Chas H. Fletcher’s Castoria / Dr. S. Pitcher’s Castoria bottles

Chas H. Fletcher’s Castoria / Dr. S. Pitcher’s Castoria  laxative product bottles.   These are some of the most commonly found bottles in trash dumps and privies dating from as early as the 1870s all the way up to the mid-twentieth century.  Chas. H. Fletcher’s Castoria was a very popular brand of laxative compound, sold as a substitute for castor oil.

This product started as Dr. S. Pitcher’s Castoria , the formula being patented on May 12, 1868.  Several years later the rights to that product and recipe was sold to Charles H. Fletcher, and marketed through the J. B. Rose Company (organized in 1872),  and later the Centaur Company.

The 17-year patent for the original Pitcher’s Castoria product expired on May 18, 1885.   Several years after the patent expired,  in 1896 the firm  Heinsfurter & Daggett of Fargo, North Dakota began selling their own product under the name “Pitcher’s Castoria”.   Centaur brought this to court, and in January 1897 the judgment went in favor of Heinsfurter & Daggett to sell their product as “Pitcher’s Castoria”.

(Meanwhile, probably sometime during the period of 1893-1897, bottles sold by Centaur changed from being marked “Dr. S. Pitcher’s”,  to “Chas. H. Fletcher’s”.)

Therefore, I am under the impression that BOTH Fletcher’s AND Pitcher’s-marked  bottles were being produced simultaneously for some period of time, at least during the 1890s and possibly into the early 1900s.


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There were also several other lawsuits eventually filed by Fletcher (and the Centaur Company) against competitor companies who tried to market products with very similar bottles and labels, evidently in an effort to confuse, if not outright deceive, the buying public. (See more about those lawsuits in the article by Bill Lockhart, link below).


 

Chas H Fletcher's" embossing on the side of a typical bottle, this one in very light green, is machine made, produced by Pierce Glass Company.
Chas. H. Fletcher’s” embossed on the side of a typical bottle, this one in very light green. The bottle is machine made and was manufactured by Pierce Glass Company.

 

Typically, the later Fletcher’s bottles are embossed “Chas. H. Fletcher’s” (on one side panel, in graceful, flowing cursive script) and “CASTORIA” in standard block lettering on the other side panel. Usually the front and back panels are smooth and unlettered, the space being used for application of the paper labels.


Trio of Chas H. Fletcher's antique glass CASTORIA laxative bottles
Trio of Chas H. Fletcher’s Castoria laxative bottles

A number of different bottle makers made the Fletcher’s (and Pitcher’s) embossed  bottles over the long span of time they were being sold, but many of them are either unmarked on the base, or bear mold letters (or mold letter / number codes) on the bottom and, unfortunately, in those cases a specific glass manufacturer cannot be identified with absolute certainty.

The earlier bottle variants are hand-blown, and can be identified as such by a close examination of the two vertical mold seams.  If the mold seams “fade out” or appear “erased” as they near the very top of the bottle, it is handblown (mouthblown),  not machine-made.   If the mold seams are visible all the way to the very top of the bottle (the lip area), this indicates a machine-made example.

Many bottles are marked with a “P in a circle” glassmaker’s mark, indicating they were made by the Pierce Glass Company.   Both cork-top styles and screw-top bottles are known.  All of the Pierce-made units appear to be machine-made, and the screw-top variants marked with the “P in a circle” were almost certainly the last Dr. Fletcher’s bottles to be produced.  It is not clear when the switch was made from cork-top bottles to screw-top bottles, but possibly sometime in the late 1930s or early 1940s.  Sometime in the 1940s the embossing lettering was no longer placed on the bottles,  as they switched over to a “generic” unmarked type of bottle.   Those bottles cannot be identified with certainty if the paper labels have been removed.

Other glass companies that made some of the Dr. Fletcher’s bottles (also machine-made) includes Whitall Tatum Company (“W above T inside an inverted triangle” mark on the base), Owens Bottle Company (O inside a square),  and Owens-Illinois Glass Company (Diamond and oval with I).


