E. O. Brody Company, of Cleveland, Ohio was established in 1958. This company is not an actual glass manufacturer, but a distributor/wholesaler that markets utilitarian and decorative glassware (and ceramic items) made especially for the florist industry.
Nearly all of the glass is marked “E. O. BRODY CO. CLEVELAND, O. U.S.A.” on the base. The glass has been made in the United States, evidently, for the most part by Indiana Glass Company, and later (after c. 2007) by Anchor Hocking Company.
On November 20, 2007 , a press release posted on insideindianabusiness.com indicated that Monomoy Capital Partners, L.P., a New York private equity fund that makes controlling investments in middle market companies that require operational or financial restructuring, announced that it had acquired Indiana Glass Company and E.O. Brody Company from the Lancaster Colony Corporation. Exact terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
Quoting directly from this aforementioned press release:
“Indiana Glass manufactures tabletop and decorative glassware containers for the retail, private label, candle and floral markets. E.O. Brody markets and distributes vases made by Indiana Glass to wholesale florists, large floral buying groups and flower shops. Indiana Glass’ customers include large retailers such as Wal-Mart, specialty retailers, and candle makers. E.O. Brody supplies the nationwide floral industry, including FTD, 1-800-FLOWERS, and more than 1,200 independent retail florists. The companies employ approximately 450 people at facilities located in Sapulpa, Okla., Tulsa, Okla., Dunkirk, Ind. and Cincinnati, Ohio.
“Monomoy will merge Indiana Glass and E.O. Brody into The Anchor Hocking Company, the $220 million glassware manufacturer that Monomoy acquired out of Chapter 11 earlier this year. Anchor operates facilities in Lancaster, Ohio and Monaca, Pennsylvania. and supplies a wide range of glassware products to mass-market retailers, consumer products companies, candle makers, specialty retailers and the lodging and food service industries.
“We are extremely excited to welcome Indiana Glass and E.O. Brody to the Anchor family,” said Mark Eichhorn, the chief executive officer of Anchor. “Their deep experience in the specialty and floral business is a perfect compliment to Anchor’s presence in the retail and food service markets and will enable to us to more effectively serve both our current customers and adjacent sales channels. The addition of these two businesses will greatly accelerate our plans to restore Anchor’s position as the leading North American supplier of glassware products.”
“Since acquiring the Company in April of this year [2007], Monomoy has instituted a series of business improvement programs at Anchor that have substantially reduced operating expenses and increased profitability throughout the Company.”
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“E.O. Brody Co.” mark on glass
The E. O. Brody Company mark is often seen on the base of emerald green, avocado green, clear, and white milkglass vases, bowls, and other floral containers of many styles and shapes. Large numbers of milkglass bud vases have been made for many years. These containers seem to be virtually omnipresent, so I am sure they have been made in tremendous numbers………virtually every thrift store probably has one of them in stock! Many of them also carry a number which is an inventory, style or model number assigned to a particular design.
Most of the glassware marked with “E. O. Brody Co” assumedly dates between 1958 and the early to mid-1970s, although I have no concrete information that discloses how recently glass has been made with this type of marking. Some of it may date more recently…….perhaps into the 1980s or later.
Update: (this info posted October 20, 2015). Recent information posted online seems to show that glass sold by/through the Brody Company is now imported from outside the United States, specifically, Turkey. However, I have no information that shows exactly what types of permanent markings are being placed on this ware, if any.
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Here is a keyword search string for Brody glass on the ebay site: https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_trksid=m570.l1313&_nkw=e+o+brody+glass+%28bowl%2Cdish%2Cvase%29+&_sacat=0
For an extensive list of glass manufacturers’ marks seen on bottles, jars, insulators, tableware and other items, please click here which points to page one of the Glass Bottle Marks pages.
Click here to go to my website Homepage.
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Hello everyone! I have an E.O. Brody piece that is MJ 44. I can find 43 and 45 but can’t seem to find a value comp in the 44. Anyone have any additional info? Awesome site!
I just picked up what I assumed was a candy dish . It says EO Brody Cleveland O but there is a flaw , the “Y” in Brody is upside down . Any thoughts on this ?
Hi Chad, I have heard occasionally of other engraving errors on Brody pieces, so they evidently did not have the very best quality control on their mold work! It seems glassware made for Brody was churned out fast and furiously for many years, as it is so common. So I assume an occasional error was made as they were in a rush to get glassware molds fabricated and “up and running” at the glass factory where they were used.
