NOTE: For a little more background info on some of these companies that are known to have manufactured Coke bottles (including the approximate date range they were in business), please check the alphabetically-arranged “GLASS BOTTLE MARKS” pages on my site, starting here with PAGE ONE.
Most Coke bottles (although not all) bear a glass manufacturer’s mark (logo, emblem, trademark, or initials) somewhere on the bottle, that may help to identify what glass company made it. In general, glass manufacturers’ marks are usually seen on the base, but sometimes appear on the side or lower heel of the bottle. In many instances (especially in the case of Owens-Illinois Glass Company bottles), the glass manufacturers’ logo is in combination with a year date code and mold number.
There are many collectors of antique and vintage Coke bottles who try to find examples with the names of different cities or towns and states marked on the bottom, for instance “JACKSON MICH”, “LOUISVILLE KY”, “DECATUR ILLS” or “TUCSON ARIZ”. Bottles from larger cities are usually easiest to find, and, in general, the smaller the town or city, the scarcer the bottles. Some collectors specialize in searching for bottles from a certain state (or states) or from a particular region of the country.
Some very small or obscure towns had only a small number of Coke bottles made for them, and in such cases any bottles bearing such a town name can be VERY hard to find, and thus highly sought after!
There is a common misconception that the city name marked on the bottom indicates where the bottle was actually made. In general, the city or town name, in most cases, has nothing to do with the location where the bottle itself was manufactured. The city name usually indicates the location where a local soda bottling franchise or distribution center was situated, and where the bottles were supposed to be originally circulated.
Some of the larger glass manufacturing companies, such as Owens-Illinois Glass Company and Chattanooga Glass Company, made Coca-Cola bottles (and other soda bottles) for hundreds of different cities around the United States.
NOTE: Anyone who is seriously interested in collecting early straight-sides and/or the hobbleskirt style Coke bottles with town/city names on the bottom might want to get a copy of the booklet published by The Coca Cola Bottle Collectors Club: “COKE BOTTLE CHECKLIST” by Bill Porter. This is an invaluable listing of all known Coke bottles that bear the “Coca-Cola” brand logo written in cursive script.
Porter has published this in 5 editions, and the fifth edition was recently released, in 2018. He lists all towns and cities that he’s seen or heard about…….. over 1,500+ cities in all, just within the United States!! This booklet has a lot of good background info and details for the specialist, including information indicating which cities and bottle variants are the hardest to find! I heartily recommend it!
*NOTE* (this paragraph added to webpage on January 4, 2014) : There are many types of authentic older amber (“beer bottle brown”) glass Coke bottles in existence (from a variety of cities across the US), but they are usually the “STRAIGHT SIDES” types made between approximately 1900 and 1920.
If you run across an “Amber” HOBBLESKIRT STYLE Coke bottle……. any of the main 4 types including those with the Nov. 16, 1915 patent date, the Dec 25, 1923 date, the “D-105529 PATENT, or “U.S. PATENT OFFICE / 6 or 6 1/2 oz., it is a recently color-altered bottle, having been subject to IRRADIATION to change the color from the original light green-aqua to a weird “burnt dark mustard/brown” or “olive brown” color. This irradiated color is NOT natural ……. no Coke bottles of this style were made in such a color originally.
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Some newer collectors may be confused by these types of bottles appearing on online auctions, at flea markets and antique malls in these odd colors. Contrary to what some sellers may say, the irradiation does not really increase the true market value of old Coke bottles. It is a form of alteration, and is considered to be DAMAGE by many experienced bottle collectors. Just a warning….hopefully this might help to educate a few people who would otherwise not be aware of what is going on. A few Coke bottles might be found in a medium to dark purple; this is also from “nuking” the glass. This is also happening with a lot of other types of glass – bottles, insulators, pattern glass, etc. Please see my page on Artificially purpled glass here.