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Chas H Fletcher's bottle in light green
Typical machine-made “Chas. H. Fletcher’s / Castoria” bottle in light green.

 

Most of the embossed Fletcher’s bottles are in light aqua or a very pale green glass, made with a top for a cork closure, and appear to date generally from the 1900-1940 period.  Currently, it is unclear when the very LAST glass Fletcher’s bottles (with embossed lettering) were produced.  If you have information that might help answer that question, please contact me!

Base of Chas. H. Fletcher's Castoria bottle, bearing the "P in a circle" trademark for Pierce Glass Company.
Base of Chas. H. Fletcher’s Castoria bottle,  bearing the “P in a circle” trademark for Pierce Glass Company. The “14” is a mold number.

 


Charles Henry Fletcher promoted his product with one of the most massive advertising campaigns known in the United States (at least, in the late 1800s and early 1900s),  and the walls of buildings, especially throughout the New York metro area,  were plastered with huge hand-painted advertising slogans with his unique trademarked signature in cursive writing. Because of the durable paint used, some of these signs were still visible even within the last few years. A typical website with photographs of such signs: https://forgotten-ny.com/1998/05/fletchers-castoria/


For a much more extensive, detailed examination of the history of the Dr. Fletcher and Dr. Pitcher Castoria bottle types, markings, and theories on dating some of the bottle variants out there, check out researcher Bill Lockhart’s article here: https://sha.org/bottle/pdffiles/CastoriaHistory.pdf

 


For an extensive list of glass manufacturers’ marks seen on bottles, fruit jars, insulators, tableware and other items, please click here to go to the Glass Bottle Marks pages.

Click here to go to my website HOME/ WELCOME page.


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69 thoughts on “Chas H. Fletcher’s Castoria / Dr. S. Pitcher’s Castoria bottles”

  1. I’m hoping this site is still being monitored.
    I have a Chas Fletcher bottle with no markings on the bottom but appears glass blown. Would that indicate the bottle is older?

    1. Hi Kim,
      I would have to see a photo of the bottle to figure out approximate age range. And even then, it can be very difficult to pin down, since the Chas H. Fletcher bottles were made over many years. Please check my “Contact Information” page for my email address and more info.
      THANKS!
      David

  2. Hi
    The bottle I just found today has the typical “Castoria” on one side and the other side “Chas H. Fletcher” without a ‘s
    The bottom has a 3 below that P (in a circle) and below that 458.

  3. I found a bottle that has CASTORIA on one said and CHAS H FLETCHER on the other. The bottom has P with a circle and U.S.A 2 on it. Do you have any information you share?

    1. Hi June,
      Other than the general information in this article, I can only tell you that the “P in a circle” glassmaker mark indicates that particular bottle was made by Pierce Glass Company, and the small “2” is a mold number.
      Best regards,
      David

  4. My Chas H. Fletcher’s castoria bottle is machine blown, aqua in colour with a cork style top. There is no machine scar on the bottom and the only embossing is a number 8 with the top circle smaller than the bottom circle. Made in Canada?

    1. Hi Ken,
      If there is no embossed glassmaker mark, it would be difficult to know where, or by what company, the bottle was made. Unless proven otherwise, I would assume that your bottle was made in the United States.

      ~David

  5. I found one today. Its got the p in a circle but then says U.S.A ?. Curious if anyone else has seen this and could get me a closer date

  6. Hi David,
    I found a clear Fletcher’s bottle that I believe was machine made as well as the markings ” 3, P in a circle, and 258″. From reading your other comments I believe it’s a relatively later making of the bottle perhaps from the 40s or later? I was just curious about where it could have been made and or if you have any extra knowledge about it.
    Thank you,
    Emily

    1. Hi Emily,
      I can’t be sure of the age of your bottle. Being made of clear glass (as opposed to light green or aqua), it would be more recent, possibly from the 1930s-1950s. The “P in a circle” mark identifies the glass manufacturer as Pierce Glass Company, and this would certainly have been made at their Port Allegany, PA plant, but I don’t have info that would help closely narrow down the date of your bottle. The “P in a circle” mark was used for a very long time by Pierce, possibly up to 1987. Hope this helps,
      David

