COLLECTING POISON BOTTLES

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COLLECTING POISON BOTTLES

By Rosemarie "T" – edited by Mr. "T"

Editor’s Note: My wife Mrs. "T" has been collecting "Poison Bottles" for years, some of these pictures are from her collection. We wish to thank the many sources from the web for the added information, just to name a few, first The APBCA, "Digger Odell", Antique Bottle & Glass. And of course Rudy Kuhn’s, Poison Bottle Workbook and Wallis Steir author of "Collector’s Guide to Poison Bottles." And last but not least Mike McLeod and his very informative web page. You can see their web pages below, enjoy them we have.

HI! I am Mrs. "T"…Mr. "T" and I have been collecting for years, we hope you enjoy some of our collectibles, and these other items at This Events section of our church, if you are visiting stop in sometime. They are all friendly people.

We are also members of The Jersey Shore Bottle Club, so if you collect visit us in Belmar, you can see thier stuf at bottom of this column.

Well I guess I should talk about my poisons, I have been collecting for a number of years (I’m only 21 you know, Mr. "T" is pusi’n 60 and he enjoys making web pages.) Take a look at some more poisons, just click on the many links below, they are a little dusty, when we retire I will have some time to dust them, so enjoy:
Shelf A--The Sub, Shelf 1, Shelf 2, Shelf 3, Shelf 4, Shelf 5, Shelf 6, Shelf 7, Shelf 8, Shelf 9, Shelf 10; Mr. "T" says the pictures are big, so they might take sometime to download. Look for "POLLEY", she's a "milk drink'n" parrot.

Mrs. "T" and I hope that you enjoy this article, we realize that we are just touching the subject of "Collecting Poison Bottles" each bottle has a story behind it and we encourage you to search and find out more on these very beautiful bottles. And again, we wish to thank the many places on The World Wide Web. A2P. To View larger image "click" on it. OH YES if you have any comments about this page contact us at OUR FAMILY PAGE "click here".

One of the most beautiful glass collectibles today is poison bottles. Most antique or vintage poison bottles collected date from the 1870s to the 1930s. Many people during those days were illiterate, so accidental poisonings were a fact of life. A New York Times article dated May 11, 1913, reported a superintendent of a Missouri hospital ordered sleigh bells chained to the necks of bottles containing poisons after an attendant gave carbolic acid to a patient by mistake. The patient died, and the attendant was indicted.

Using sleigh bells, though attention getting, was not the answer for a growing chemical industry in the late 1800s. England was experiencing an economic boom from the Industrial Revolution. Local chemists and druggists found they could produce cleaning compounds, insect killers, vermin poison, etc. cheaply enough to sell far and wide. Glass bottles, too, were inexpensive and perfect for transporting their contents to market, so the poison trade really began to take off.

And so did the death rate. Both the governments of the United States and England enacted laws to prevent accidental poisonings. However, it was the poison manufacturers themselves who took direct action to save customers who, for instance, were fumbling for medicine by candlelight and grabbing bedbug poison by mistake. What they did, not only reduced the number of accidental deaths, but it also created an almost irresistible collectible.

To distinguish them from non-lethal products, poison bottles were made unique and dramatic in color, texture and shape. Colors like cobalt blue, honey amber, black, and emerald and several other shades of green were used to ensure they stood out from the other bottles on the shelf.

Poison bottles were also designed with unique textures: latticework, raised ridges, dots, diamonds, horizontal or vertical ribbing, or hobnails. Also, embossed lettering warned, "DEATH," "POISON," "POISONOUS," or "NOT TO BE TAKEN INTERNALLY."

SHAPES--Poison bottles are found in a variety of shapes, including some of the most unusual to be found. Hexagonal and triangular shapes were chosen for poison bottles because of the "unusual feel" which they imparted to anyone who handled them. Unusual shapes were one method by which the bottler intended the user to identify the contents.

Some figural bottles were also employed, but it was not likely that their usage was widespread. many felt the decorative aspects and therefore the major value and purpose of the design would be lost.

Perhaps the most recognized symbol of death, the pirate flag's skull and crossbones, was often used on poison labels starting in the mid-1800s. Then toward the end of the century, the skull and crossbones were embossed on bottles.

A bottle in the shape of a skeleton's skull was patented in 1894 by Carlton Lewe and has become the most famous poison bottle. Found in three sizes-from less than 3 inches to 41/2 inches in height-this very rare poison bottle sells in the $2,000-$3,500 range.

A Skull & Grim Reaper--Many collectors have for a long-time believed that the ceramic bottles imprinted with the word "poison" and other markings such as the skull and crossbones were actually ment to contain poisons at one time. However, much research on the subject indicates that these bottles in reality are novelty liquor bottles made in Germany and Japan.

In England, cobalt blue "subs" bottles were invented by H.J.W. Martin and G.W.J. Walker in the fat cigar shape of a submarine. It features a long, vertical neck protruding from the center of the top and is embossed "POISON." This bottle comes in three, four, and five-inch sizes and sells for several hundred dollars.