Here is a great article about the history of the Coca-Cola bottle, at the official Coca-Cola Company website:
Coca Cola Contour Bottle
Root Glass Company, of Terre Haute, Indiana, produced the first “Hobble Skirt” shaped Coke bottles (the design was loosely based after the shape of the cocoa bean) with the new design officially patented on November 16, 1915. The original prototype bottle had a somewhat “fatter” profile. The design was later altered slightly (slimmed down) and the first Coke bottles with the skinnier look (that is – the hobbleskirt design now used and recognized worldwide) were in production by 1916 or 1917. The trademark characteristic light greenish-aqua color was termed “Georgia Green” (in honor of the state where the Coca Cola company was originally based).
Here is another informative and interesting article, with background information on Coke and the Root Glass Company:
The Root Family and Coca-Cola
The list of glass bottle manufacturer marks below is certainly not complete, and I hope to eventually add more information as time allows. This includes makers of Coke bottles covering a very wide time period, including the earlier “straight-sides” types (most commonly found in amber glass, but also in aqua) and the later “hobbleskirt” classic shaped bottle usually made in “Georgia Green”. This list covers makers of Coke bottles in North America, primarily the United States. Of course, there are bottle manufacturers from other countries around the world that also made Coke bottles that are not listed here. (Note: In general, marks indicating local/regional Coke bottling companies – who were not actual bottle–making companies – are not included in the list).
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- A.B.CO. ……………………………..American Bottle Company, Chicago, Illinois
- A.G.W………………………………..American Glass Works, Richmond, Virginia (1908-1925)
- A H K ……………………… Alexander H. Kerr (Kerr Glass Manufacturing Corporation), Millville, New Jersey, Dunkirk, Indiana and other factory locations.
- Anchor logo entwined with a capital “H”………….Anchor Hocking Corporation, Lancaster, Ohio
- Bottle (upside down bottle superimposed over a capital G, shown in photo above)…………… Graham Glass Company, Evansville, Indiana.
- B in a circle………………………….. Brockway Glass Company, Brockway, Pennsylvania.
- C in a circle………………….Chattanooga Glass Company, Chattanooga, Tennessee. Chattanooga was a HEAVY producer of Coca-Cola bottles.
- C inside a diamond………….Chattanooga Glass Company, Chattanooga, Tennessee.
- D inside a diamond……………… Dominion Glass Company, Montreal, Quebec, Canada and other factory locations (1913-1976). Most, if not all Canadian Cokes made by Dominion are in clear or “off-clear” glass. Many of them bear the logo on the base with a mold number to the left and a date code positioned to the right.
- Diamond & O (oval) entwined/superimposed, with an I in center, looks something like an eye or the planet Saturn……………………Owens-Illinois Glass Company, head office Toledo, OH. (See a number of pics showing this frequently encountered mark at that page). This firm probably made more Coke bottles than any other glass manufacturer in the United States, at least during the 1940s and 1950s. Chattanooga Glass would possibly take second place in total production.
- D.O.C. ……………………………………………..D. O. Cunningham, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
- DURAGLAS…………………………………..trademark/brand name applied to their improved, more durable container glass formula, introduced in 1940: Owens-Illinois Glass Company.
- EG (along heel, with numbers)…………Graham Glass Company, Evansville, Indiana.
- Eye (emblem that resembles an EYE or the planet SATURN …. this is the trademark (Diamond & Oval with I inside) that was used by Owens-Illinois Glass Company.
- F within a hexagon………………………Fairmount Glass Company, Fairmount, Indiana & Indianapolis, Indiana.
FV-connected mark – FEVISA ( Fábrica de Envases de Vidrio, S.A. de C.V.), Mexicali, Mexico and other plant locations , mark is seen here on heel of Jarritos soda bottle. - FV (connected, as shown above)…………………FEVISA (Fábrica de Envases de Vidrio S.A. de C.V), Mexicali, Mexico. This mark is seen on some of the “Mexican Coke” bottles imported into the United States. Although this company began in 1987, I’m not sure if the mark has been in actual use that entire time. I have a Coke bottle with the mark which is date coded for the year 2006, and a Jarritos soda bottle with a 2023 date code.
