
Photos by Tom Cotter, including collections of Roberta Hankins
When I wrote an article about Mid-Century Modern Glass for the September 2020 Mountain States Collector, I feel that I scratched the surface. I’m still doing so three years later. The glass companies that continued into the late 20th and early 21st centuries scrambled to survive in an era of increasing costs and foreign competition. Since decorating and dining changed so much after World War II, the industry focused on colorful embellishment pieces to stay alive. Items were pour or blown molded. Some freehand work was done on a small scale. Most Mid-Century Modern glass companies went out of business by 1990. Blenko and some other enterprises are still going.
In order to capture the attention of buyers on a smaller scale, a lot of companies made figurines, such as glass animals. Two books on glass animals by Dick and Pat Spencer and Lee Garmon, provide insight. Some firms remade items from earlier eras, but often with new, different colors. For instance, L.E. Smith and others brought back some traditional Early American Pattern Glass (EAPG) pieces in a variety of hues not seen before. In the zoology area, Imperial made panthers, horses, elephants, ducks, gazelle, and mules in a variety of colors from Heisey molds. Viking’s long necked-egrets, ducks and geese, and long-tailed birds in colors are much in demand, but whales, crystal bookends/paperweights and other animals are more reasonable. Fenton made a plethora of animals in a plethora of colors; cats, rabbits, deer, bears, mice, and so on. Kanawha made a number of glass animals, including elephants, squirrels, ducks, rabbits, and swans, as did Pilgrim. Some of those animals are obviously molded, while others appear more free-formed. L.E. Smith made a flock of turkeys in crystal, amber, amethyst, ruby, and green carnival, and some lustre finishes, along with squirrels, birds, horses, and roosters. Indiana glass made a herd of covered elephants, as well as several votive candleholders like cats, turtles, and frogs. Companies around Cambridge, Ohio, that made many small figurines and novelties from purchased and new molds included Mosser Glass (still open), Degenharts’ Crystal Art Glass (molds later sold Bernard Boyd, becoming Boyd Crystal Art Glass), and Guernsey Glass. Summit Art Glass also bought molds from Cambridge, Imperial, Westmoreland, and St. Clair, making many novelties in a wide variety of colors. One of their novelties was a reproduction of the Frederick Remington Buffalo Hunt Bowl from a Cambridge mold. In the area of produce (okay, not animals), several companies made glass vegetables, fruits, and fungi. Viking made flowers and various fruits, as well as the now very popular mushrooms, all in vibrant colors. Bischoff, Pilgrim, and Rainbow all created pieces, some similar to Blenko items, as well as creations and colors that varied. Pilgrim featured sand carved cameo items signed by artist Kelsey Murphy.


I wish to thank Roberta Hankins for sharing a picture of her Fenton rabbits and Fostoria Heirloom vases. Peggy and Jon DeStefano provide a vital forum for us through the Mountain States Collector. It’s great to be writing an article to be published in the Mountain States Collector just prior to the Front Range Glass Show on September 30 and October 1, 2023, sponsored by Jodi and Mark Uthe at the Loveland Ranch Event Center Complex McKee Building. I can assure you that many of the items I have described will be for sale there. The Rocky Mountain Vintage Glass and Pottery Club (also known as the Rocky Mountain Depression Glass Society) always is at the Front Range Glass Show. Books that might be fun are the aforementioned Glass Animals in two editions by the Spencers. Enjoy your collecting, whatever your choice.
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