GAY 90s RUBY-STAINED SOUVENIR GLASS OFFERED SOLID MEMORIES

By Bob Brooke

Souvenir glass, sold at tourist attractions, fairs, and train stations, was beautiful and it was cheap. During the 1880s and even more so during the 1890s, happy and prosperous Victorians took to the road, train, and ship and traveled near and far in search of pleasure and enlightenment. As great collectors, they sought out souvenirs of their travels. One of the most popular of these were ruby-stained glass toothpick holders, tumblers, goblets, creamers and pitchers inscribed with their name or the name of the destination, and perhaps the date.

Glass souvenirs didn’t first appear at the Philadelphia Centennial in 1876, as many believe, but much earlier. Little keepsakes had always been made in blown glass. After less expensive pressed glass appeared in 1825, owners of fairs and expositions sought out these more profitable items. Manufacturers pressed plates and tumblers with pictures of an event. But it was the smaller items, such as match and toothpick holders and little creamers and mugs that became popular. Makers often stained these pieces red or amber and engraved them with an inscription. Glassmakers created blanks of thousands of these small articles for the large expositions, such as the Chicago Fair in 1893, as well as the popular county fairs.

Produced in the United States from 1880 to 1920, there were eventually thousands of patterns that flooded the market. Makers produced many of the more popular patterns in a variety of forms. They combined different colors of glass and different decorating techniques to produce hundreds of thousands of pieces of glass. What makes souvenir glass so unique is that many pieces have a date and, often the name of the owner clearly inscribed.

A series of events brought about the mass production of pressed glass in the U.S. These events came together about 1880 to create an explosion of what has come to be called pattern glass since each piece had a pattern on its surface created by taking a glob of molten glass and literally pressing the glass into a mold.

One of the most important of these events was the development of the soda lime glass formula in 1864. This formula is still the basis of most glass made today. Glass manufacturers eliminated expensive lead oxide from the glass mixture, cutting its cost by 30 to 50 percent. This glass could be more quickly and deeply pressed, which, in turn, allowed for a better imitation of more expensive cut glass at a fraction of the cost. The first pattern glassmakers directly copied many of the more popular cut glass patterns. For example, just about every company copied a cut glass pattern called Russian, resulting in the production of what they called Daisy and Button and its variations.

The glassmakers also figured out a way to make their pressed glass look like costly cased and cut glass. Prior to the 1880s, glassmakers made glass with two colors by dipping a hot piece of just-formed clear glass into a contrasting batch of colored glass, usually ruby. When the piece had cooled and annealed, a skilled craftsman cut a pattern through the thin colored layer to the clear glass beneath. Though more durable, it was a more expensive technique.

Staining, or flashing, on the other hand, involves painting an already-pressed piece of clear pattern glass with a chemical solution containing copper sulfide and backing it in a 1,000-degree kiln, turning the stain bright red. Sometimes, makers used an amber stain to decorate their pressed pieces, which could then be engraved with flower or leaf bands or souvenir inscriptions.

The way to create profits is to cut costs, so manufacturers, in an effort to offset rising labor costs, took shortcuts. Originally, ruby and amber-stained pieces had delicate incised patterns applied, but later makers ruby stained only the broad top section of a piece.

By 1885, amber staining was available in the United States. Originating in Germany, the process used silver nitrate. Since many skilled glass workers immigrated from Germany and England, they brought their skills and knowledge with them.

Glassmakers produced ruby-stained glass by reheating the glass after painting it with copper salts. Stained pattern glass could be decorated by engraving or etching ferns, flowers, ivy, and birds, among other motifs, through the stain. Craftsmen often added enamel decoration on top of the stain. However, many of these pieces had the name of a loved one, a World's Fair, or a city incised on the ruby-stained surface by n engraver at the time of purchase. By 1890, glass manufacturers introduced two new patterns annually–one complex imitating cut glass and the other plain and ready for decoration. The latter often ended up as ruby stained glass souvenirs.

Although glassmakers introduced a larger number of patterns during the 1890s, most were geometric and abstract designs, with a growing number made to emulate the flashy, expensive brilliance of cut glass, the de rigeur gift for weddings and important occasions.

One of the most popular ruby stained patterns was Kings Crown, originally issued by Adams & Co. as its X.L.C.R., a crypted spelling of its other early name, Excelsior. This is a handsome pattern featuring a band of large thumbprints around the base of pieces, flanked by narrow serrated bands. Collectors named it King’s Crown, apparently because the thumbprints and serrated bands reminded them of a king’s crown. A variation called Ruby Thumbprint became the most widely used with ruby staining on the upper, plain portion. Only these ruby-stained pieces are called Ruby Thumbprint. Heavily reproduced from about 1890 to 1914, glassmakers produced this pattern in over 100 pieces.

Another popular ruby-stained pattern, Button Arches, introduced originally around 1898, continued in production for many years. The design consists of slightly overlapping pointed arches around the bottom edges and covers of pieces, each arch containing tightly packed "buttons." Made in clear, clear with ruby staining and gold-stained bands, collectors can find this pattern highlighted with souvenir inscriptions. Small pieces, such as the toothpick holder, apparently were favored giveaways or souvenirs from fairs, carnivals, and tourist spots.

Ruby staining found its way into the Esther pattern, originally introduced as Esther Ware, which features a band of design around the bases of pieces. A curved row of small circles with starburst centers mixes with short ribs and a curved, fan-like device in the pattern band, leaving the upper portions of pieces plain and clear for ruby staining and inscribing.

Ruby rosettes, also known as the Hero pattern, features a band of circles around the bases in covers of pieces and within each small circle a large diamond with curved sides. A related pattern, Pillow Encircled, has a straight dividing line above the row of circles, forming an obvious barrier between them and the smooth sides above. Otherwise, the patterns appear identical. Both patterns were made in a wide range of items and are often found with ruby staining and engraved souvenir inscriptions.

In the late 1890s, the United States Glass Company, a consortium of smaller companies, came up with the idea of marketing a series of glass patterns named after the various states. Though a few of these patterns were new to the series, some were reissues of earlier lines reintroduced as part of this line. The state series continued through the turn-of-the-century. Most of the state patterns featured geometric or imitation cut-glass design, but a few had a plant and flower motif that adds to their appeal.

A very popular states pattern, the full, rounded bodies of pieces in Colorado are plain but rest on three flattened and pointed tab feet, each foot embossed with a lacy scroll design. A close cousin to Colorado is Lacy Medallion, which has arched lacy panels around the bases of the pieces but no feet. Both patterns often show up with souvenir markings, especially as small cups and toothpick holders.

As an avid collector of a variety of antiques and collectibles for the last 20 years, Bob Brooke knows what he’s writing about. Besides writing about antiques, Brooke has also sold at flea markets and worked in an antique shop, so he knows the business side too. His articles have appeared in many antiques and consumer publications, including British Heritage, Antique Week, Southeastern Antiquing and Collecting Magazine, www.OldandSold.com, and many others. To read more of his work, visit his main website at www.bobbrooke.com or his specialty antiques site at www.theantiquesalmanac.com