Heisey Glass Museum (Newark, Ohio, USA) 4

The Heisey Glass Museum in Newark, Ohio (originally called "Heisey Glass Museum", then renamed "National Heisey Glass Museum, then reverted back to "Heisey Glass Museum" in June 2024) has a large collection of beautiful and rare glass items made in Newark by the Heisey Glass Company from 1896 to 1957. Most items are clear ("crystal"), but some are composed of colored glass, including the most famous and valuable variety, "Alexandrite".

The source of silica for Heisey glass is apparently undocumented, but was possibly a sandstone deposit in the Glassrock area (Glenford & Chalfants area) of Perry County, Ohio (if anyone can provide verfication of this, please inform me). Quarries in the area targeted the Pennsylvanian-aged Massillon Sandstone (Pottsville Group) and processed it into glass sand suitable for glass making.
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From museum signage:

Augustus H. Heisey (1842-1922) emigrated from Germany with his family in 1843. They settled in Merrittown, Pennsylvania and after graduation from the Merrittown Academy, he worked for a short time in the printing business.

In 1861, he began his life-long career in the glass industry by taking a job as a clerk with the King Glass Company of Pittsburgh. After a stint in the Union Army, Heisey joined the Ripley Glass Company as a salesman. It was there that he earned his reputation of "the best glass salesman on the road".

In 1870, Heisey married Susan Duncan, daughter of George Duncan, then part-owner of the Ripley Company and later full owner, at which time he changed its name to George Duncan & Sons. A year later, he deeded a quarter interest to each of his two children. A few years after his death, A.H. Heisey and James Duncan became sole owners. In 1891, the company joined the U.S. Glass Company to escape its financial difficulties. Heisey was the commercial manager.

Heisey began to formulate plans for his own glass company in 1893. He chose Newark, Ohio because there was an abundance of natural gas nearby and, due to the efforts of the Newark Board of Trade, there was plenty of low cost labor available. Construction of the factory at 301 Oakwood Avenue began in 1895 and it opened in April of 1896 with one sixteen-pot furnace. In its heyday, the factory had three furnaces and employed nearly seven hundred people. There was a great demand for the fine glass and Heisey sold it all over the world.

The production in the early years was confined to pressed ware, in the style of imitation cut glass. The company also dealt extensively with hotel barware. By the late 1890s, Heisey revived the colonial patterns with flutes, scallops, and panels which had been so popular decades earlier. These were so well accepted that from that time on, at least one colonial line was made continuously until the factory closed.

A.H. Heisey's name appears on many different design patents including some when he was with George Duncan & Sons. Heisey patterns that he was named the designer include 1225 Plain Band, 305 Punty and Diamond Point, and 1776 Kalonyal.

Other innovations instituted by A.H. Heisey were the pioneering in advertising glassware in magazines nationally, starting as early as 1910 and the first glass company to make fancy pressed stems. That idea caught on quickly and most hand-wrought stemware is made in this manner, even now.
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Info. at:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heisey_Glass_Company
and
heiseymuseum.org

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Taken on: June 21, 2024

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