Written by the TreasureGuide for the exclusive use of treasurebeachesreport.blogspot.com.
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| Modern Wine Bottle Topper. |
Yesterday I posed a mystery item. It is no longer a mystery, thanks to Mitch King, who found this photo of a brand new wine topper of exactly the same type. Besides the pewter top being corroded, the one I showed yesterday was also missing the cork that surround the wood core.
I couldn't believe he found a photo of the exact item that quickly.
Susan E. also correctly identified the item.
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Archaeologists exploring the site of a recently discovered 18th Century tavern in eastern North Carolina say they were stunned to learn it burned to the ground with a treasure trove of merchandise stored under the floorboards.
The fire, which occurred in the 1760s, caused the walls to collapse over the floors, sealing the crawl space shut like a “time capsule,” says Dr. Charles Ewen, who led the dig with a crew of students from East Carolina University.
It is suspected the site might also have served as a brothel for the historic port, known as Brunswick Town.
Items found under the foundation include intact smoking pipes that were never used, crushed liquor bottles and iron tools that historians can’t yet identify, Ewen told the Charlotte Observer...
Here is the link for more about that.
https://www.charlotteobserver.com/news/local/article230892034.html
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I recently showed a bottle with a wire top and stopper. I thought it would be instructive to take a closer look at it.
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| Closer View of Top of the Bottle. |
It looks something like a Lightning stopper, but is actually a Swingtop stopper that shows some age.
How old do you think the bottle would be? Take a look at the next photo and see if you see any clues.
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| Swingtop Closure |
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| Same Bottle. |
The seam on the bottle runs all the way to the top, there are no bubbles in the glass, and the glass is thin and of uniform thickness. It does not look very old.
Besides being found on reproduction bottles, lightning and similar tops are occasionally used on modern beers and other bottles.
You can usually tell the difference between old and newer machine made bottles just by looking at the glass.
I didn't take a photo, but on the bottom of the bottle is a faint Hazel Atlas symbol and K-703-11.
We know from the history of the company and the Hazel Atlas mark on the bottom that it was made between 1902, when the Hazel Company and Atlas Glass Company joined to form Hazel Atlas, and 1956, when the company was bought by Continental Can Company.
The illustration below provides some useful information.
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| Source: See WVCulture.org link below. |
The K indicates the plant was the Zanesville, OH plant. I suspect if I did some additional research I could come up with a much more precise date.
See http://www.wvculture.org/history/wvhs/wvhs1721.html
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That item has a lot of personal connections for me. Before my father was able to get into the service during WW II, after several failed attempts, including running away to Canada to try to get into the Royal Air Force and being put on a bus and sent back home, he worked nights packing jars at the Washington, PA Hazel Atlas plant during what was supposed to be his freshman and sophomore years of high school. He really only attended school during football season to play football, and continued to work nights at the plant.
Shift work was the norm, and all, regardless of position or seniority, worked as dictated by management. The company policy was to employ only those of age 18 or older, but tales are told of some who were able to "fudge" their age and begin employment at 16 or 17. (WVCulture.org web site.)
According to my best figuring he got work in the plant even younger than 16.
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We are really stuck in a pattern of little surf and rainy days.
I've been hoping to get out to investigate an overgrown site that has the remains of an old broken down chimney, but the weather hasn't be coorperating.
Happy hunting,
TreasureGuide@comcast.net
