Long since gone from
daily use, glass of the Great Depressionremains a fascination for collectors and continues to provide a sense of history of the lean times of the era. On Saturday, April 11th the Nutmeg Depression Glass Club of Connecticut hosts its All-American Glass Show and Sale at Southington H.S. from 9 am to 4 pm. Displayed collections of glass from the Depression Era, pressed glass of earlier times, pottery from the era and some glass jewelry will attract visitors from around the state and beyond. Vendors from our northeast states will proffer memorabilia and specialty items common in the average home almost a century ago. Free American glass and pottery identification to attendees. Visitors will include collectors looking for specific pieces for their collections or perhaps a gem of a new find, or those simply seeking to learn more about the art of glass making or the history of that period. A modest admission price of $7.00 makes one eligible for a drawing prize. Pay a dollar less with a copy of this article.
Nutmeg
Depression Glass Club member, Bob Marotto, speaks knowledgeably of elegant
quality of vintage glass, manufacturing techniques of the era and offers meticulous
bits of club history. “In the 1920’s making glass was fairly labor intensive.
Small groups made glass: a gatherer, a pressman and a third person tending the
mold. Due to temperature sensitivity, timing was imperative. Cheaper depression
glass came along, meeting the economic crisis of the 1930’s. Affordable to the
masses, it became the most everyday glassware of homes throughout America. But
after WWII and the returning of mass manufacturing to peacetime production,
depression glass began to lose its appeal. People discarded the reminders of
the pervasive poverty of the era, replacing them with material of better
quality, new design and greater variety through new post war manufacturing
methods. Later, in the 1960s, depression glass began to take on a new perceived
value as collectors’ items. Mail order catalogs emerged appealing to new glass
clubs. The Nutmeg Depression Glass Club of CT was established in 1975. Members
were from Southington, Plainville and New Britain. Two other clubs formed:
Charter Oak Club in Westbrook and Mt. Laurel Club in Newington.
Today, the
Nutmeg group in Southington is the last remaining. Marotto recalled that
meetings were initially held at Howard Johnson’s, later at the First
Congregational Church and finally at the Masonic Lodge on the Town Green.
Glass shows were held at the Knights of Columbus home on Hobart Street
for about 5 years, then for about 10 years at the Armory in Southington and
since then at Southington H.S. Fran Zottoli and Nancy Schmidt became members
after about ten years ago after attending a show at SHS. They found the show
fascinating and appreciated the information it offered about glass. “We also
come in contact with so many who have helped us learn to identify glass by
maker, when it was made, patterns, the molds and the manufacturing methods.”
Zottoli said. Marotto said “We have our own show but there is also a
national club. Glass collections have diminished for reasons including concerns
about faux depression glass. But the keen interest of our statewide membership
continues, notwithstanding their diminishing numbers, formerly about 100, now
down to about forty.” 