      1. David: I’ve been monitoring comments for the last couple years, hoping for feedback on my particular find but may have messed up the posting or mixed up with another site but re: the common Pitcher’s Castoria: I unearthed one with 2 odd errors, only a single other example seen years ago on this site I’m spacing: (excuse as not in view right this second) the “D” in “Dr” is reversed and the first letter in “Pitcher” is double-struck with an “F”. Thought to be a conterfeit producer. More interested in historical significance/occurrence than raw value… am historian working on preservation efforts in old ghost town (Marysville, Montana). Appreciate your time and any thoughts.

        1. Hi Vince,
          To be completely honest with you, I don’t know anything about mold errors involving the Pitcher’s Castoria bottles. However, since those bottles were made in large quantities for quite some period of time, I would imagine there were many molds made and utilized for the production of those bottles, and it would not be too surprising if a tiny percentage of those molds bore some type of mold error. This happened frequently with some bottle types that were made in very large quantities, especially those from the “handmade bottle era” (before 1904). Sorry I don’t have any info on that particular bottle, but perhaps someone else may land on this site, see your comment, and provide more input for us. Take care,
          David

          1. I appreciate your time and feedback. In meantime I clarified the ref I had recalled: from the SHA/BLM historic bottle site (https://sha.org/bottle/index.htm); they in turn referenced this exhaustive study on the common DP’s castoria (https://sha.org/bottle/pdffiles/CastoriaHistory.pdf), an excellent guide. My recall matched except for “only one example found” (mentioned I thought somewhere yet only a single ref): [“Wilson and Wilson (1971:72) discovered the main style changes – including one that was almost certainly an imitator bottle – correctly dating the first one. However, they dated variations of the bottles with the “DR. S. PITCHER’S” side panel at 1878, 1882, and 1890. The latter bottle had a reversed “D” in “Dr.” (Figure 69). This engraver apparently had a really bad day. The “R” in “DR” was engraved over another letter – possibly a reversed “R” – and the first “S” appears to have been engraved over an “F.” Our example of the reverse D error bottle was embossed A5 (without the typical periods following the letter and number) on the base. It was otherwise identical with typical DR. S. PITCHER’S bottles.”].
            Mine matches photo and description spot-on so Fate/coincidence/statistics combined in finding, I believe, just another variation on the many hundreds, a surviving example of this particular error I only found mentioned once. Thanks again for the excellent feedback, esp on a common topic that may get tiring; you and SHA site are my ultimate Go-Tos as I continue unearthing this town. VM (Author, “Haunted Marysville, Montana.”

      2. Hi David. Are some numbers on the bottles more significant than others? The bottle I have simply has a 1 in a circle on the bottom.
        Thanks!

        1. Hi Adam,
          From my understanding, most if not all of the numbers seen on the bases of Fletcher’s bottles are mold numbers. I don’t feel that any particular number has more “significance” than any other number. That said, there is always more information being uncovered in ongoing “antique bottle research” so that may not be a totally accurate answer. But it is my way of thinking at the present time!
          Thanks for your post,
          David

  7. Hello from Ontario, Canada

    I just acquired a pale green Chas H Fletcher – Castoria from a antique market for $5.
    Mould marks are visible to the top lip.
    Also has the number 365 stamped on the bottom.
    Thanks for the great article written above.
    Bert

  8. I have a Dr S. Pitcher’s Castoris bottle with “S106” on the bottom.

  9. I have a mouth blown Fletcher’s with a W.4. embossed on base, anyone with any ideas of what MFG./ Date range this could represent?