- G23 (or similar letter/number, lightly embossed along the lower heel)……….. Graham Glass Company, Evansville, Indiana. (Not to be confused with the “G-number” [bottle style/design codes] seen on the base of many Owens-Illinois soda bottles).
- G (with upside down bottle superimposed over it)……………. Graham Glass Company.
- GRAHAM…………………………………..Graham Glass Company, Evansville, Indiana.
- H entwined with (superimposed over) an “Anchor” emblem…………. Anchor-Hocking Corporation, Lancaster, Ohio
- Heart inside a circle…………..what appears to be a heart inside a circle is actually the letters V and M (entwined / superimposed) inside a circle. This mark has been reported on the side of “Georgia Green” (typical green-aqua) hobbleskirt-style Coca-Cola bottles. This is one of the logos used by Vidriera Monterrey, of Monterrey, Mexico (1909-to date). According to information on this webpage, the mark probably dates between c. 1936 and c. 1985: https://sha.org/bottle/pdffiles/MexicanMarks.pdf
- I inside an O (may be described as the letter “O”, a zero, circle or oval)………………….this is the second major trademark used by Owens-Illinois Glass Company, after the mid- to late 1950s.
- IPG inside triangle…………………Illinois Pacific Glass Corporation, San Francisco, CA; Los Angeles & other plant locations (c. 1925-c.1932).
- I.S.G.CO…………………Inter-State Glass Company, Kansas City, Missouri.
- Kerr (in cursive script)…………………….. Kerr Glass Manufacturing Corporation, Millville, NJ, Dunkirk, IN and other factory locations).
- KPP (inside an oval)…………………………Kerr Packaging Products (division of Kerr Glass)
- Lbg …………………………………………………Lynchburg Glass Works, Lynchburg, Virginia
- L – G or L G ………………………………………………..Liberty Glass Company, Sapulpa, Oklahoma
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- L (with numbers to the right and/or left) …………. Laurens Glass Works, Laurens, South Carolina (1910-1996)
- L G W (letters may be widely separated around perimeter of base) ………………………………………….. Laurens Glass Works, Laurens, South Carolina.
- MG (connected) …………………. Maywood Glass Company, Compton, California (1930-1959).
- N.B.B.G.CO. ……………..North Baltimore Bottle Glass Company, North Baltimore, OH; Albany, Indiana, and Terre Haute, Indiana.
- O-I ……….. Owens Illinois, Inc. (see more on this and other marks on my webpage about Owens-Illinois Glass Company).
- O-N …………………… Obear-Nester Glass Company, East St. Louis, Illinois.
- O.V.B.W. …………Ohio Valley Bottling Works, Cincinnati, Ohio. Initials as reported to me on the bottom of a circa 1910s-1920s amber straight-side Coke bottle. This was apparently a short-lived local bottling operation, not a glassmaker.
- R within a triangle………………………..Reed Glass Company, Rochester, New York.
- REED…………….Reed Glass Company, Rochester, NY. (Reported by Taylor McBurney, embossed along lower heel)
- ROOT…………………………………………. Root Glass Company, Terre Haute, Indiana. Root was the first company to produce the classic “hobbleskirt design” glass Coca-Cola bottle.
- S within a star………………………………………Southern Glass Company, Los Angeles, California.
- Saturn (logo that looks like the planet Saturn, or an “Eye”. Please see my page on Owens-Illinois Glass Company. Owens-Illinois made more Coke bottles than any other manufacturer.
- S G Co (within a downwardly slanted segmented parallelogram – each letter is “boxed” -separated by a vertical line -all within a horizontal rectangle)……………….. Southern Glass Company, Los Angeles, California.
- UGB …………………………United Glass Bottle Manufacturers, Limited (a combine of several glass bottle companies in the UK). These bottles were made in Great Britain.
- V, actually a highly stylized letter “V” logo (on the glass surface, the “un-raised” part of the mark is the V, somewhat similar to a check mark). On the bottle, this trademark typically looks like a group of 3 small triangularly-shaped raised “spots” or “bumps“………….. Vitro Packaging LLC, Monterrey, Mexico. This mark is seen on huge numbers of containers imported into the United States, including soda bottles as well as many other types of food and beverage containers.