Although I have no idea how common or rare that error variant would be, I would assume that it has some added value as compared with similar pieces that are embossed correctly. Sorry I don’t have better info on this.
Take care, David
I have an EO Brody Co hobnail milk glass bud vase that has a stamp below the name of what appears to be M 1000 and a number 2. It’s very faint. Can you tell me what the numbers mean? Does it in any way help one to date the item.
Hi Kim, I don’t know exactly what the numbers mean, but they seem to be identification codes or “catalog numbers” for certain molds, styles or shapes used. I strongly doubt that they have ANY practical use as far as dating the glassware.
~David
I have a vase that just has Brody on it no initials is it from same company? It is a vase clear with a wheat pattern on it
Marcia,
Yes, it is from the same distributor. Brody is a very uncommon name. Some items were just marked “BRODY” and others with “E.O.BRODY CO.” I think some were marked with the city name “CLEVELAND O” and others were not.
I assume it depended on the whim of the moldmaker, how much room he had to work with, and how much time and money it took to perform the work. Tooling molds with engraved lettering is a time consuming and (often) expensive process.
Best regards,
David
I have the E O Brody ribbed avocado green bowl. It was my mother’s. Is there any value to it. I would like to pass it down to my grandchildren . I would like to tell them a little about the bowl. If you could give me any information on it, I would appreciate it.
Hi Fran, the green E. O. Brody bowls were made in very large numbers, so in purely monetary sense, they have only nominal value. However, I would say the sentimental, nostalgic value can be immense. Just knowing a particular piece was owned and used within your own family for many years is wonderful.
Most of the avocado green colored items (as far as I can tell) date from the late 1960s and 1970s. I’m sorry but I don’t have any more info on them.
Best regards, David
I have a small collection of Brody and Fenton milk glass – various pieces including vases, bowls, planters and dishes. I periodically search the internet for information about the markings, just to see if I can narrow down when / where my pieces were made. I don’t care about the value. They are priceless to me!
Hi David ~ I had never looked at the engraving on my vase until tonite. After reading the info on Brody glassware and all of your replies, I’m wondering if you know the value of a sweet Brody vase I have: rather shallow bowl on a stem with a pattern around it consisting of graduated small to larger half circles on top edge that merges into graduated larger to smaller half circles on bottom, 2 of each all the way around. Can you picture it? The cool part is the heavy, glass insert with 12 finger-sized indentations for short stemmed flowers to be placed. I love this flower bowl and would never part with it but now am curious as to its rarity and value. Thanks so much for your reply!
Diane
Diane, please check your Facebook messages.
David
Hello David, years ago i started collecting depression green glass. I have a lot of the Brody Company’s glass ware. To my surprise i find that some of the pieces are worth than $20 and some less. I am thrilled to know i have some that is worth $20. Its just a hobby of mine that i use to collect the depression green glass. What fun. Thank you, Sherry Dilla
Hi Sherry,
I’m not sure if I understood your post, but none of the glass marked E. O. Brody Co. is true “depression glass”. True depression glass is found in shades of green that are lighter (to some degree) than glass made for Brody. The green-colored glass marked “E O Brody CO” is what I would call “emerald green”, “grass green” or “seven up green” and dates mostly from the 1960s-1970s.
Also, please be cautious when someone says that ‘such and such’ is worth a certain amount. Many sellers on ebay or at flea markets or antique malls may put a price on an item that is totally unrealistic. It may be much more than an item is really worth, and the item may not, in reality, sell for that price. From my experience, most Brody bowls and vases are very common (they were made in very large quantities for floral use) and they are hard to sell for more than 1 to 3 dollars. However, I am sure some are scarcer or in more demand, but I don’t have info on which ones are hardest to find.
Best regards,
David
I have a green emerald candy bowl. Markings are E.O Brody Co. Cleveland O. U.S.A. 0009W. Can you tell me a round about idea of what it’s worth? It has a ruffle like around the top, about 2 inches deep & flower like designs on the side. Same on the round bottom. Thank you for your time, sincerely Kelly
Hi Kelly, Sorry, but this is not intended to be an appraisal site. In any case, most of the E O Brody bowls and planters were made in large numbers and have a rather minimal value to collectors (simply because there is an oversupply, very little info is known about them, and there are few serious Brody collectors at this time). Please search ebay for auctions of similar items and note the COMPLETED AUCTIONS prices realized (NOT the asking, beginning, or minimum price set by the seller which may be HIGHLY unrealistic).
