Celebrating American Stretch Glass

by Peggy Whiteneck | Jan 24, 2024 | Features, Good Eye

February 2024

Good Eye

Celebrating American Stretch Glass

by Peggy Whiteneck

This year, the American Stretch Glass Society celebrates its 50th anniversary (stretchglasssociety.org). The group holds an annual convention and show, this year scheduled for Aug. 15-17 at Comfort Inn in Denver, PA, the place where the Society was founded. It also holds regular educational programs via Zoom on various stretch glass topics, makers, and types. Log on to its web site and check it out!

On this golden anniversary year for the Stretch Glass Society, I thought stretch glass would be a great topic for my regular “Good Eye” column this month. Although the very first stretch glass was produced in lamp shade forms in 1912, this glass type didn’t become available in a variety of other forms until 1916. Some of those forms included bowls, vases, plates, candlesticks, beverage sets, and perfume bottles (Plates were made starting with a basic vase shape and then flattening it out). Early stretch glass is distinguished from other Depression era glass by its lengthier and more complicated two-stage production process.

Stretch glass was produced by spraying a metallic salt mix on the glass while it was still hot and then reheating and reshaping (stretching) it, which caused thousands of minute striations, most visible on the edge or lip of the form. This glass was made in pressed or mould-blown patterns that are usually (though not always) undecorated and un-patterned. American Stretch glass is no longer being produced, so examples today can only be found at auction, in antique shops, or elsewhere on the secondary market.

Stretch glass was produced by several companies, at least some of which will be familiar to readers of this column: Central Glass Works (Wheeling, WV); Diamond Glass-Ware Co. (Indiana, PA); Fenton Art Glass Co. (Williamstown, WV); Imperial Glass Co. (Bellaire, OH); Jeannette Glass Co. (Jeannette, PA); Lancaster Glass Co. (Lancaster, OH); H. Northwood & Co. (Wheeling, WV); United States Glass (Pittsburgh, PA); and Vineyard Flint Glass Works (Vineland, NJ). Some of these ceased glass production earlier than others; Northwood, for example, closed in 1925.

When seen in the wild, many of the forms of stretch glass made by different companies look so similar that specific manufacturers can be difficult to tag. For example, Fenton, Northwood, and Cambridge all made a very similar tall, footed candy jar, in a style sometimes referred to as “Colonial,” which are only subtly distinguishable from one another. The diagnostic difference between Fenton jars and the nearly identical ones made by Northwood are that Fenton has a straight lid lip while Northwood’s is indented at the top of the lip and has a cover mould seam on the right of the raised ray that appears left of the ray on Northwood. Those made by Cambridge are distinguishable by two narrow rings just above the panels and lack the ribs between panels that are found in the Fenton and Northwood examples. Early Fenton examples of this candy jar were done in stretch glass.

While most stretch glass colors were in clear, iridized form, US Glass made some opaque examples, with lesser quantities and types of opaque stretch also made by Northwood. It’s sometimes difficult to see the stretch effect in these opaque forms.

American Stretch Glass

A closeup of the edge of a stretch glass item showing the striations that are the defining characteristic of this glass whatever the manufacturer. In some stretch glass examples, the effect will be more muted than it is here. (Image courtesy of the author)

Stretch glass production ceased altogether in the 1930s as companies sought simpler production processes (Fenton, however, picked up stretch production again around 1970 and produced it till around 2010, a year before the company closed). Colors in stretch glass by its various manufacturers were deliciously myriad, whether production was early or late. Because the production years of most stretch glass spanned the teens through the ‘30s decades of the 20th century, it is sometimes included in discussions of Depression glass. However, its forms and production processes make stretch glass a unique form in comparison to the less expensive and more easily produced patterned glass made by a variety of companies in the Depression era.

Peggy Whiteneck is a writer, collector, and dealer living in East Randolph, VT. If you would like to suggest a subject that she can address in her column, email her at allwritealready2000@gmail.com.