- VM or MV logo (inside circle)…… see the “Heart inside a circle” entry.
Clear Coca-Cola bottles shipped to US Military personnel during World War II
Occasionally, collectors have run across Coke bottles in clear glass that don’t seem to fit into the typical classification of bottles normally seen in the United States. These are older and bear date codes from the WWII years, and are similar in weight and appearance to Coke bottles of that era, but were made in clear glass. (Not to be confused with more recent, lighter-weight “No Deposit No Return” type clear Coke bottles that were heavily produced in the 1970s). These bottles are not marked in quite the same way as the typical “Georgia Green” (light green) bottles distributed within the US. They do not carry city/town names on the bases.
Over the years, quantities of clear glass Coke bottles have been found in the Pacific area – reports from Guam, Hawaii, Japan, Marshall Islands, Iwo Jima, Midway, Okinawa, etc., indicate many clear bottles were made by US glassmakers and shipped overseas to US military servicemen during WWII. Most of those bottles were evidently made by three glass companies: Owens-Illinois Glass Company, Chattanooga Glass Company, and Laurens Glass Company.
A theory published on the web (origin uncertain) maintains that clear Coke bottles were made for the military because copper was in short supply and needed for the war. This is almost certainly NOT correct, as huge numbers of ordinary Coke bottles in the typical Georgia Green were ALSO made during WWII for the regular US domestic market. In any case, the green color seen in Coke bottles resulted primarily from iron in the sand, a naturally occurring element and impurity present in nearly all sand used for glassmaking.
In some cases, the number to the left of the glassmaker logo (which on most typical green Coke bottles, is a plant location code) does not seem to fit, and probably stands for something else. For an example, the code “10” is seen on some bottles that bear a date code of 1945 (“45” to right of logo), but according to Owens-Illinois plant records, there was no plant #10 operating between about 1934 and 1957. So that number would have to have a different, unknown meaning. This is mentioned in the treatise written by Dirk Spennemann (link below).
For more background information on the WWII era clear Coke bottles, check out these articles:
Coca Cola and the Military – Coca Cola Bottle Man website article
For an extensive list of glass manufacturers’ marks seen on bottles, fruit jars, electrical insulators, tableware and other glass items, please click here to go to the main Glass Bottle Marks page. (I have more information there on many of the marks listed on this page.)
Please click here to go to my website Home Page.
Here is a website with lots of info on collecting Coke bottles: http://www.antiquebottles.com/coke/
I would also recommend readers to check out this .pdf article about Owens-Illinois Glass Company, written by archaeologist, researcher and author Bill Lockhart and others. Although most of the article discusses Owens-Illinois marks as seen on other kinds of bottles, Bill also has a paragraph (“Coca Cola Bottles”, on page 13) discussing the mark and code placements as seen on typical Coke bottles. Owens-Illinois made HUGE quantities of Coca-Cola bottles, so the date code information presented there is helpful:
Another informative article (.pdf file), written by Bill Lockhart and Bill Porter, this one is about the history and evolution of the Hobbleskirt style Coke bottle :
Coca Cola bottle – Bill Lockhart and Bill Porter article
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I found a 32 oz glass bottle it’s markings are 75 45 LG I believe that is in the following date mold place anyone know if I’m correct?
I have two bottles – both say no deposit no refill have Coca Cola on no deposit side and coke in block on no refill side bottom of one says 64 -73 and NO REFILL LG-959. The other says NOT TO BE REFILLED and 7727©️3 1578-9. Thank you in advance
Edward,
The only info I could pass along is that the bottle with the “64-73” would date from 1973 (since that is the date code) and it was made by Liberty Glass Company. The other bottle was made by Chattanooga Glass Company, as “C in a circle” was the trademark of that glass manufacturer. Most, if not all, of the Coke bottles with “Block lettering” (instead of the typical Coca-Cola cursive handwriting trademark) held one of the other flavored sodas marketed at the time by Coca-Cola Bottling Company, such as grape, lemon-lime, strawberry, orange soda, root beer or something like that. Sorry I don’t have better info for you.
