I just returned from the SAA meeting to find some interesting replies to my
request about Southern culture. I appreciated the serious replies and even
enjoyed the not-so-serious replies.
With that in mind, I would like to contribute to the thread on bottle reuse.
Down here in the "Deep South," -- I hail from Selma Alabama, --- we reuse
blue bottles to make "bottle trees." We place as many of these bottles as
we can on the ends of a branches of small trees, to produce very lovely
yard ornaments. In addition to being ornamental, a bottle tree is also very
good for scaring away ghosties, bad spirits, and other haunts! <grin>
Linda Derry, Director
Old Cahawba - AHC
719 Tremont St.
Selma, AL 36701 - 5446
ph. 334/875-2529 / email: [log in to unmask]
> -----Original Message-----
> From: HISTORICAL ARCHAEOLOGY [mailto:[log in to unmask]]On Behalf Of
> Robert L. Schuyler
> Sent: Wednesday, March 20, 2002 12:47 PM
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: Formal Reuse of Bottles (?)
>
>
> Does anyone on the list know of PUBLISHED sources, or unpublished papers,
> on the history and nature of the formal reuse of glass bottles? I am
> referring to the practice in the 20th century (19th century?) when bottles
> were systematically returned to the store or other original
> source. The two
> major categories I am familiar with are:
>
> (1) Soda bottles which were purchased (with part of the price considered
> a deposit) and then returned for money. This was a way many children
> made pocket money, especially with Coca Cola and Pepsi Cola bottles.
>
> (2) Milk bottles which were left out to be picked up by the milkman
> (sorry, I do not remember any milkwomen!) to be taken back to the local
> dairy to be refilled.
>
> Some questions:
>
> (1) Are there other obvious categories beyond the two I
> listed above?
>
> (2) When did such practices start?
>
> (3) When did they end (if they have ended)?
>
> (4) When did the phrase - "No Deposit No Return" - come into
> use?
>
> Such practices have a major impact on the archaeological record
> of the 20th (19th?) century. For example, in recent excavations of 20th
> century deposits we found only one Coca Cola bottle and it was there
> because it had been broken.
>
> I am after published (or at least formally written up) sources,
> either primary sources or work by researchers such as archaeologists,
> material culture experts or cultural historians. I would also be
> interested in personal knowledge you may have. You could either send
> such personal accounts to me off line or, if you want, share them with
> the list. This question would, I think, be of interert to many historical
> archaeologists.
>
> Robert L. Schuyler
>
>
>
> Robert L. Schuyler
> University of Pennsylvania Museum
> 33rd & Spruce Streets
> Philadelphia, PA l9l04-6324
>
> Tel: (215) 898-6965
> Fax: (215) 898-0657
> [log in to unmask]
>
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