    1. Hi Eric,
      The subject of the Fletcher’s and Pitcher’s Castoria bottles is very convoluted and confusing and I really cannot be sure what the marking on the base of your bottle represents. If you haven’t already, you might try checking out Bill Lockhart’s extensive article about these bottles. They were made over a long period of time by a number of glass companies. Of course, the earlier ones were handmade (mouthblown) and the later ones were machine-made, including examples from Owens Bottle Company, Owens-Illinois Glass Company, Pierce Glass Company and Whitall-Tatum Company.
      Here is the article I am referring to: https://sha.org/bottle/pdffiles/CastoriaHistory.pdf

      Take care, David

  10. I found one not to long ago. Has Dr.S.Pitchers on one side. Castoria on the other. S.49. on the bottom. Vertical seams fade at lip. Lots of color to it as well.

  11. have an early hand blown bottle, vertical seams that fade at the lip, block letters, bubbles in glass, very inconsistent thickness

  12. I have 2 of these bottles, and the markings on the bottom are different. Both have the cursive Chas. H. Fletcher’s on one side and block letters Castoria on the other. Both are a pale green color.

    The bottom of one has 12 and a circle with “P” in it
    The bottom of the other has 24 and a triangle with the letters ‘W T” in it

    I have a LOT of old glass bottles, so curious about them all!

    1. Bonnie, gobs of the Fletcher’s Castoria bottles were made by Pierce Glass Company (as shown by the P in a circle mark) and I think that is probably the most common glass maker mark seen on those bottles. I am sure there were other glassmakers who made Fletcher’s bottles, but evidently they didn’t make as many as Pierce did. I believe some “P in a circle” marked bottles will have the “U.S.A.” on them, but others don’t. The number (in your case “1”) is a mold number.
      David

    2. Unlike this bottle my bottle has a 5 instead of a 1 does this make any significant difference in the make or model of the glass bottle.

      1. Michael, in general, mold numbers do not give us any information on age, model, make, or value of bottles. They merely show what mold a particular bottle was made from, when several identical molds are being used at the same time. The inside of the mold was engraved with a number which identified that mold. If problems came up with the finished product, the defective mold could be easily identified. If you have time, please check out my webpage on “Numbers on the bottom of glass bottles”.
        Best regards, David

  13. Mine has cursive writing that says chat.h. Fletcher’s fancy on one side and block lettering on the other that reads castoria but the bottom just has a c dead in the middle

    1. Hi! I found the same bottle with Chas. H. Fletcher on one side and Castoria on the other, on the bottom it has a 5 near the Castoria side, a P in the middle that’s circled, and the number 258 closer to the Fletcher side.

  14. Have an odd variation of Dr. S. Pitcher’s Castoria in that the “D” is backwards; reverse script embossing error. Cannot find mention of this variation; is it known? (Unearthed 2 at same site; both with ‘A’ on base, prob same manufacturer but just 1 reverse ‘D.’ Thank you for your time and greeting from Marysville, Montana!

    1. Have since read about this reverse D bottle error via https://sha.org/bottle/pdffiles/CastoriaHistory.pdf, the P Castoria study referenced in post below. Sounds like Mr. Fletcher et al are only aware of a singular example? Also to clarify, the bottom “A” mold mark DOES have a “5”, not noted in previous post. Also have the secondary anomaly of the “S” appearing to have been embossed over an “F.”
      V.Moravek
      442 Grand St
      Marysville MT 59640

  15. I have a castoria, with cha script on the other side, greenish glass. Bottom has 80 with a box, within the box a 0

    1. Hi Beth, your bottle was made by Owens Bottle Company. If you wish, please check out my webpage on the “O in a square” mark which was used by Owens Bottle. They made gobs of bottles for many companies, including many for Fletcher’s Castoria.
      ~David

  16. I have a Dr. S Pitcher’s Castoria bottle with the S 33. On the bottom. It is irridescent and doesn’t have mold markings to the top. Would I be safe in saying this was produced 1910ish? My past husband unearthed this along with some other bottles while excavating for a room addition. Thanks!

