Collections of Bottles from 1800 to 1860

Types of bottles in the collection include: bitters, ale, beer, food, household items, ink, liquor, oil, patent medicine, perfumes, cosmetics, pharmacy medicine, snuff, soda water, wine, and champagne. The bottles assembled in this type collection are drawn from numerous extensive archaeological collections including Old Sacramento SHP, Fort Ross SHP, Columbia SHP, San Juan Bautista SHP, Old Town San Diego SHP, and Sonoma SHP.

Fernet-Branca Bitters:

This Fernet-Branca Bitters bottle was recovered from Columbia SHP; however, 18 additional shoulder seals have also been recovered in Old Sacramento SHP. The firm was founded in Milan in 1845 by the three brothers Giuseppe, Luigi and Stefano Branca. This bottle is made of olive glass, with a double ring on the finish and high push-up. The shoulder seal is embossed "FRATELLI BRANCA/MILANO."

Fleming's Export Pure Rye:

Bottle of Fleming's Export Rye is made of clear glass with a lady's-leg neck and an applied bead lip. Embossed on two sides is "FLEMING'S EXPORT PURE RYE//BOTTLED EXPRESSLY FOR FAMILY USE." Export Pure Rye is thought to have been manufactured by Joseph Fleming, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, who was a druggist from 1856 to 1920.

Udolpho Wolfe's Schnapps:

This bottle of Udolpho Wolfe's Schnapps, a Holland medicinal gin, is made from dark olive green glass with a sloping-collar finish and is embossed with "VONTHOFEN'S/ SCHEIDAM/ S/ NAPPS./ TIC" on the body. Uldolpho and Joel Wolfe introduced their product to the American public prior to 1849. This bottle was recovered from Old Town San Diego SHP in 1984.

Jackson's Napa Soda Water:

Napa Soda Water was bottled at the site of natural springs in the Napa Valley, California. The springs

were discovered in 1853 and originally owned by John Henry Woods. Colonel John P. Jackson took ownership in 1872 after many court disputes. This bottle is made from clear glass with a sloping-collar finish and is embossed with "JACKSON'S NAPA SODA WATER" AND "NATURAL MINERAL WATER/CARBONATED/JACKSON'S/THIS BOTTLE IS NEVER SOLD".This bottle of Jackson's Napa Soda Water was recovered from Old Sacramento SHP in 1966.

Vaseline Chesebrough :

In 1859 chemist Robert Chesebrough was the first to extract the key ingredient of petroleum jelly, petrolatum, from a substance left on oil drill rigs. This jar of Vaseline Chesebrough is made from clear glass and embossed with "TRADE MARK/ VASELINE/ CHESEBROUGH/ NEW YORK".

Singer Sewing Machine Oil:

The first practical sewing machine was developed by Isaac Merrit Singer in Boston, Massachusetts, 1850. One year later, Singer and Edward B. Clark formed I.M. Singer & Company. In 1863 the company was incorporated as Singer Manufacturing Company. This bottle is rectangular, made of clear glass and embossed with the Singer "S" logo and "SINGER MANUFACTURING CO./TRADE MARK" on the front.