Last Updated: Jul 19, 2016 Views: 291
I've done some research on glass companies in Cheshire, MA. The two named companies I was able to find were the Cheshire Crown Glass Company (1812-1816) and the Cheshire Glass Company (1849-?). Both produced glass for windows. I could not find any images of surviving glass - according to our former curator of American Glass, Jane Spillman, "there's no way to attribute any flat glass to a particular factory except occasionally inheritance, and even that is questionable." She recommended using this window of crown glass (probably produced in Massachusetts) from our collection as an example of what a crown glass window might look like. She also suggested using an image of the manufacture process if you'd like to show how the glass was made. Alternately, you could use this video, narrated by our curators, about crown glass and how it was made.
I do have some information for you about the two companies I mentioned, as well as the high-quality silica found in the area.
For more information on the silica found in Berkshire County, this source may be of help:
- Patriquin, William J; Julie L. Sloan (2011). The Berkshire Glass Works. The History Press. p. 13-14. Retrieved 1 May 2014.
You might take a look at the following sources for more information on the Cheshire Crown Glass Company, its founders, and its location:
- Raynor, Ellen M; Emma L. Petitclerc (1885). History of the Town of Cheshire, Berkshire County, Mass. C.W. Bryan & Company, Printers. p. 97. Retrieved 1 May 2014.
- Lockwood, John H; Ernest Newton Bagg, Walter S. Carson, Herbert E. Riley, Edward Boltwood, and Will L. Clark (1926). Western Massachusetts; a history, 1636-1925. New York and Chicago: Lewis historical publishing company, inc. p. 549-550. Retrieved 1 May 2014.
- Patriquin, William J; Julie L. Sloan (2011). The Berkshire Glass Works. The History Press. p. 14. Retrieved 1 May 2014.
- 1814 Chap. 0148. An Act To Incorporate The Cheshire Crown Glass Company". Acts and Resolves. State of Massachusetts. 1814. Retrieved 1 May 2014.
Information on the Cheshire Glass Company, etc. can be found in the following sources:
- Raynor, Ellen M; Emma L. Petitclerc (1885). History of the Town of Cheshire, Berkshire County, Mass. C.W. Bryan & Company, Printers. p. 151. Retrieved 1 May 2014.
- George Ripley, Charles Anderson Dana, ed. (1883). The American Cyclopaedia: A Popular Dictionary of General Knowledge, Volume 8. D. Appleton. Retrieved 1 May 2014.
- Lockwood, John H; Ernest Newton Bagg, Walter S. Carson, Herbert E. Riley, Edward Boltwood, and Will L. Clark (1926). Western Massachusetts; a history, 1636-1925. New York and Chicago: Lewis historical publishing company, inc. p. 550. Retrieved 1 May 2014.
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I was trying to find more information about the explosions at the Glassworks Factory. As a child I went to an overnight Summer Camp in Lanesboro for several years. On our hikes and walks on local roads - we would find colored pieces of ? molten glass. We were always told: it was from an explosion at a Glass Factory. I have not found any information about explosions - but these are DEFINITELY not rock - but appear to be large chunks of "colored glass". Thank Youby Ellen on Jun 08, 2021