    1. Hi Connie,
      I don’t know. If the vertical mold seams do NOT go all the way to the very lip of the bottle (but fade out at some point below the lip), the bottle is a hand-made (mouth-blown) version, and likely dates SOMETIME before the 1910-1920 era. If the mold seams extend to the top, it is a machine-made version and probably dates after circa 1910-1920. There is simply no way to pinpoint an exact date for any of these bottles. I can only give a general “guesstimate”. Best regards,
      David

  17. My grandmother was telling me about this product. She was given Fletcher’s Castoria from an aqua bottle as a child (1930’s) and says, “It was a staple in our cupboard.” She says it was still available when she had her first child in 1956, and was purchased in a clear bottle at that time.

    1. Hi Jenna,
      Thank you for your post. I recently found out that a product called “Fletcher’s Laxative” is still being sold (as of 7/2016) although there may be no real connection with the company that marketed the Fletcher’s Castoria in earlier years. I understand the current product is very gentle and is sold for children’s use. It probably contains (at least some) different ingredients than the older product.
      Best regards,
      David

  18. Hi David,

    I recently found a bottle in a river, which is pale green, marked with Dr S Pitchers in block letters on one side and Catoria in block letters on the other side. Your article mentions that typically the Dr S Pitchers is done in cursive. Could the bottle I found still date back to early 1900’s? thanks

    Kerri

    1. Kerri, there are probably lots of minor variants of the Pitchers bottles out there. For more detailed background info on the history and the various known bottles, check out this webpage by Bill Lockhart: http://www.sha.org/bottle/pdffiles/CastoriaHistory.pdf If the info you seek is not in that article, it may not be possible to date your variant. The bottles are common, but there are still a lot of “unknowns” about them.
      Best regards,
      David

    1. Brad, the “258” is a mold number. This just means the number 258 was used as a code number for that particular mold at the glass factory where it was made. The “258” would have likely been used in inventory sheets, catalogs, and business invoices. Without a glass factory identification mark, there is no way to be sure exactly where or by what company that bottle was made. Large numbers of bottles of the same general appearance were made and it is probable that a number of glass manufacturers helped supply those bottles. Also, please see my article about numbers on the base of glass bottles.
      Hope this helps,
      David

  19. Hi, what is the significance of finding a bottle made of clear glass verses the green and aqua most of the others have mentioned?

    1. Tess, the clear bottles are more recent. The Fletcher’s bottles were made in light aqua or light greenish aqua over many years. Aqua is the “natural” color of most glass, but as time went on (I’m not sure, but perhaps by the 1940s?) most bottles were being made of decolorized glass (i.e. ingredients were added to counteract the natural aqua color that would otherwise be present and which is caused by trace quantities of iron in the sand). In other words, clear glass.
      ~David

  20. Hi there,
    My sister has a hand blown bottle (seam is not to the top). It has Dr. S. Pitcher’s up one side and castoria up the other side. The bottom is stamped A 35 or A 85. It’s got a light green tint.

  21. Hi David,

    I’m currently identifying some bottles. I have a Chas. H. Fletcher Castoria aqua colored bottle. The vertical seam goes to the top. #28 is embossed on the bottom. Does that mean it is from 1928?

    Thank you!

    Margaret

    1. Hi Margaret,
      The “28” is a mold number. I’m sorry but I am of the strong opinion that there is NO way to date any of the Chas H. Fletcher Castoria bottles to any specific year. They were made over a period of many years in HUGE numbers. Bottle collectors who dig in old dumps, trash sites, and privy holes (especially sites where items discarded from the 1890s-1930s period have been found) will tell you that those bottles are one of the most common types that are seen, evidence that they were made in tremendous numbers. (Castoria was a huge seller…….constipation might have been even more prevalent years ago than it is now (!?)
      Many numbers are found embossed on the bases of those bottles, but they are almost certainly mold identifier numbers, and not date codes. Thanks for writing!
      ~David

        1. Sarah, thank you very much for that link. That article by Bill Lockhart et al includes tons of great information– much more detailed, and certainly more accurate, than my webpage. I would encourage everyone to read that article as well.
          Best regards,
          David

  22. I have a bottle that has the Dr.S.Pritchard’s on one side and the CASTORIA on the other side.
    There is an A44 on the bottom. Any thoughts on this one?

