Tuesday, October 5, 2010

Honey...I've got a headache!

Hello everybody!
Continuing with the theme of the Lawrence Collection bottles...came across this medicinal druggist bottle. The color of the bottle is aqua, and the dimensions are as follows: 9.36" tall, finish height is .80", inner mouth is .53", base is 2.47" x 1.28". Embossed on one side of the bottle is "Boykin Carmer & Co. Wholesale Druggist Baltimore".

Ignoring the fact that the bottle is embossed with a company name and location, I did basic bottle analysis. The bottle was mouth-blown into a mold (post-1865). It has a tooled "oil" finish (1830s -1920s). As most druggist bottles were, it is cup-bottom molded (1870s - early 20th century). The mold had no air vents, as I was unable to decipher any marking in the shoulders, body, base or seams (from/prior to 1885 - 1890). Using these characteristics I deduced that the bottle was dated between 1870s - 1890, due to the cup-bottom mold and the lack of air venting.

However, the embossing on the front of the bottle could lead to a more accurate date. I was unable to find a whole lot about Boykin Carmer & Co.; so, if any of you are interested in this, feel free to research more!

Thanks!
Alyssa

2 comments:

pquantock said...

I remember doing research on these guys a while back when we found a similar bottle (around Burch House I believe). I can't remember all the facts but I know they were in business from around 1870-1896. They also were involved in some litigation about fertilizer in the 1880's. Good luck!

Anonymous said...

You've most likely already discovered the background of Boykin & Carmer Co, but if not, you can find info at this website:

http://www.peachridgeglass.com/2013/02/granger-bitters-baltimore/

I was doing genealogical research on Dr Thomas J. Boykin, who is my husband's great-great-grandfather when I learned of this website.