Green, Green Glass at Home

By Linda Nelson

Anyone who has ever seen green Depression Glass glowing under a black light quickly grasps one facet of its allure for collectors. The addition of uranium to the glass formula causes the bright yellow-green glow, and the glow is one reason that collectors bring it home to love.

Green and pink are the two most common colors of Depression Glass, and the two most frequently collected. In the 1920s and the early 1930s when this type of inexpensive glass first was produced, green was a popular color for household items. Green has a universal appeal and is a soothing color that evokes thoughts of nature, so its popularity continues today. A grouping of Green Depression Glass makes a radiant display.

Seven major companies produced the majority of Depression Glass. These companies were Federal Glass Company, Hazel-Atlas Glass Company, Hocking Glass Company, Indiana Glass Company, Jeannette Glass Company, MacBeth-Evans Glass Company, and U.S. Glass Company. The Hazel-Atlas Glass Company, Hocking Glass Company, and Jeannette Glass Company introduced the greatest number of Depression Glass patterns during the heart of the Depression Glass era—from the early 1920s until the beginning of World War II. These companies are also notable for producing kitchen glassware, such as measuring cups, mixing bowls, and canisters. The Hazel-Atlas measuring glass shown here was originally the base for a hand beater. The beater has been missing for many years, and the glass shows chips around the top of heavy usage. The item is marked with the Hazel-Atlas mark. 

Every company that produced Depression Glass produced green glass. The shades of green vary among the companies and patterns. This article will focus on three patterns produced by the three most prolific glass companies: Hazel-Atlas’ Ribbon, Jeannette’s Cherry Blossom, and Hocking’s Princess.

Hazel-Atlas Ribbon

The Hazel-Atlas Glass Company produced a number of popular patterns, including Royal Lace, Moderntone, and Cloverleaf. Ribbon was one of its earlier patterns, produced in 1930 and 1931, primarily in green. A few items were produced in black and pink. The limited number of items in the Ribbon pattern all bear the distinctive panel design with a starburst in the center of plates and bottom of footed items such as creamer, sugar, and sherbet. In their reference book Mauzy’s Depression Glass, Barbara and Jim Mauzy warn that a number of green glass patterns look similar to Ribbon and recommend that new collectors shop carefully and educate themselves on the characteristics of the pattern. Comparing the item in question with a reliable list of items made in the pattern and with the stated sizes helps to ensure the pattern is Ribbon.

The candy jar pictured here falls into the difficult to identify range. The shape of the dish, including the finial, matches the Ribbon shape perfectly, but the panel design on the lid and the base is not as distinctive as the dish identified as Ribbon on the Sparkle Plenty site. Without confirmation by a glass expert, I would be reluctant to identify this candy dish as Ribbon.

The 13 items in the Ribbon pattern allow a luncheon or tea setting, but not dinner. The Ribbon plates are an 8-inch luncheon and a 6 1/4-inch sherbet. The pattern includes a cup and saucer, creamer and sugar, a sherbet, a tumbler, three sizes of bowls, salt and pepper shakers, and the covered candy jar.

Jeannette Cherry Blossom

The Jeannette Glass Company’s Cherry Blossom pattern may be the most recognized pattern in Depression Glass. It is widely collected in pink and green, but is also popular in Delphite, a milk glass blue. With more than 40 items in the pattern, Cherry Blossom is one of the larger patterns of Depression Glass, although few compare with Westmoreland’s 175 items in the English Hobnail pattern. In production from 1930 to 1939, Cherry Blossom was produced in large quantities, but since green was discontinued around 1935, more pink than green is available.

Cherry Blossom appeals to collectors who appreciate floral patterns. The pattern features an all over blossom pattern, with many items having a stem of cherries on the bottom or center. The pattern has a variety of bowls, plates, and tumblers. Cherry Blossom offers the items needed for a complete table setting for dinner, including a variety of service items such as pitchers, platters, salt and pepper shakers, and a handled sandwich tray. The bowl shown is the 9-inch oval vegetable.

Hocking Princess

The Hocking Glass Company’s Princess pattern was produced in green, pink, yellow, and blue. Pink and green and both popular and easier to find than the other colors. Princess is one of the many etched-mold patterns that typify Depression Glass to many people. Its 40-items includes a variety of plate sizes, six tumblers from a 3-inch juice to a 6 1/2-inch footed iced tea, and three sizes of pitchers, the most rare the 7 1/2-inch footed pitcher. The 9 1/2-inch hat-shaped orange or flower bowl is the star of the five bowls in this pattern. Plates in the Princess pattern are square.

The pattern design features a center medallion that looks like a complex snowflake on plates and similar items. Many features of the design have an Art Deco flavor, and items such as the cookie jar, salt and pepper shakers, and tumblers have a vertical trailing chain of bell-shaped flowers on the sides.

Green Possibilities

Not all patterns of Depression Glass were produced in green, but many were. Some patterns predominantly in green include Hocking Glass Company’s Block Optic, Cameo, also known as Ballerina or Dancing Girl, and Circle. Two Federal Glass Company patterns with similar designs, Raindrops, also called Pebble Optic, and Thumbprint are green glass with a moderate number of items in each pattern. Additionally, many patterns produced in large quantities, such as Hocking’s Mayfair "Open Rose" and Hocking’s Princess, are found in several colors equally, with pink and green often being predominant. With persistence, cash, and a little luck, collectors can find a variety of patterns from geometric to floral in beautiful green glass.

Resources: 

• Sparkle Plenty
• Glass Museum article "Uranium, Florescent, and Vaseline Glass"
• Mauzy’s Depression Glass, by Barbara and Jim Mauzy, Schiffer Publishing Ltd., 1999.
• Patterns Important to the History of Depression Glass, February 2001, revised January 2002 by Joyce E. Krupey, an article published on the National Depression Glass Association site.

Special Thanks:

A special thank you to my friend Rachael, who allowed me to photograph her Ribbon-like candy dish and Princess cookie jar and to my mother who gave me the Cherry Blossom vegetable dish and the Hazel Atlas measuring glass, which Mother acquired as a young woman in the 1930s.

About the Author:

I've been interested in American Dinnerware for at least 15 years, but I knew I was hooked when I bought a 1937 set of Taylor Smith & Taylor dishes. I didn't need them, didn't really have room for them, and had no plans to use them, but I had to have them. I love the charm of their old-fashioned shape and the border of roses linked with a blue art deco-like band. The rest of my collection tends to be a piece here and there because my interest in American Dinnerware is bigger than my pocketbook. So, although my collection is small, my research continues.

I have a bachelor's degree in journalism and commercial art, but I've learned about pottery and glassware from reading, research on the Internet, and looking at pieces in antique shops. I grew up eating Sunday dinner from Taylor Smith & Taylor Lu-Ray dishes. My mother still uses them for special occasion dinners - like when "the kids" come home. (It's nice to have at least a couple of places where we can still be "the kids.")

After many years in a pressure-cooker job, with my husband's blessing I traded my long commute and a respectable paycheck for a chance to pursue some dreams. Now, I provide freelance writing and editing services remotely, thanks to email and the Internet. My primary customers are high-tech companies. My husband and I live in Sherman, Texas, with our spoiled-rotten rat terrier, Biscuit.

My other interests include drawing, painting, reading, crafts, antiques, and searching the Internet to learn more about it all. Visit me at American Dinnerware. I'd love to hear from you and talk about dinnerware. The site is new but will be growing.

Article courtesy of Suite101.com.