Glassware of the Colonel Paul Wentworth House

 The Colonel Paul Wentworth house was home to multiple generations of the prolific Wentworth family, resulting in many renovations over the years. While doing our archaeological excavation, we discovered and cataloged 2,624 pieces of glass. Of this glass 1,713 shards were flat, suggesting they were shards of window glass. Because the home was moved in 1936 and 2002, we can assume the different window glass shards found may be from the initial demolition of the home. We also catalogued 876 shards of glassware. These pieces could be liquid bottles or other types of glass furnishings.

Trio of Glass Shards found at CPW

Using the house probate inventories of Colonel Paul Wentworth, Andrew Wentworth, and John Wentworth from 1748-1869, I attempted to track down what glassware they would have had in the home. The will and inventory of Colonel Paul Wentworth listed two looking glasses, or mirrors, a case with ten bottles in it, and “other small things, bottles, etc.” Andrew Wentworth, who inherited the estate from Paul, has inventoried 200 pieces of glassware, but no specifics, and three looking glasses. When John Wentworth passed in 1869, the probate inventory lists the dishes and platters in far more detail. John’s inventory lists 4 lamps in the home, and we did find about 20 shards that could likely be lightbulbs or lamp shades. John’s inventory also lists 6 goblets and 1 dozen egg glasses.

Taking a look at some of the interesting pieces, I was able to find a rough estimate of the year they were made and where they were made. In Context 031.13, there is a glass shard that is possibly a diamond quilted platter with a ribbed border. Based on the intricacy, I believe this shard was not mouth-blown, but rather moulded, making it likely to be post-1800, when moulds were more commonly used. John Wentworth’s probate inventory lists a number of different types of platters and dishes that this shard could be. Moulded glass after this date could have been made in the local Boston/Cambridge glasshouses, who also boasted their white and flint glass creations.

Pressed glass found at CPW

We found a mouthpiece of a bottle in Context 026.15. This glass is an opaque white with no noticeable side seam. This brings me to believe the bottle was mouth blown, indicating it was made before 1800. The size of the shard indicates it would have been a smaller bottle, which, if made in America, would have been post-U.S. Revolution. This piece could have been made anywhere around New England, with primary glasshouses of the time range being located in Pennsylvania and New Jersey.

Bottle neck found at CPW

My favorite glass shard we located was in Context Unit 006.17. This is a shard of what we believe to be an apothecary or cooking vial. We unfortunately, can’t tell what exactly would have been in the bottle, but it appears to have the word “extract” on it. This bottle was made using a mould that had block lettering. This type of mould would have been introduced around the early 1800s. This would make this bottle also likely created in a Pennsylvania or New Jersey glasshouse. The earliest known New England glasshouse to introduce moulds and block lettering to apothecary vials was Henry William Steigel’s Manheim Glassworks in Pennsylvania.

Extract bottle found at CPW

For more information on identifying glassware, check out “American Bottles & Flasks and Their History” by Helen McKearin, “Early American Pressed Glass” by Ruth Webb Lee, and SHA.org/bottle/dating.htm.