0043: Milk Bottles

I LOVE milk and there is something beautiful about having your milk in a glass bottle... I'm not sure where I got the urge to get glass milk bottles but it is something that I love reaching for everyday. I got these online for about $10-ish each. They have a little French touch and I think they are awesome.

Here are a few tidbits to think about:

• In 1880, British milk bottles were first introduced by the Express Dairy Company. They were delivered by horse-drawn carts and delivered 4 times a day. 
• By 1894, the pasteurization process for milk was developed which allowed it to be sterilized and be safely stored for longer periods. Milk could now be delivered once a day.  
• It really wasn't that long ago that milk bottles, delivered fresh daily, was the norm across the U.S. and Europe - in some lucky areas the practice is still common. 
• The first milk bottle in the U.S. is normally credited to Harvey D. Thatcher, a NY druggist who introduced his milk bottles in 1884. Early Thatcher bottles are embossed with a seated Quaker farmer milking cow. Replicas of this bottle are readily available, but originals are scarce. Check it out...

Photo: MilkBottleNews.org.uk

• Glass bottles were reusable and delivered fresh by milkmen. Customers were expected to rinse the empty bottles and leave them on their doorstep for collection. Bottles were usually 1 pint or 1 quart, although cream may have been in smaller bottles.
• The heyday for milk bottles - in the US - was between the two World Wars. By the 40's and 50's, glass milk bottles were replaced with waxed-paper cartons and, later, plastic jugs. 

Sources: Collector's Weekly and Wikipedia