David
Could you tell me what year Rockford Illinois manufactured coke bottles with Rockford ILL stamped on the bottom
Carolyn, I sent you a direct email, please check your spam and trash folders. I’d like to see a picture of the bottle. There should be a date code somewhere on the bottle, probably in small numbers on the side.
Best regards,
David
Hello,
My green coke bottle has 7 eye of Saturn 48 bottom says Salt Lake City Utah would this mean 1948? I also have and Chief coke bottle that has Price Utah would that mean bottled in Price?
Hi Sandy,
Yes, the “48” on your Coke bottle is a date code for 1948. The “7” on the left side of the “Saturn/eye” logo indicates it was made at their Alton, Illinois factory location by Owens-Illinois Glass Company. It would have been made for the local Coca Cola bottling location in Salt Lake City. The other bottle marked with the “Price, Utah” town name would have circulated originally in that area.
Hope this helps,
David
Wow!, very informative and educational website you have here! Another found bottle: NO Refill repeated twice around the neck, contoured bottle, all embossed lettering stylized/cursive Coca-Cola with “Trade.Mark 10Fl OZ”, on one side Coke in block letters and “Trade.Mark 10Fl OZ” on other side of shoulder. Tiny bumps in a line all the way around the “contour/waist”, in a ring on the bottom cup of the bottle it states “Not to be Refilled 1578-7” and then small 80 BIG 30 C in a circle (with no spacing between these numbers/symbol) followed by a single line (like lower case L or i without the dot) I’m guessing 1980 Chattanooga Tennessee bottle (found in Charlotte NC) TIA
Hi Jim,
I believe you are right – that it would have been made in 1980. It is my understanding that the soda bottles with the “COKE” brand name embossed in block lettering were usually made to hold Coca-Cola Bottling Company’s “other” flavored sodas (such as root beer, strawberry, grape, etc) at least for some period of time. Is that bottle made of clear glass?
Best regards,
David
Yes, it is clear bottle with embossed Coca Cola on one side and embossed Coke on the other side.
Coke Nov 6 1923 SODA on top says property of coca cola on it., Marion Ohio 61/2 FL oz
I dug up one of the “Christmas” bottles today (PAT’D DEC 25, 1923. I’m trying to date it. I found an Ohio-Illinois mark that has: 1425. Am I correct in assuming the 14 is the plant ID and the bottle was made in 1925?
Hi Barry, I believe the “1425” is a mold number or design number assigned to that bottle style/shape by the manufacturer. Assuming you meant “Owens-Illinois”, that glass company did not officially come into being until the year 1929.
Best regards,
David
Can anybody tell me about the clear Coca-Cola bottles that have do not be refilled and it has an 8 0 and then a big 18 a “C with a circle” in it 7 and then 1578-3 on the bottom of it. I’ve done my research and I can’t find these bottles nowhere, will somebody please tell me thank you.
Nick,
Your Coca Cola bottle was made by Chattanooga Glass Company, as shown by the “C in a circle” trademark that glass manufacturer used. The “1578-3” would have been a code used by Chattanooga for that particular mold or style of bottle. Many of the clear “Not to be refilled” Coke bottles were made during the 1970s and ’80s but I can’t tell you exactly when yours was made. The “80” may be a date code for 1980, but I’m not sure about that.
Take care,
David
I have an old straight sided coke bottle marked Lufkin bottling works around the bottom of the side, and a large capitol N on the bottom. Any info you could give on this bottle would be awesome!
We bought a Coke bottle Stamped on the bottom San Francisco Calif. and I think on the side is 67-0-42 when on a cruise to Santo Vanuatu. It’s from WW2 when US troops where on the island. Even found a old medicine bottle washed up on the beach there.
Hi Debbie,
Neat! Thank you for posting!