Kitchenware in the hearth and heart of the house

by Peggy Whiteneck | Nov 30, 2023 | Features, Good Eye

December 2023

Good Eye

Kitchenware in the hearth and heart of the house

by Peggy Whiteneck

Old kitchenware, from pots and pans to small utensils such as mixing spoons, large draining spoons, jar openers, egg beaters, and so on, is not only an affordable option for collectors but is also usable and practical in modern kitchens. Many of these were better made than their modern equivalents, which is why the older versions have lasted in the preferences of today’s cooks.

Mom preferred the various small kitchen utensils she found on the secondary market. Many of these, such as large cooking spoons and egg beaters, had wooden handles, usually painted red or green. One of the most useful items she passed on to me was a jar opener that I often use today to remove stubbornly clinging jar lids. This item was also made with green handles as well as red. Items with the paint on handles in good condition are especially sought.

Mom had a special fondness for antique egg beaters, which appeared in antique shops in a surprising array of styles – and, yes, she still used many of them until she passed. She especially liked old graters and beaters that were screwed onto glass containers that could collect what was being chopped or ground.

Guys, too!

My dad was also fond of working in the kitchen, years before cooking became popular among men. His favorite utensils were cast iron frying pans of various sizes from the very small to the very large. His favorite brand was Griswold, manufactured in Erie, PA, for almost a hundred years, from 1865 to 1957. Wagner is another brand of old iron skillets popular with collectors. Prices today on old cast iron pans can be in the low three figures.

Keeping cast iron pans in good shape is a surprising, if easy, challenge in a process we probably wouldn’t dare use with modern cookware. Dad always took preemptive charge of cleaning these pans after use because Mom was obsessed with using dishwater to clean them, which Dad said increased the chance for rust in the iron and also caused food to stick to the heated surface when the pan was next used. Dad simply dry-wiped the pans clean after use so that a film of oily patina remained on the surface. After my dad used these pans and retained their patina, food never stuck to them. If my mother had gotten to cleaning the pan first her way, he’d season it with oil before putting it away (we never got sick!).

Kitchen Pottery

Not everything made in the past for kitchen use was made in metal. Pottery was popular in everything from kitchen mixing bowls to cannister sets.

Some of the oldest of the mixing bowls were yellowware, sometimes accented with a wide, colored stripe near the rim. Other examples of pottery and ceramic kitchenware included cannister sets for ready access to basic ingredients such as flour, sugar, coffee, tea, or salt (Some cannister sets could also be found in metals such as tin, and these were often quite a bit more colorful than the ceramic versions).

TOP-OFF JAR & BOTTLE SCREW TOP OPENER

Because I was so taken with its imminently practical function, my mom gave me one of her old jar openers, whose handle can be used to vary the size of the lid- gripping portion beneath the handle. The top of the metal portion is engraved with the following: TOP-OFF JAR & BOTTLE SCREW TOP OPENER, EDLUND CO., BURLINGTON, VT. PAT. NO.1894556. These were popular in homes of the 1930s and ‘40s. The Edlund Co. is still in business today in Burlington, VT, making restaurant can openers and kitchen equipment. They can be found on the secondary market in variable condition, from beat-up to nearly mint, for $20 or less. Most old kitchenware is similarly affordable. Image courtesy of the author

Ceramic cookie jars are another favorite among collectors, some of whom have several jars in their collection despite the room they can take up. Cookie jars were usually figural, i.e., in the form of people (heads and full bodies), animals, or buildings. Among the most desirable were those made by companies such as McCoy and Shawnee.

Some later cookie jars that might be described as “vintage” were made as advertising pieces with names on them, such as Crackerjack and Pillsbury. Pillsbury made an entire set of Doughboy ceramic cannisters, spoon holders, and other items. The oldest of these date from the 1980s and are marked as such on the bottom; these are the most desirable from a collecting standpoint but were made as well in one or two later series. These later items tend to differ slightly in form from the 1980s set.

Peggy Whiteneck is a writer, collector, and dealer living in East Randolph, VT. If you would like to suggest a subject that she can address in her column, email her at allwritealready2000@gmail.com.

