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Carnival & Glass The World’s Columbian Exposition held in Chicago in 1893 was the first world’s fair that set the area for amusements apart from exhibition halls. Planners felt that the noisy, rowdy attractions in the Midway Plaisance might disturb the park-like atmosphere of the rest of the Exposition. The Midway’s amusements ranged from replicas of European villages to carnival rides, games of chance, and Wild West and burlesque shows. ‘Street in Cairo’ was the most successful and introduced exotic dancing to America. George W. Ferris also first introduced the new 36-seat, 250-foot wheel ride, still known today by his name, at this Exposition.
While the majority of carnival game operators were honest, some were not. The term ‘mark,’ meaning sucker, originated with the carnival practice of patting someone who could be convinced to keep playing on the back with a chalk-covered hand, thus ’marking’ him for other game owners to entice. An entire language developed around the carnival as well. Midway ‘talkers’ used colorful language to entice customers to buy tickets. Then too during the first half of the 20th Century there developed a secretive slang known as ‘canting.’ Similar to the Pig Latin we remember from childhood, carnies would add a syllable to the middle of words. Spoken rapidly the language was not understandable to the carnival patrons, allowing carnies to collude about their tricks on their customers. One of the more positive outgrowths of the American carnival was the introduction of glassware as prizes for games of skill on the midway. The iridescent glass was developed as an economic substitute for the expensive pieces Steuben and Tiffany made by mixing different colors of glass together while hot. The substitute, with chemicals used to color only the surface of the glass, was originally sold in department stores. Animal patterns were the most popular, and Fenton made more of them than any other company. Kittens were children’s favorite dishes, as well as Peter Rabbit bowls and plates. Flower and fruit patterns were also successful. When department store sales began declining, the iridescent glass was sold in bulk to carnivals, where it eventually received the moniker of ‘carnival glass.’ The planners of the 1893 World’s Fair weren’t the only ones who frowned upon carnivals. To some, the image of the carnival was too crass and they viewed the glassware prizes with disdain, but others valued and saved them. Their families were future winners, because after time many of these pieces have become worth even thousands of dollars. There were many companies that made carnival glass. Fenton and Northwood began in 1908. Millersburg, founded by one of the Fentons, Imperial, Westmoreland, and Dugan also made beautiful pieces. Carnival pieces came in compotes, candy dishes, vases, cream and sugar sets and much more. The most highly prized colors today are red, as well as pastel aqua, ice blue and peach. Most common is marigold. Northwood was the only company to consistently mark its products. The popularity of carnival glass lasted only about 10 years until about 1918 when both the market and production of it shifted to England, Australia, Germany, Argentina, and Czechoslovakia until the 1930s. Very little carnival glass was made anywhere during the 30s and 40s.
There are over 2,000 patterns of carnival glass. Some of the most popular are ‘Dragons and Lotus,’ ‘Peacock Tail’ and ‘Swirled Flute’ by Fenton; ‘Grape and Cable’ and ‘Fine Rib’ by Northwood; and Imperial's ‘Morning Glory.’ We are lucky that there are so many publications nowadays for us to reference so that we may become educated buyers. Photo Captions This rare ice blue Northwood plate sold for $16,327.55 on Ebay – Photo courtesy of PR Collect |
After
Chicago’s World’s Fair, traveling carnival companies began touring
the United States and the term midway came to mean the area for
amusements at any fair, circus, festival or amusement park. In 1902
there were 17 traveling carnivals in the United States. By 1905 there
were 46, and by 1937 the number had increased to an estimated 300.
Then
during the 1950s there was a resurgence of interest in the colorful
glass, making it economical for American glassmakers to start
manufacturing it again. Companies began adding an iridized finish to
patterns already in production. ‘Iris and Herringbone,’ a popular
pattern made by Jeanette Glass of Pennsylvania was released in marigold,
for example. Other companies such as Fenton and Imperial reintroduced
carnival glass a little later in the 60s using both original and new
designs. These companies made sure that the new carnival glass could be
easily distinguished from the originals by placing trademarks on the
glass. Then again, some companies produced a lot of reproduction
carnival glass made from the same molds, making it nearly
indistinguishable from the old.