~David
I have a green glass 10 oz coke bottle marked Valdosta Ga on bottom. It was an ACL label so not embossed but hardly any trace at all of the ACL except I can slightly make out that it said return for deposit. The only other embossed markings are 8 1 0 2 2 (c) -1.
I have a green straight sided coke bottle ..Bottling Company Talladega,Alabama. No numbers except 1402 on bottem
Hi i have a 10 oz. Coca cola bottle ,with the hobbled skirt. No deposit no refund, on the neck. The bottom of my bottle says not to be refilled, then reading right to left; 68. 16. L**-1188. Please give me the year and place of manfacture. Oh, and it was found in a creek at an old house place, beside a wagon road. Really cool ! Thanks! TraceyPedigo, Ward, Arkansas
Hi Tracey,
I believe your bottle was made by Laurens Glass Company, Laurens, South Carolina. The “68” is probably a date code for 1968. The “16” is likely a mold number. Thanks and take care!
David
Is it a real coca cola bottle if it isn’t on the bottle in the usual style but coca cola written normal? And there is an E on the bottom of it. It also says Newark. I have just never seen one written like that! Any info would be great. Thanks!!
Hi Amber,
I believe you are referring to the Coca Cola bottles with simple “Block” lettering (in other words, the lettering is in “printing” instead of in “cursive”). From what I have read, those are bottles that were used by Coca-Cola franchises/ bottling outfits around the country, BUT they were only used to contain their “flavor” sodas, meaning sodas sold other than the regular Coca Cola…. such as orange soda, grape soda, root beer, etc. I assume the bottle was produced for distribution in Newark, but unsure of state. There are towns and cities named Newark in about 15 states! Possibly Newark, New Jersey or Newark, Ohio?
Take care,
David
I recently found a Coca Cola bottle with Nov. 16, 1915 on it, Hamlet, NC on the bottom. The 9 is backwards, was this a fluke that was corrected?
Hi Joy,
Moldmakers’ errors are rather common on glass bottles especially those dating before around 1930 or so. In many cases words were misspelled, or numbers or letters were engraved “correctly” on the inside of the metal mold which means it would appear backward on the finished glass item. In order for lettering and other embossing to appear as intended on the bottle, it must be engraved backwards in the mold.
But in the case of your bottle, I would have no idea if that error was ever “corrected”. It is likely they continued to use the mold even with the error on it, but perhaps the error was corrected. The only way to know for sure would be to compare multiple examples of bottles that were made from that same exact mold, which might be very difficult and time consuming to do. Do you see a glass manufacturer’s mark somewhere on the bottle that would identify what company made it? Thanks for your post.
David
Do you know where we can go to find out prices of old Coke bottles ?
Hello Sandra, I don’t think there is any good, really reliable price guide to Coke bottles out there. The best way to find out values is to do periodic searching on ebay and check out what the actual selling prices were (Completed Items). Asking prices or minimum bids can be way overblown, and may or may not reflect the actual market value of various Coke bottles to experienced collectors, which is why studying the actual selling prices is the best way to get a realistic view on values. This is my opinion, however! Perhaps some Coke bottle collectors will land on this page and have more feedback for you.
Thank you and take care,
David
While hiking last weekend I found a green tinted coke bottle with Elizabethtown Illinois on the bottom and 62 with a C inside a circle and a 51 on the other side. I’m wondering what the year it was born. Could you help me? There’s absolutely no chips in it and that amazed me. Thank you.
Hi Michelle,
Your Coke bottle was made in either 1962 or 1951. I don’t remember at the moment (without doing some research, and don’t have time at the moment) if the date code was on the left or the right of the “C in a circle” trademark which was used by Chattanooga Glass Company. In some cases (some Owens-Illinois Coke bottles come to mind) the position of the date code relative to the glass maker logo was actually changed at some point in their history. Perhaps a Coke bottle timeline expert can chime in and tell us which year is correct!
David
So I have a Coke bottle 6 1/2 ounce with a circle close to the bottom with a heart in it. Can someone give me any information on it.
I also have one with a heart on it and would like some information if possible.