Best regards, David
NAPCO (National Potteries Corporation) of Bedford Oh., a suburb of Cleveland made many glass and ceramic vases and planters, they also imported ceramic and glass items in from Japan. E. O. Brody owned their own molds, but made nothing themselves. They had many of their glass vases and planters made at the NAPCO plant, as well as by other glass companies, including Hoosier Glass of Kokomo, In, Indiana Glass of Dunkirk, In, Anchor Hocking Glass and others. There were no pattern names assigned, only catalog numbers for each model, which is often comprised of a letter and number.
Unless from Japan or outside the USA the NAPCO glass items were made from recycled glass. My grandfather had a salvage business in Erie, Pa., used glass bottles and jars were a part of what they salvaged, washed, sorted by color, then crushed then packed into barrels that were trucked to the NAPCO plant in the 1950’s-60’s.
These items were not made to be anything special other than utilitarian and disposable. Antique\old glass dealers and collectors today want to apply something to them that makes them seem more important than they are for sales purposes etc., but there really isn’t any special information but their age and what they were used for.
Hi John,
Thank you very much for the information you have provided, it is greatly appreciated. Very interesting! Although I understand your sentiments regarding this type of glassware as being merely ‘ordinary’ and utilitarian, and basically I can agree, this doesn’t change the fact that as time goes on, even “common” utilitarian items may gradually acquire a “collectible” value simply because they represent a time period long gone and present an aura of sentimentality for things and experiences from years ago. Some items in the field of present-day “collectibles” originally had ONLY a cold, purely practical, no-nonsense value in the “real world” as utilitarian objects, but now take on an added value simply because of the history associated with them, their inherent beauty, etc. For instance, vintage railroad lanterns, glass telephone insulators, glass fishing floats, etc. On the other hand, collectibles that were mass-produced and introduced specifically AS collectibles from day one, may suffer greatly when the public realizes they are being virtually “manipulated”. (Case in point: Beanie Babies, Boyd’s Bears).
The main reason that most Napco and E.O.Brody glassware has relatively little monetary value presently (and, yes, some ebay sellers know nothing about them, and may exaggerate their value or significance in the glass collecting world) is because (besides usually being of fairly plain, straightforward designs) they were made in such HUGE numbers and so are almost omnipresent. (Just my opinion!)
Thanks again and take care,
~David
Thank you David…Good opin!
Hi John, I collect E O Brody ceramic planters. Hoping to find someone that shares my interest & can guide me on how to write a book & find out more info about the Brody Co. It is a really kool collection! THANKS, Patsy White
Good afternoon from the left coast. I have acquired, due to some manic actions, SEVERAL pieces marked EO Brody, Hoosier, etc. Some are the big “smoothe” vases, some have patterns, some appear crinkle cut, I think even some are milk vases. I got the bud vases so I could give mother’s day presents to my mom, sisters, etc. But, since I do not have a creative bone in my body…I just kept thinking I would find the perfect ones. I now have BOXES of them, as I went a bit overboard. I at one point had catalogued some of the numbers but that got to be overwhelming. I know very little about the collection as a lot, but, I think that some of them may be considered more worthy than others.
I am to the point that I need to free up some space, but if you, Patsy, or someone, might be able to point me in a direction of a resource to look over and assess these pieces, it would be great.
If anything, my mania could be a decent entry in your book 🙂
My friend asked me to investigate three EO Brody bowls and a vase. When I first saw them I instinctively identified them as common florist vase/bowls. I worked at my father’s flower shop until 1974 and remember the (ugly) bubbly-avocado green bowls/vases but my friend’s are a pretty medium green with vertical or horizontal ribs or “scales”. Thank you for your web-site.
Mary, thanks a lot for your post. I just wish there was more solid, detailed info on these Brody items, but there doesn’t seem to be much info available, either in book form or on the internet!
~David
Thank.You.Ron
Wanted information on a vase we inherited.E.O Brody.Emerald green diamond pattern vase #120 on bottom
Sorry, no info other than I assume it is from the 1960s or 1970s. Maybe a reader “in the know” will have something more to contribute.
~David
Hey Guys, I collect the old e o Brody ceramic pieces. I have a vast collection & hopefully in my lifetime they will come up in value! Would love to publish a collector’s book, with photos, about all my pieces…have not been able to find any one else that is an avid collector! Any Thoughts!
