (Unless it is a later reissue.) The painted label on the neck versions are later. Nice, clean bottles. ~bottlingco
 

dbv1919

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judo that's a 1937, Iblackvelvet I think bottlingco is dead on the money. Just from what I have observed the 36's and 37's have the really large RC in the acl and debossed necks with full or partial pyramid and star. The 38's have a smaller RC in the acl and embossed partial pyramid neck. I have no clue as to why some are more aqua colored than others. Most but not all Owens Illinois glass seems mostly aqua. LGW seems mostly lighter but not all. I have one RC bottle made by Ball it is absolutely clear. Maybe something with the sand in manufacture I have no idea. Iblackvelvet I would guess the second from left is a 1937 from the neck and large RC in the acl. The two on the outside I would think are 1940 or later, the 1939's have the acl royal crown with small rc under it. The third from left is the later acl. Just my uneducated opinion guys, thanks for all the responses.
 

SODAPOPBOB

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The following is the result of information I gleaned from a variety of different sources which I believe to be accurate ...

R. M. / Robert Miller Grubb of Dothan, Alabama was one of the first bottlers of Royal Crown Cola. He and a handful of other bottlers test marketed Royal Crown Cola in 1934. The first bottles (1934 and 1935) had paper labels. The first acl bottle was introduced in 1936. The paper label bottles have an RC inside a trapezoid on the neck and Nehi Bottling embossed on the heel. But this doesn't mean that all paper label bottles were produced in 1934 and 1935 because some of the smaller bottlers during that time period used paper labels as late as 1939. Any Royal Crown Cola bottle from Dothan, Alabama which is dated 1934 to about 1948 would have been bottled by R.M. Grubb. He was born in 1883 and died at the age of 64 in 1948. The attachments are from ...

1. 1918 Draft Registration Card ~ Age 30
Former Shipping Clerk ~ Produce & Ice Co. ~ Morristown, Tennessee

2. The Dothan Eagle ~ Dothan, Alabama ~ December 2, 1943

3. The Dothan Eagle ~ Dothan, Alabama ~ March 9, 1948
 

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SODAPOPBOB

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P.S. Even though I haven't been able to connect all of the dots yet, it appears that R.M. Grubb was a bottler of Chero-Cola as well as Nehi - which would explain the Royal Crown Cola connection.
 

SODAPOPBOB

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I was in the process of putting together a Royal Crown Cola timeline of my own when I discovered this one ...


http://archives.columbusstate.edu/findingaids/mc204.php


The following is a timeline for Chero-Cola /Nehi/ Royal Crown Cola:
1905 - Claud Hatcher begins creating soft drinks in basement of family grocery store on W. Tenth Street in Columbus, Georgia.1907- Hatcher starts his own bottling works, Union Bottling Works1907- First cola called Chero-Cola, first beverage Royal Crown, a ginger ale1911 - Family grocery discontinued to concentrate on soft drinks.1912- Company name changes to Chero-Cola Co. And sells syrups and concentrates to bottlers under Chero-Cola trademark.1912- Begins selling to franchises, first one in Dawson, Georgia1914 - Lawsuit by Coca Cola over trademark use of "cola"; not won till19441917- WW I Sugar crisis limits use of sugar in soft drinks. Chero-Cola imports and refines Cuban sugar for 3 years.1920- After stockpiling sugar, price drops to 8 cents/pound creating financial hardship1922-26- Shipping practices change from syrup to concentrates, saving container and freight costs and making a fresher taste.1924-1928 Hatcher begins Nehi, a fruit flavored line- orange, grape, root beer1928 - Name changes to Nehi Corporation with stock listed on NY Curb Exchange1929-1932 - Stock market crashes and company loses money for first time1932 - Par-T-Pak introduced in quart size1933- Claud A. Hatcher dies suddenly. His will establishes the Pickett-Hatcher Educational Fund, providing education for millions1934- H.R. Mott becomes second president, reduces debt and streamlines Operations1934- New cola introduced, Royal Crown, using same name as Hatcher's first Ginger ale1934 - New RC Cola first bottled in Dothan, Alabama1934-35 - RC introduces 12 oz. Bottles; 2 full glass for 5 cents1940- Mott becomes chairman of the board and C.C. Colbert becomes president.1946 - Nehi advertises with national celebrities.1950's - RC's and Moonpie, the "working man's lunch" - new advertising Campaign1954- First to nationally introduce a soft drink can1955 -Wilber H. Glenn becomes president.1959 - Third corporate name change to Royal Crown Cola Co.1962- Diet Rite Cola introduced with great success1965-16 oz. Bottle introduced1969 - Bill Durkee becomes president.1969- Cyclamate (sugar substitute) banned by FDA as a carcinogen1975 - RC moves corporate headquarters to Atlanta.2000- Royal Crown acquired by Cadbury-Schweppes and then to Dr. Pepper Seven-Up, Inc.2001 - International RC business sold to Cott Beverages of Ontario
 

SODAPOPBOB

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QUESTION: Is anyone aware of a Royal Crown Cola bottle with a "pointed" pyramid on the neck other than the 1936 example like Brad's? The trapezoid variations are "flat" on the top. It would be interesting to know what the 1934-35 bottles looked like. I've looked but cannot find one anywhere. 1. Brad's 1936 bottle w/pointed pyramid.2. 1936 newspaper ad w/pointed pyramid and paper label.
 

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SODAPOPBOB

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P.S. Based on everything I've learned from this thread, three possible indicators related to identifying a 1934 or 1935 Royal Crown Cola bottle (that isn't date marked) are ... 1. Clear glass2. Non acl ~ possibly with or without a paper label3. Pointed pyramid on neck
 

SODAPOPBOB

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If we weren't slightly confused before, this should do it. I found this image of a Royal Crown Cola paper label in one of Allan Petretti's books. Even though it's not dated, it's definitely not like any Royal Crown Cola label I have seen previously. I had to use a magnifying loupe to read it and was able to see the words ...

Neck Label:

1. Delicious Refreshing

Main Label:

1. Contents ~ 12 Fluid Oz.
2. Royal Crown Cola
3. Special
4. Extra Quality ~ Blends Deliciously
5. Highland Beverage Company
6. Manufacturers
7. San Mateo, Cal
8. Telephone 92
9. On both sides of the label are the images of a dragon-type Lion


This link is to a 1931-1932 San Mateo, Ca. directory. Scroll down several pages to the Beverages section where you will see a listing for Highland Beverages ...

http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~npmelton/sm31_428.pdf


As we know, Royal Crown Ginger Ale was introduced in 1907. But what I didn't know is that it was bottled well into the 1930s. The attached newspaper ad is from ...

The Times ~ San Mateo, Ca. ~ November 26, 1932

The ad clearly indicates that "Royal Crown Dry Ginger Ale" was produced by the Highland Beverage Co. during 1932.

Now compare the label from Allan Petretti's book to the label on the bottle in the 1932 newspaper ad. I'm not certain but believe the label in the ad is a Ginger Ale label and not a Cola label. But irregardless of that, the two labels are similar and both have the Lion image, and both are by the Highland Beverage Company of San Mateo, California.

The only thing I can think of to explain the Royal Crown Cola label is to refer back to the various Royal Crown histories where they state that after Claud Hatcher died on December 31, 1933, that the (Nehi) company needed a "new" flavor of cola. This leads me to believe the paper label was their "old" cola that was then reformulated and reintroduced in 1934.

We know Royal Crown Ginger Ale goes back as far as 1907, but I'm not sure how far back their "old" Cola goes. I plan to do some additional research and see if I can find out.
 

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