Recent Find Guessing it’s an inkwell

Hikingmedic

Cadet
Joined
Aug 5, 2019
Dug this at the site of a skirmish in the small town of Port Republic the day before the battle of Port Republic. It was on private property beside where a covered bridge used to be. Not sure if it’s CW period or not but to me it looks like an inkwell. It’s intact minus a minor chip at the very top

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And after I got it all cleaned up. This is the first actual piece of history I’ve ever found and I’ve searched many CW era battlefields and camps haha. No bullets or anything 😂

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This particular ink bottle pattern is commonly associated with the Carters Ink Co. Earlier versions of this cone pattern they used are frequently found in amber, green, teal colors. The clear glass ones usually later. While the company itself was existing during the war, their earlier CW period bottles were usually a different design pattern than these. This one is usually contributed to the 1890 era time frame.
 
Dug this at the site of a skirmish in the small town of Port Republic the day before the battle of Port Republic. It was on private property beside where a covered bridge used to be. Not sure if it’s CW period or not but to me it looks like an inkwell. It’s intact minus a minor chip at the very top

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And after I got it all cleaned up. This is the first actual piece of history I’ve ever found and I’ve searched many CW era battlefields and camps haha. No bullets or anything 😂

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It’s amazing that you found this glass ink-well in-tack! Thanks for sharing.
 
Nice find. I have one just like that but is teal. It was my father's. He collected inkwells. It has some marks at bottom but can't read them. I have a similar one which is bigger. It says Sanford's Ink and has number 40.

Sanford's Ink has a fascinating history, Donna! They're the home of the sharpie! Lots of mucilage glue, library paste and the first ink eraser.
 
That's a nice bottle, Hikingmedic! Rare these days. We used to find bottles all over the place - lots of mining camps and cabins. Usually whiskey bottles, not ink bottles! (Kind of says something... :laugh:) I'd bet if you set it in a sunny window for a while, it will turn purple.
 
This particular ink bottle pattern is commonly associated with the Carters Ink Co. Earlier versions of this cone pattern they used are frequently found in amber, green, teal colors. The clear glass ones usually later. While the company itself was existing during the war, their earlier CW period bottles were usually a different design pattern than these. This one is usually contributed to the 1890 era time frame.
So that actually fits. I found some glass and plates in pieces. My daughter and I went to Montpelier and the archaeology team got excited and asked if they could see them. They were able to date the plate to 1880-1900.
 
Very nice! And how nice that you and your daughter took them somewhere to be looked at. Father/Daughter time is precious indeed.
 
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