Collecting Miniature Porcelain Critters

by Peggy Whiteneck | Oct 27, 2023 | Uncategorized

November 2023

Good Eye

Collecting Miniature Porcelain Critters

by Peggy Whiteneck

When I was a kid, I collected bone china animals. These were not expensive to buy nor worth much money, but I sure did enjoy them. The adults in my family enjoyed them, too, as they could give them to me as gifts without breaking the bank!

Well, I’m a big girl now, and I still love ceramic miniatures, but now I only collect those marked at least with country of origin (usually Germany) and often with a famous maker name if it will fit on the base. Some of these are worth quite a bit more money than were items in my childhood collection.

Hagen-Renaker

An American company, Hagen-Renaker, is among the best-known manufacturers of miniature animals. Founded in 1945, it ceased operation in 2021. HRs were usually sold attached to thin cardboard labels that identified the name and retail price of the item. The labels were designed to be removed and usually were. When that happens, there is no place on the figurines to put a maker’s mark; one learns to identify them by sight. Most can still be found for less than $5 apiece on the secondary market though some rarer items go much higher. You can find the most recently made examples of HR animals on the Hagen-Renaker web site, which, as of this writing, is still up at hagenrenaker.com.

Josef Originals

This U.S. company, which operated from the mid-1940s until 1985, made mostly human forms, but it also made a few miniature animals. Perhaps the best known of these are its mice in various poses and playing with various objects. Slightly larger than Hagen-Renakers, they still can fit into miniature display spaces. Like HR, these are affordably priced.

And Then There’s Germany

Although they aren’t always marked with a manufacturer’s name, these minis are usually at least marked “Germany.” They are exceptionally well made as Germany has a long history of porcelain production.

Goebel

Best known for its post-WWII era Hummel models of children, Goebel also made animal figurines, some in miniature (of which I have a lynx, rabbit, and deer in my collection). The company was founded in 1871 and is still in production today.

Pfeffer

Pfeffer (sometimes misspelled by sellers as Pfeiffer or Pfeifer) was in production in the Thuringia region of East Germany from the late 19th century to sometime in the 1940s. It is usually marked in green or gray with either a capital P inside a capital G or a reversed F sharing a spine with a P. In my own collection, a couple of miniature polar bears were relatively expensive in 1999 at $35 each, but I found the perfect-condition sow and piglet figurine teetering on the edge of a shelf in an antique mall for just $7 the following year.

Three Art Deco-style animals

Three of the Art Deco-style animal miniatures from my little shadow box. The only one of these marked with a Metzler & Ortloff mark and probably designed by Walter Bosse is the rabbit at left. The dog and cat are done “in the style” and marked simply “Germany.” (Image courtesy of the author)

Metzler & Ortloff

Founded in 1875, this company was nationalized and its name and mark changed in 1972. Items in my own collection date from before 1972 and are marked with MO and a crown in a circle. A number of animal models were made by the artist Walter Bosse in the 1920s. Called “Groteskes,” they featured painted stripes, polka dots or other geometric accents. These Bosse grotesques usually command huge prices, even on eBay, where unattributed “Made in Germany” knock-offs of his work still pull in $35-$50 apiece.

Rosenthal

Best known for its sizeable Art Deco human figurines, Rosenthal also made some animal models, including some in diminutive size. Rosenthal was founded in Germany in 1891. The Nazi Reich stole the factory from the Rosenthal family, which was finally able to get it back in 1950. The company, which still operates under the Rosenthal name today, was purchased by the Waterford Wedgwood Group in 1997, which also acquired Hutschenreuther in year 2000. Rosenthal is among the most expensive of the German porcelains; even the miniatures can run over $100, larger figurines much higher.

Peggy Whiteneck is a writer, collector, and dealer living in East Randolph, VT. If you would like to suggest a subject that she can address in her column, email her at allwritealready2000@gmail.com.

Hickory, Dickory…. Clocks! – Antique American Timepieces

by Peggy Whiteneck | Sep 28, 2023 | Good Eye

October 2023

Good Eye

Hickory, Dickory…. Clocks! – Antique American Timepieces

by Peggy Whiteneck

Antique clocks from the 19th and early 20th centuries were made in many forms, from mantel clocks to tall case “grandfather” clocks to banjo wall clocks. Their cases were also made in many materials, from porcelain to wood to iron. Connecticut hosted most of the clockmaker companies during that era, yet relatively few founded in the mid-19th century would survive into the 20th.

