I have not updated the listserve about the Bottle Research Group lately.

We have completed Volume A and Volume B of the Encyclopedia of Manufacturer's Marks on Glass Containers, and we are almost finished with Volume C.  As we complete them, we upload each chapter Bill Lindesy's Historical Bottle Webpage on the SHA website.

http://www.sha.org/bottle/makersmarks.htm

In addition, the first two volumes are available in printed form from Lulu.com.  Prices are only slightly above our cost.  Use their search engine for "Bottle Research Group" or for "Bill Lockhart" if you want my local/regional El Paso and Southern New Mexico items.

In addition, we have begun two other lines of research that may be useful.  One is a series on bottle and jar machines.  These include sections on the marks that each type of machine leaves or should leave on bottles and/or jars.  We include numerous patent drawings and photos.  The second series is about Patent Medicine bottles.  The first one is on the Pitcher's and Fletcher's Castoria bottles.  In process is a serious look at Bromo-Seltzer bottles.  Also in the works are California Fig Syrup bottles and Valeline jars.  All of these common bottles and jars have been treated so generally that they have been of little use archaeologically.  We have discovered an incredible variation - up to 17 different Bromo-Seltzer bottle types so far - in these containers that are datable to relatively short spans of time.  Both series are available on Bill Lindsey's webpage on the SHA site.

All of these are in .pdf format and are free unless you choose the printed options of the Encyclopedia at Lulu.com

We hope to complete the Encyclopedia within a decade, but the other two will probably be life-long works.

Bill





Bill Lockhart
Professor of Sociology
New Mexico State University
2400 Scenic Dr.
Alamogordo, NM 88310
575-439-3732
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