Another unique English bottle was the 10 1/2 inch, 20 oz. Martin's Poison. In addition to being very large in size and aqua in color (most manufacturers steered away from this color because of its similarity to other product bottles), the Martin's bottle was manufactured so it had to lie on its side. It also has a "U" bend or indentation in the shoulder. The horizontal direction of the bottle performed two functions: first, it pointedly identified this as an atypical bottle, and therefore, probably a poison; and second, the "U" bend prevented spillage.

A Coffin shape in Amber is extremely rare BIMAL type, embossed F. A. Thompson & Co., Detroit on the front. Each side is embossed "Poison" and the four edges have diamond protutions. Other Coffin Shapes in cobalt, amber, clear, really rare in clear. BIM and ABM type. Embossing consists of rows of pointed diamonds on the front sides and back. The back has a space for a label on the lower half and is also embossed "Poison" horizontally. The base is embossed "Norwich."

AMERICAN POISON BOTTLES, MAKERS & COMPANIES--In America, the Owl Drug Company opened its doors in 1892 in San Francisco, dispensing medicine, soda, pills and poisons in its own distinctive bottles. The company's success led to its expansion to a dozen states. It was eventually purchased by Rexall Drugs. But during its heyday, the Owl Drug Company produced cobalt blue and clear bottles embossed with its owl logo sitting on a mortar bowl. The cobalt bottles are particular favorites with collectors. The Owl Drug Company produced its bottles with many variations, including: one-wing owls, two-wing owls, long tail, no tail, short tail, potbelly owl, and more.

BIMAL is the abbreviation for blown-in, mold-applied lip. These bottles were hand made. ABM (automatic bottle machine) bottles were made by machine. To tell one from the other, look at the seam. On an ABM bottle, the seam runs all the way through the lip. BIMALs have no seam in the lip because it is added later in the process.

When Rexall purchased the Owl Drug Co. in 1920, it stopped making Owl bottles. This was not long after Owl Drugs had switched from BIMALs to ABMs. (Automatic bottle-making machines were first introduced in the early 1900s.) Ironically, Owl ABM bottles may be somewhat harder to find than the handmade BIMALs since Rexall curtailed production not long after the company switched over.

WHITALL TATUM GLASS CO.—The first plant was in Millville, NJ. In 1969 it became part of the Kerr Glass Mfg. Co. it did not acquire its name until 1857 when J. M. and I. F. Whitall and Edward Tatum became owners. Many poison bottles have been traced to them, with the most familiar being the cobalt quilted with stopper. Other colors are extremely rare especially in teal and clear, they come in many different sizes.

CARR-LOWERY GLASS CO.—Samuel Carr and William Lowery founded the company in 1889. Their initial plant was in the suburbs of Baltimore and was set up to produce high quality glass for druggists and perfumers. In 1944 they became a division of Anchor-Hocking Glass Corp. Their contribution to the poison world is the irregular hexagon shape with the central panel designed to accept a slug plate, allowing for a choice of what the front panel would contain. It is colbalt, comes in several different sizes, the 32 oz is extremely rare.

THE DEMERT DRUG & CHEMICAL CO. (1892-1930)—Louis G. Demert founded the company in 1894 and stayed local, but disappeared in 1918. The company did leave a very desirable poison bottle in blue carrying it name. It was produced by the Whitall Tatum Glass Co. is colbalt, they came in about 10 sizes, the 10 ½ oz is extremely rare.

ELI LILLY DRUG CO.—Founded by Eli Lilly in 1876 and was initially in Indianapolis, Ind. His son became president in 1898 when the Colonel died. The major poison bottle was the triangular rounded back bottle in amber and it came in many sizes and is relatively common., the quart size is scarce along with clear colors.

BOWMAN DRUG CO. (1852-1925)—Founded by Henry Bowman in Sacramento at a time when the gold rush was at its height. The company was sold in 1925 to Liggett’s Drugs. The only poison carrying the company name is the irregular hexagon in colbalt that came in sizes ranging from ½ oz to 32 oz. relatively scarce and highly collectible.

SPECIAL CLOSURES AND PILL SHAPES--In the early 1860’s European and American Pharmaceutical journals recommended the use of bottles with restricted necks or special closures as protection against poisoning. Soon after introducing their special bottles Whitall-Tatum brought out a rectangular stopper with sharp spiney points and embossed POISON, for use with their bottles.

John Stites of Boston patented a stopper design, a skull for poison bottles in 1883. Another safety closure design was patented by John Howell of Newton, NJ, in 1886. A series of twists and pulls was required to remove the cap. Still other suggestions made of use of strong paper seals over the corks, (a measure adopted by most firms selling pre-packaged poisons), special spring loaded stoppers which would be more difficult to open, and a guard projection over the mouth of the bottle which would prevent drinking directly from the container.

The Baily Safety Alarm Cork-Screw was devised and distributed in the 1890’s by the Baily Mfg. Co. It was given to the druggists with all bottles containing closures.

PILL SHAPES—The pills came in several shaped, like coffins, with scull and crossbones, triangular. There were probably many other designs as well—all intended to make the user aware of what he was handling. A2P

OUR BOTTLE CLUB...stop by and visit with us!

This is their web page, request a sample of The SHARDS. We are showing some pictures of items that people bring in to talk about, so enjoy them too.

People bring all kinds of things, not only bottles to discuss about.