    1. Hi Lynda,
      Your bottle is actually embossed “Dr. S. Pitcher’s” but the lettering is in cursive and often very hard to read, since in order to produce the raised marking on the bottle, a steel mold was hand-engraved with the “cuts” inscribed backward into the inside of the mold. Another thought… when searching for info on old bottles, if the name is misspelled in a keyword search, this can cause someone to miss a lot of pertinent information that might be out there on the web.
      Anyway, as far as the “A44” on the bottom: this is a mold identifier, merely identifying a particular mold in use at a glass factory. There was probably a number of identical molds being used at the same time, each with a letter/number to identify it.
      If there is no glass manufacturer’s mark, then there is no way to be sure what factory made the bottle. The bottles were produced by a number of different glass companies for the Castoria maker. Just making a wild guesstimate, it probably dates from sometime circa 1895 to the 1920s. (But keep in mind that it is impossible to assign an exact year date to these bottles).
      ~David

    1. Hi Brett,
      Basically, there is no way to be sure on the date of production of your particular bottle. But probably from the 1900-1930s period. Please also see my comments in response to the query submitted by “Lynda”.
      Thanks and take care,
      David

  23. I found a Castoria bottle and would like a little more info on my specimen. It has “CASTORIA” in block letters on one side and “Chas H Fletcher” on the other without an (‘s). The bottom has a “P” in a circle, USA, and 7. The bottle was machine made. Thank you, Jeremy

    1. Jeremy, The Fletcher’s Castoria bottles were made in very large numbers by Pierce Glass Company (the examples with the “P in a circle”) over a period of quite a few years. (See “P in a circle” entry on “page three” of the Bottle Marks pages). There is no way to pin down the year your bottle was made. Sorry I can’t come up with more concrete information on your bottle.
      Best regards,
      David

  24. Hola. Encontré una botella Chas. H. Fletchers de un lado y del otro CASTORIA, sin embargo en la parte de abajo tiene macado un número 4, Sobre esta botella qué información e podría dar. Gracias.

    1. Querido Angel,
      Lo siento, pero realmente no puedo “afinar” una hora exacta / fecha con respecto a su botella. El número 4 en la parte inferior es un número de molde, y puede dar ninguna información sobre el año en que la botella fue fabricado. Este estilo de la botella se hizo para un período muy largo de tiempo, tal vez alrededor del año 1890 a alrededor de 1930s o 1940s, y si hay logo del fabricante de vidrio o marca comercial en la parte inferior, es aún más difícil asignar una fecha.
      Lo siento, no tengo información más precisa para usted.
      Un saludo, David

      (Translation) Dear Angel,
      I am sorry but I really cannot “narrow down” an exact time/date concerning your bottle. The number 4 on the bottom is a mold number, and can give no information on the year that the bottle was manufactured. This style of bottle was made for a very long period of time, maybe circa 1890s to around 1930s or ’40s, and if there is no glass manufacturer’s logo or trademark on the bottom, it is even more difficult to assign a date.
      Sorry I don’t have more precise information for you.
      Best regards, David

  25. I have just recovered a gorgeous specimen in a bottle dump site. It has cleaned up nicely. It is a light aqua, has the “Chas. H. Fletcher’s” in cursive on one side, and the “Castoria” in block capital letters on the opposite side. On the base is the letter “O” enclosed in a square. It is machine-made; can you determine a manufacturer and date range? Thank you very much for your help!

    1. Hi Timothy,
      Please check my entry on the “O in a square” manufacturer’s mark; it is listed on “page four”. ( Just click on the “Glass Bottle Marks – 4” link along the right side of any page on this site, which will take you to the list.) This is the best info I can give you. There is no way to pin down an exact year the bottle was made, since Owens Bottle Company used that mark for quite some period of time. Hope this helps. Best regards,
      ~David

  26. Hi there! I recently just found a bottle with the writing on the one side and the block letters on the other. It even has an old cork in it. On the bottom it has the #365. Could you kindly tell me the approximate date on this?
    Thank you kindly!
    Tamara