Hi Barbara (and Joseph Greene),
[Reply edited May 21, 2021] This makes three inquiries I’ve received in the last 4 months about Coke bottles with a small “Heart inside a circle” trademark on the side. At first I thought this was a “new” unidentified mark, but recently (5/20/2021) one of the respondents emailed me a photo showing the mark on the side of a green-aqua Hobbleskirt style Coke bottle, and I realized this mark is actually the “M and V entwined, inside a circle” logo that was used by Vidriera Monterrey, a glass manufacturer in Monterrey, Mexico. They made huge quantities of bottles and some have been exported to the US. They also made glass telephone insulators with that mark on the skirt. See my entry on that mark, in the alphabetical listings on the Glass Bottle Marks pages, page four.
Hope this helps!
David
Hey dave have a green coke bottle with 70 a oval shape then 20 n thats it ? Another one is clear has s7 double stamped and 775 and another clear one has pat d 105529 then 38 a 0 and a eye type oval and 44 any info would be great thx
Darren
Darrin,
The “eye type oval” you refer to is probably the “Diamond and oval with I” trademark used by Owens-Illinois Glass Company. Please see my page on that company for more info. The “44” is a date code for 1944.
Not sure about the other bottles.
David
Hello I have found a clear coke bottle with a B in a circle and the numbers 9100, 75, 14 and 1. Can you tell me any information on it? Please help.
Jasmin,
Your Coke bottle was made by Brockway Glass Company in 1975 (75 is the date code) and made at their number “14” plant location (Ada, Oklahoma, according to the plant location list at https://sha.org/bottle/pdffiles/Brockway.pdf ) but I don’t have any other info for you. I assume it is one of the clear “No deposit No return” bottles.
David
Yes, it is a clear no deposit no return bottle.
I have a clear coke bottle(6 1/2 oz) with only “trade mark” listed under an old style coca-cola logo. There is an “m” and a “b” on the bottom. On the side it has a couple of number “4”’s between what appears to be a Saturn type symbol. It looks old and was in a box with several 1930’s glass bottles. Any guess on the year or origin of this bottle?
I have a clear coke 10 oz with no dates on the side. But one side coca cola is in script & the other side says coke in reg. Letters. The bottom has a zero with a B in the middle. Then a 13 on left side of bottom and a 4 at outer center of bottom & 73 on right side of bottom. Just above the 73 is 0016. The B with a circle around it is at top of bottom. I can’t find anything even close to my bottle. HELP.
Hi Johnny,
From your description, your bottle was made by Brockway Glass Company. That glass manufacturer used the trademark of a “B inside a circle” (or zero) for many years. The “73” is a date code for the year 1973. The other numbers would likely be mold and bottle design numbers. It sounds like the type of clear Coke soda bottle that was common in the early and mid-1970s, not too soon after they had started switching from aqua (“Coke bottle green”) to clear glass. Is that one of the lighter-weight “No Deposit / No Return” Coke bottle types? I did not already have the Brockway Glass mark on the Coke bottle manufacturer list here, so I will add that one today. Thanks for writing, and hope this helps a little.
David
David, thanks so much for your help. From your answer to Jasmin and Johnny, I was able to date my 1982 Brockway Coke bottle and identify the meanings of the other markings on the bottom. The only difference in my bottle to theirs is that, instead of “No Deposit / No Return” towards the top, mine says “No Refill.” I’m not sure what difference that makes to its history.
Hi Janis,
It’s not that uncommon to have slight differences in such wording on similar soda bottles. Such minor differences in exact wording typically has no real significance. For instance I have a clear Coke bottle of the same general type which is marked “Not to be Refilled” in a circular formation on the base. I assume your bottle has an “82” date code along with the “B in a circle” mark. Thanks for writing!
