RIBottleguy
Well-Known Member
Sometimes I feel like I have a lucky streak in my genes. Such was the case when I was out doing my internship for the local land trust. I was trying to access a property which had not been visited before. Well, I walked across a farm field and found an abandoned wagon road behind it. The property was surrounded in swamp so I tried to get around it. As I walked down the wagon trail I suddenly spotted shards of glass. I got closer and found the entire area was littered with glass and whole bottles!
I know the oldest house in the area was from around 1900, and another the 1920s, so I didn't expect to find an old dump. Still, I was excited as the milk bottle tops indicated that I could find some local milks. The dump was completely untouched with ACL sodas and a BIM wine bottle right on the surface. In a few minutes I pulled out a Samuel A. Whaley pyroglazed quart! It was mostly ghosted but I was still happy with it. It was from Wakefield, RI. I then found a piece of an embossed one, which got my blood pumping. A fellow milk bottle collector had one for sale for $300! After another five minutes I spotted a milk bottle base sticking out of the ground. I freed it up and there it is, an embossed S.E. Whaley milk! Aside from one other local milk, this is probably the hardest one to acquire. I quickly ran back to my car to drive it closer and break out the digging gear.
It was a nice dump to dig. There weren't too many roots, and it was shallow, from 1/2 to 1 1/2 feet deep. At first I didn't find much, but when I hit a modest mound (maybe a half foot taller than the rest), bottles started pouring out. They were mostly screw cap food and household bottles. I then started to find milks. Another Whaley! Then some slick milks. Then another Whaley! I found about 25 milk bottles, and 8 of them were embossed Whaleys. There were four different versions. I was hoping to find an embossed pint but had no such luck.
I created my first movie from the videos I took. I realize I didn't speak too clearly (probably from being tired and excited), but it's largely audible. Enjoy!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ex2L5wsCqUs&feature=youtube_gdata
I know the oldest house in the area was from around 1900, and another the 1920s, so I didn't expect to find an old dump. Still, I was excited as the milk bottle tops indicated that I could find some local milks. The dump was completely untouched with ACL sodas and a BIM wine bottle right on the surface. In a few minutes I pulled out a Samuel A. Whaley pyroglazed quart! It was mostly ghosted but I was still happy with it. It was from Wakefield, RI. I then found a piece of an embossed one, which got my blood pumping. A fellow milk bottle collector had one for sale for $300! After another five minutes I spotted a milk bottle base sticking out of the ground. I freed it up and there it is, an embossed S.E. Whaley milk! Aside from one other local milk, this is probably the hardest one to acquire. I quickly ran back to my car to drive it closer and break out the digging gear.
It was a nice dump to dig. There weren't too many roots, and it was shallow, from 1/2 to 1 1/2 feet deep. At first I didn't find much, but when I hit a modest mound (maybe a half foot taller than the rest), bottles started pouring out. They were mostly screw cap food and household bottles. I then started to find milks. Another Whaley! Then some slick milks. Then another Whaley! I found about 25 milk bottles, and 8 of them were embossed Whaleys. There were four different versions. I was hoping to find an embossed pint but had no such luck.
I created my first movie from the videos I took. I realize I didn't speak too clearly (probably from being tired and excited), but it's largely audible. Enjoy!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ex2L5wsCqUs&feature=youtube_gdata