When was sandwich glass made

Unfortunately, the mica in the glass formula proved to make the glass unstable and unsaleable. However in , the glass workers union called for a national strike. In sympathy, the Sandwich workers also went on strike. This event ultimately forced the company to put out the furnaces in The closure of the company caused a severe economic depression, forcing people to leave Sandwich or turn to other professions or jobs.

In , several remaining glass workers created a new glass company and attempted to restart the glass industry in Sandwich. The Sandwich Co-operative Glass Company, , produced simple items as this spatter bell and oil lamp. Other attempts were made to re-establish glassmaking in the old factory buildings. The last glass company to occupy the old factory buildings was the Alton Mfg. But this venture too was short-lived because of the owner, Cardenio King, absconded with the funds from the first season of production.

In the s, former glass cutters Nehemiah Packwood and John Vodon each set-up their own cutting shops in East Sandwich and produced intricate rich cut glass designs on imported lead blanks. By the s, the entire glass industry in Sandwich had come to a complete halt. The factory buildings were slowly torn down and dismantled. By , there was barely a trace of a factory building near the marsh. A marker at the location of the factory is all that remains of this enterprise.

Founded in , The Sandwich Historical Society had its first glass exhibit in commemorating a century of Sandwich glass. However, plenty of traces of the glass company did remain — in the form of glass fragments. The other usage of the term Sandwich Glass refers to some specific glassware patterns produced by a number of makers from the s to present. These patterns were inspired by a group of patterns made popular by those Sandwich, MA glassmakers that have a flower and ornate scroll motif with the space between filled with stippling tiny raised dots.

The phrase "Sandwich pattern" would be much more accurate for these later pieces, as the common thread is the similarity of the patterns as opposed to the common locale of the various glassmakers.

Since Sandwich pattern items are much more recent, and have been produced in far greater quantities than the 19th century glassware that inspired them, you are much more likely to find Sandwich pattern items at shops, auctions, and flea markets. While these patterns were all inspired by the same source, they vary slightly depending on the specific maker.

Telling them apart can be difficult, but not impossible. There are a few others that have produced patterns that are similar, but most of them include variations on the flower and scroll motif that make them much easier to tell apart.

I will address only the four major makers here. Westmoreland's version of Sandwich is probably the least well known of the four. Their version, named Princess Feather, was produced from the s into the s. Anchor Hocking produced their version of Sandwich from to The complex patterns masked most imperfections to the glass, meaning that more pieces could be sold instead of scrapped or sold as seconds.

Incorporated into many of the lacy glass designs were also crosshatch patterns and other elements that mimicked cut crystal, another sought-after commodity. While the company specialized in cheaper modes of production, there are examples from Boston and Sandwich of cut-to-clear glass that created dazzling designs in clear and another color- often deep cobalt or rich cranberry colors. Blown glass was another area of expertise, though the company was known to combine molded elements with blown glass elements for a high-end look at a fraction of the cost.

Jarves left the company over a dispute and founded the Cape Cod Glass Works in Their revolutionary designs brought complex designs and colors of glassware into American homes far below the retail cost that most glassware commanded less than a century before. Click Here to see Sandwich Glass items at eBay! Jarves was the general manager from until After he left, they focused more on mass production and using lime glass which was cheaper to produce.

I also have several pieces of grape-colored pieces to include glassware, dinner plates, cups, etc. I have a pair of green vasoline candelsticks to sell.