I love Brody pieces – they’re beautiful, sturdy, well-made – and still very inexpensive at yard sales and some thrift shops in my area. Brides-to-be snap them up when we list them because they’re so affordable as well as gorgeous 🙂
I agree~~ I like the medium green glass bowls, in several styles, that date (I believe) from the mid to late 1960s and early 1970s. Well made, good quality, and they are MARKED with a name which is ALWAYS a plus. So many glass makers did not mark their wares at all– which in my opinion is always a mistake…….name recognition helps create a market for items. As time passes and these items become less common, their value will likely go up and the demand for them will increase. Thanks for your post, David
Hi david. I have a white milk glass that has the E O BRODY M 6000 on the bottom but the “Y” is upside down. Are you familiar with this happening? Thanks!
Katee,
I’m not familiar with that particular piece, but this would be an example of a moldmaker engraving error. Not unheard of, but certainly rather uncommon in more recent glassware. This milkglass item (bowl? vase?) would have a little extra value simply because of the moldmaker error, although if there is not much demand or interest in Brody pieces at present, the difference in value would be minimal. (This type of occurrence was much more common in utilitarian glass such as ordinary bottles, and electrical insulators, especially in the 1800s and into the very early twentieth century. Some insulator collectors actually specialize in looking for pieces with mold errors, including mis-spelled names, wrong patent dates, upside-down or backwards lettering, etc).
~David
/Can a piece be recognized as Brody without the markings?
Hi Linda,
To be honest, I am not familiar enough with known Brody items to answer your question with absolute certainty. But, for what it’s worth, if an unmarked item (such as a bud vase or planter) can be matched up with an identical piece but with the Brody mark this would be very strong evidence. It seems to me that most Brody items are marked, but that may not be true. Perhaps someone with more information or experience with Brody-marked glass can comment on this. Thanks for writing,
David
I have a girl/vase/planter–don’t know which to call it. She is mostly white, but a blue tinge on the ribbon on her hat and also the ribbon on her dress. She is 7 inches tall. Is this a collectible item? The number on the bottom is A-578. There is also a gold sticker on the bottom that says “Design Original by E.O. Brody Cleveland, Ohio Made in Japan”. Can you tell me when it was made and what it is worth?
Hi Jean,
From your description I am not sure if you have a glass or a ceramic item. Assuming it is ceramic? In any case, most “MADE IN JAPAN” marked items (in good condition) are considered collectible. The Made in Japan marked items were made over a very long period of time (generally 1920s-1980s), but since this also mentions E. O. Brody, we can narrow it down a bit to post-1958. I would imagine it dates from the 1960s or 1970s, but I really have no specifics, and no info on values. Your best bet for that information would be to search ebay or other internet websites over a period of time, watching similar items being posted there for sale, and what their actual ending price is.
Best regards,
David
Have bowl with stem, don’t know what it was really used for but mom used it as candy dish, flower bowl, etc. it has 009w or m600, can’t tell read one wat then reverse and read another. Looking to sell is there a market for these items?
Jamie
Hi Jamie,
Your best bet would be to search internet auction sites (such as ebay) and use keywords such as Brody and glass, bowl, etc. Lots of Brody glassware is posted for sale on ebay. Check the actual selling prices of items similar to your bowl (Completed auctions), NOT the “asking price” or the minimum bid, which is often extremely unrealistic.
Hope this helps,
David
Hi Jamie. I was just trying research the same stemmed bowl that was my mothers. The mold number is M6000. Did you find more information on the piece. Thanks for any help you can provide. I’m just interested in providing info so that my children have it when I pass heirloom items to them.
I have a green glass candy bowl flower pot thingy. It says e.o. brody co. Cleve. Ohio usa and in the middle is printed withG-104. Can some one plz help , identify yr maker and ect.
Heather, good luck finding out anything. All I can pass along would be that your container was actually made by Indiana Glass Company, or Anchor Hocking. The “G-104” is probably an identifying code (like an inventory, model, or stock number) for that particular style of glass bowl or flower pot.
I have the same glass bowl, mine as 66 printed in the middle
Hi Ann,
Evidently a number of molds were used to produce that same style bowl. The “66” is probably a mold identifier number. I am assuming (though I cannot be absolutely certain) that it is NOT a date code.
Best regards,
David