Dayton Soda Bottles

The hobby of bottle collecting seemed to pick up momentum in the 1960's and has grown to be a very large hobby with numerous shows across the country every year. Many collectors specialize in one particular type of bottle, such as, inks, bitters, beers, dairies etc. I, like many other Americans, have become a soda collector. I love the early pontiled bottles from the mid 1800's all the way up to the crown tops of the mid 1900's. The deco sodas of the 20's and 30's and the ACL labels of the late 30's on, used to be rather neglected by many bottle collectors. I think our nostalgia for the glass sodas we remember as children have created a new found fondness for these beautiful 20th century American Soda Bottles. I have more pride in the ones I have dug or discovered in a barn, attic, crawl space etc., than the one's I have traded for, or occasionally purchased.

 

Before the advent of garbage trucks and tax paid land fills etc., Americans were faced with what to do with increasingly more and more trash. The combustible items were simply burnt out behind the home. The remainining non combustibles were thrown down into the deep vault below the outhouse in the city homes and usually hauled off to a non productive part of the farm in the country homes. Ravines were an area that could not be planted or easily built upon, therefore, they became a very good site for dumping refuse. We always seek permission from property owners before searching for these sights. It's then simply a case of hand digging with shovels and spading forks. Once we have removed the items we plan to keep, we restore or improve the site conditions and pack our finds for the trip home. The bottles will be soaked, cleaned and giving further treatment as required, such as, a  soak in citric acid or a tumble in a bottle cleaning machine.