    1. Hi Tamara,
      Assuming the bottle is a light aqua or greenish tint, I will say it was most likely made sometime in the 1895 to 1930 time period. These bottles (without a glass manufacturers’ mark) are very hard (if not impossible) to date precisely. The same general type was made for a number of years. Is it machine-made or handmade? If the mold seams fade out before reaching the top, it is handmade. If the seams extend to the very top, it is machine-made, and would date sometime after c. 1910.
      Best regards,
      David

  27. Hi David,

    Thank you for your cleaning suggestions and I’ll use the rice method. I’ll be careful, because it looks like the bottle has some air bubbles in the glass — it fun to find an intact bottle and wonder how long it had been buried. I appreciate your detailed answer.

    Rebecca

  28. Hi,

    I just found a bottle of Castoria (Chas H. Fletcher’s in a brook) and on the bottom it reads T88. Any info on that citation? It appears to be clear glass. Do you have any ideas on how to clean the inside? Thank you.

    1. Hi Rebecca,
      The “T88” on the bottom would be a code number for that particular bottle style (used for catalog/inventory purposes within the glass factory, and/or communications with purchasers of their glass containers). Without a manufacturer’s mark, it is hard to say who made it. Illinois Glass Company, Pierce Glass Company, and other glassmakers made tons of these bottles over a period of many years.

      Concerning cleaning bottles: For ordinary cleaning, try a small bottle brush (such as used for baby bottles, or for cleaning coffee makers), or you can put dry rice, very small-sized aquarium sand/gravel, or other medium, and shake gently with the bottle partially filled with water. Many older bottles, especially dug specimens, do NOT and will not “clean up” thoroughly. They often will have a whitish or brownish stain on the inside, and often on the outside as well, which is not removable with ordinary cleaning methods. This is a result of being buried for a considerable time in frequent, or nearly constant, contact with moisture. A very thin layer of the outside surface of the glass begins to corrode, leaving an etching or staining of the top layer. This can range from a light “foggy”, milky look, all the way to a very pronounced “rainbow” irridescence which occurs after very long burial. The appearance of this “glass sickness” can vary somewhat in intensity and appearance, depending on the chemical makeup of the soil in which the bottle is buried. The only way to thoroughly clean a bottle affected by “glass sickness” is the so-called “tumble cleaning” process. This is expensive to have done by a professional (usually around $20 per bottle) although many advanced bottle collectors have their own tumbling “set-up” so they don’t pay someone else to do this.
      (In general, because of cost, this type of cleaning is not done quite as often to more common antique bottles, but more frequently reserved for the “higher-end” or less-common, unusual, or more colorful bottles).
      Basically, a bottle or jar is placed securely inside a rotating plastic canister which is attached to a motor, and the canister is slowly rotated with a mixture of copper shot, water and cleaning/polishing agents. This removes a very thin layer of the surface. For a general idea of this process, check out: http://baltimorebottles.com/clean/clean.html. You can also find other online websites on bottle cleaning by a keyword search with “sick glass” “glass sickness” “tumble cleaning bottles”, “professional bottle cleaning”, “privy diggers” and other terms.

      I hope this information will be helpful. Best regards,
      ~David

  29. While digging in my backyard to build a new pond, I came across a a bottle of Fletchers. It is pale green, and appears to be machine made as the seam goes right to the mouth of the bottle.
    I am interested in the bottle marks however. On the bottom are 2 stamps, one is the letter D inside a diamond shape and the number 7. Do you have any information ? I would be most interested. Thank you

    1. Hi Wanda,
      Your bottle was made by Dominion Glass Company, headquartered in Montreal, Quebec. They had a number of plants around Canada. The number “7” is likely a mold number. I’m guessing you are located somewhere in Canada? Most “D in a diamond” bottles are found in Canada, and occasionally in the US, mostly along the northern border near Canada.
      Since Fletcher’s was so widely distributed, your info shows that they (Fletcher’s) had bottles made for them within Canada, besides various glassmakers here in the United States. As far as nailing down a specific date, that’s very hard to say. Probably made sometime in the 1920s-1950s.
      Thanks for writing,
      David

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