Among the most prolific and successful of these companies was Ansonia Clock Co., founded in 1851 in Ansonia, CT. Most of Ansonia’s production dates, from the late 1880s to the early 1920s, were when the company operated in New York. Undeterred by the fiery destruction of its factory in 1880, which was only partially insured, Ansonia rebuilt in the very same place in that very year. By 1914, the company was producing 440 different clock models!

Despite its earlier successes, the Ansonia company was faced with fierce competition from many other U.S. clock companies, not to mention myriad overseas producers. Ansonia’s effort to survive by retaining its cheaper, older production pricing wasn’t sustainable, resulting in bankruptcy by 1929. The name itself would continue under a variety of corporate successor companies into the mid 1960s, finally disappearing altogether in 2006.

The Chelsea Clock Co. was founded in 1897. Chelsea was sold to a number of different companies during the late 20th century but is still in business today.

Perhaps the oldest and best-known name among American clockmakers is Seth Thomas, established in 1813. It received a trademark for its name with the U.S. Patent Office in 1926. Today, manufacture continues under the Seth Thomas name as owned by CST Enterprises.

There were nearly 30 American clockmakers during the heyday of production in the 19th and early 20th centuries (“Famous Names in American Clock Companies,” www.discoverclocks.com/clock_companies).

Even Older (and Sometimes Odder) American Clocks

The largest clocks, tall-case or “grandfather clocks,” can be taller than a human adult. An 8-foot Chippendale clock made in Philadelphia by Jacob Godschalk between 1665 and 1675 sold at a Christie’s auction for $800,000 on an estimated auction house value of $150,000-$250,000 (https://www.christies.com/en/lot/lot-4645816). This doesn’t mean, however, that every grandfather clock is a high-roller. Much depends on factors of age, maker, condition, adornments, and the all-important provenance (documentation of where the clock came from). Another Godschalk grandfather clock with much less elaborate case carving sold at auction for $6,000 on an estimate of $2,000-$3,000 (www.fontainesauction.com/auction-lot/jacob-godshalk-philadelphia-grandfather-clock_6C43282BBA).

A grandfather clock isn’t for every home or office décor, however. This helps dampen the prices even on those in good condition if they aren’t the work of a famous maker.

Perhaps the best-known oddity among clocks is the cuckoo clock, which projects the little bird from inside the case whenever the clock strikes. The woodwork on these is characteristically elaborate. These were made by companies in both the U.S. and Europe. They’re not for everyone’s taste, but the best of them can command a few hundred dollars.

Banjo clocks are known by their shape and, like the cuckoo clock, are designed to be wall mounted. A 19th century Simon Willard banjo clock c. 1805 was appraised at $50,000-$60,000 on an Antiques Roadshow airing in 2012. The clock had an original crank, old finish and patina, and original reverse-painted tablets with brass sidearms. The original eagle finial had been replaced, however (www.pbs.org/wgbh/roadshow/season/17/corpus-christi-tx/appraisals/simon-willard-banjo-clock-ca-1805–201205A22/). The best and oldest banjo clocks available on the general market can sell for a few thousand dollars.

Ansonia Clock

This Ansonia Clock made in New York in the late 19th century is from my late dad’s eclectic antique collection. The mechanical elements have been stored in a pouch inside the case to allow safe movement of the clock from place to place. (Image courtesy
of the author)

Among the most unusual clocks are those without an external cabinet and thus show the interior workings of the piece while the parts are running. These timepieces are known as “skeleton clocks” and are usually enclosed in a glass dome. In an auction by Smith Horan and Co. in New Hampshire, a restored skeleton clock by Silas B. Terry sold for $24,000 (“Rare American Skeleton Clock Made no Bones about Being Tops for Schmitt Horan & Co.,” www.antiquesandthearts.com/rare-american-skeleton-clock-made-no-bones-about-being-tops-for-schmitt-horan-co).

