Our member, Brenda has written these descriptions about Cornflower and Depression Glass. Brenda has collected several types of glass over the years and it was often used in her flower arranging. Brenda has generously donated some of her glassware to be used as the prize in a Silent Auction Fundraiser at our next meeting.
Cornflower Glass
William John (“Jack”) Hughes was born in Dufferin County. In 1902 he began his career of glass cutting while working for a large factory in Toronto.
In 1912, he began to experiment on creating his own glass cutting pattern in the basement of his home. He was inspired by the Blue wildflower cornflower that grows across Canada in gardens and along roadsides. In 1914, he began to cut glass tableware full-time in his basement. His cornflower design included soft petal and vines around a grid-like centre. This pattern remained unchanged for the next 80 years. Hughes imported glassware blanks from American glass companies such as Heisey, Imperial and Tiffin. After WWII, American glass was difficult to find and Hughes began importing blanks from Europe.
For over 30 years the W. J. Hughes Corn Flower Glass Company remained a small operation. But in 1944, a brand-new factory was built in Toronto, complete with conveyor belts and upgraded cutting machines. The W.J. Hughes Corn Flower Glass Company continued to thrive well into the 1970s. Sadly, the quality was compromised when production was moved overseas. The company ceased production in 1988.
Today, the Museum of Dufferin has a mandate to build and preserve a collection of Corn Flower glass in the county where Jack Hughes was born. The Museum has the largest public collection in the world with over 2,200 pieces of Corn Flower Glass.
DEPRESSION GLASS
Do you have a piece of pink or green glassware that was passed down to you from your mother or grandmother? You probably know that it is called Depression Glass. Most of this glassware was manufactured by U.S. glass companies from the 1920s through to 1940.
Depression Glass is also called “Pressed Glass” because it was made by pressing molten glass into a mould by machine. It was inexpensively made glassware that was produced in quantity and sold in “Five and Dime” stores or given away as publicity for buying other items. For example it was included in as prizes in cereal boxes.
Depression Glass came in many colours including pink, green, amber, iridescent, yellow, blue, red, white and crystal. Many of the of the Depression Glass patterns depict common flowers or fruits. Some of these are listed below.
Pattern | Company | Years |
Avocado “Sweet Pear” | Indiana Glass Company | 1923-1933 |
Cherryberry | U.S. Glass Company | 1928-1931 |
Cherry Blossom | Jeanette Glass Company | 1930-1939 |
Cloverleaf | Hazel Atlas Glass Company | 1930-1936 |
Dogwood “Apple Blossom” | MacBeth-Evans Glass Company | 1929-1932 |
Floral “Poinsettia” | Jeanette Glass Company | 1931-1935 |
Floral and Diamond | U.S. Glass Company | Late 1920’s |
Florentine No. 1 “Poppy No. 1” | Hazel Atlas Glass Company | 1932-1935 |
Fruits | Hazel Atlas Glass Company | 1932-1935 |
Iris “Iris and Herringbone” | Jeanette Glass Company | 1926-1932 |
Mayfair “Open Rose” | Hocking Glass Company | 1931-1937 |
No 618 “Pineapple and Floral” | Indiana Glass Company | 1932-1937 |
Orchid | Paden City Glass Company | Early 1930’s |
Rosemary “Dutch Rose” | Federal Glass Company | 1935-1937 |
Sharon “Cabbage Rose” | Federal Glass Company | 1935-1939 |
Sunflower | Jeanette Glass Company | 1930’s |
Thistle | MacBeth-Evans Glass Company | 1929-1930 |
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