Peggy Whiteneck is a writer, collector, and dealer living in East Randolph, VT. If you would like to suggest a subject that she can address in her column, email her at allwritealready2000@gmail.com.

A Collector’s History with Fenton Art Glass

by Peggy Whiteneck | Aug 28, 2023 | Features, Good Eye

September 2023

Good Eye

A Collector’s History with Fenton Art Glass

by Peggy Whiteneck

I’ve been a member of the Fenton Art Glass Collectors of America, founded in 1976, for several years. Unfortunately, I joined not long after Fenton itself ceased making glass in 2011. When the factory was in full swing, it was a big part of many club members’ lives; they got to go on tours and see how the glass was made, to find unusual pieces in the gift shop attached to the factory, and to attend many special sales events held on site. Today, the only way we can purchase much of that special glass is through auctions.

Fenton Art Glass is not some collecting fad, here today and gone tomorrow. On the contrary, there is a resurgence of interest in this glass, including among younger collectors who were just tykes — or even just a spark in their parents’ eyes! — when the factory closed. There’s something for every glass collector in what Fenton made, from the antiques made in the 1910s to the items made right up to the factory’s closing.

In 1990, there was a rift in the Fenton collecting community when the National Fenton Glass Society (NFGS) split off from the Fenton Art Glass Society of America (FAGCA). The majority of members in the two groups are today in a cordial relationship with one another, and many members belong to both clubs. Each holds its own annual convention, and since they occur back-to-back on the calendar, many conventioneers stay to attend both.

Start of a Glass Menagerie

By the time I attended my first FAGCA convention in 2013, the Fenton Gift Shop (now relocated and dealing in Mosser Glass made from Fenton moulds) was still open at the factory and still finding Fenton glass in forgotten storage corners of the huge factory. I bought as much of it as I could afford, and in those final years the gift shop was still open at that factory location, I also purchased several clay models of Fenton animals that never had the chance to go into production.

I started collecting Fenton with the idea of focusing just on the glass “critters,” and even ended up writing a book about them: Fenton Art Glass Beasts, Birds, and Butterflies (currently out of print but due out at a future date in an expanded edition published by the Museum of American Glass in West Virginia). When I began collecting the animals, I could buy most of them in the $25-$35 range. It’s not unusual, though, for the cost to go into three figures, especially for the larger animals such as the Alley Cats (from a mould acquired from US Glass Company in Tiffin, OH) and the Happy Cats and Happy Kitties made as club glass for FAGCA.

When my parents passed, my sisters and I inherited our shares of their vast Fenton collection (Luckily, we all liked different glass treatments!). That’s how I got interested in collecting Fenton Art Glass more generally, everything from vases to baskets and pitchers. I’m sure many readers will be able to relate to this expanded appetite in what they collect!

Fenton Alley Cat

A Fenton Alley Cat I purchased at the FAGCA Convention auction in July. It was made from a U.S. Glass (Tiffin) mould acquired by Fenton when Tiffin closed. This one has a stylized daisy painting on a light Violet glass (To me, the painting looked like exploding fireworks!). It was made late in Fenton’s history, sometime in the 2000s, when, as a cost-saving measure, the company only painted on one side of its items vs. around the entire model. I paid $165 for it, which is about average for Alley Cats these days. In a Randy Clark Auction held the day after convention, another of this same model sold for $210. (Image courtesy of the author)

Today’s Secondary Market in Fenton Art Glass

The interest in Fenton Art Glass seems only to have gotten stronger since the company ceased making it more than a decade ago. The national Fenton clubs also have regional clubs since it is difficult for people living in the western states to attend the annual conventions held on the East Coast. By the time I discovered FAGCA, attendance at the national convention had been very small – about 30-40 people, far from the heyday of gatherings in the hundreds. This summer, the attendance at convention had risen to 110, 40 of whom were brand new members. The interest in Fenton has been further fed by the proliferation of Facebook.

Peggy Whiteneck is a writer, collector, and dealer living in East Randolph, VT. If you would like to suggest a subject that she can address in her column, email her at allwritealready2000@gmail.com.