David
Back in the early 70s, and fresh out of high school, I worked at Groves Threads in Gastonia, NC. It was a company that dyed tubular cotton material for clothing like t-shirts. A couple times a week, the supervisor would gather up about a dozen of us workers in the dye house to play “Go out of Town”. We’d all throw $2 in the pot and gather around the Coke machine; each worker bought a Coke. Before popping the top, we’d check the bottom for the City & State that was embossed on the bottom of the bottle. The guy that got the bottle from the furthest city away from Gastonia would win the pot. It was totally random and we got bottles from all over the country. Quite often, it came down to getting out the road map and ruler to determine the winner. And thus was my introduction into the blue collar side of life.
Hi Tim,
What a great story! I hadn’t heard of that “game” but now I am wondering if something similar was played in other times and places. I am a bit curious, though: is it possible any of those workers eventually became soda bottle (or any kind of bottle) collectors? 🙂
Thanks and take care,
David
Yes, I vaguely remember somebody there did collect bottles, but unfortunately, I left that place for greener pastures and lost touch with most everyone in Gastonia decades ago. However, our former music minister where I live now collects bottles. He gave me a 2015 Alabama Crimson Tide National Championship Coke, unopened, about 2 years ago. Not exactly an oldie. He had a hundred bottles or so in his office. I have no idea what age or value they were. I’ll give you his contact if you want.
hi, i found an old coke bottle that has 1635 root 13 on the heel. above the coca cola is a large K and on the bottom of the bottle is K.B.Co. the base is thick and uneven and bottle has a green hue. im just trying to date this bottle can you help?
Marina, I can only say your soda bottle was made by Root Glass Company of Terre Haute, Indiana, and the “13” might be either a mold number or a year date code for 1913. I assume the “K.B.Co.” is probably standing for K______ Bottling Company, but I don’t know what the name would be.
Sorry I don’t have any other info on it. Perhaps a reader will recognize the bottle and have more information for you.
David
UPDATE (Added 6/13/2020): Marina, I found that the “K.B.CO.” marking (in this particular instance) stands for the KEYSTONE BOTTLING COMPANY, a concern that included a number of separate bottling locations within the state of West Virginia as well as one in Kentucky (Pikeville). Here is a web article with more background information on the Keystone Bottling Company: http://www.tazewell-orange.com/cokeblfd.html
Hello my name is Leah Michelle and I recently discover an old greenish colored glass coke bottle which says Parkersburg, W. Va on the bottom. I know this doesn’t mean it was created in Parkersburg but I would like to find out where it was made and possibly the age of the bottle if possible. I’ll repost later once I take a closer look at it to try and find any other identitying marks!!! Anyone with any thoughts please respond!!!! Thanks!!
Would a 6 1/2oz, coca~cola, shaped hobbleskirt, green tint bottle, be a collector’s item if it has no coca~cola name on it ?
Hello David, you have a very informative website. I am a wwii reenactor and would love to use some authentic coke bottles for my display. What is the best way to clean out those years of grime and dirt from the inside. Also where can I get new made old style caps that I can recap them with. Also with pat D bottles is it usually a good guess that the 2 numbets to the right of makers stamp would be manufacture dates..I have a 90 C 41…(1941?) And a 6 owens symbol 51…(1951?). Thank you for your time and any info you can give me. ED
Hi Edward,
In my opinion there are several ways to go about cleaning old bottles. The methods can be used in unison (complementing each other). I use some small bottle brushes, and there are some listed on ebay, although most of them are too small (suitable for smaller bottles) and don’t do a good job with those the size of Coke bottles.
First of all, after rinsing out the dirt from the inside, I recommend using a mixture of water and oxalic acid in a plastic 5-gallon bucket. A milder form of oxalic acid is in the product “Bar Keepers Friend” (usually found next to Ajax cleanser in grocery and dept stores). Other somewhat stronger products that include oxalic acid as an ingredient would be sold under the names “deck cleaner” or “wood bleach”, in home improvement stores, although some of the products sold under those names use other active ingredients, so you would have to look at the label very carefully to be sure it contains oxalic acid.
In any case, mix a couple cans of Bar keepers Friend with lukewarm or room temp water in a 5-gallon bucket. Or pour an entire container of Deck Cleaner and mix carefully with water in the bucket. Soak the bottles for at least 24 hours in the bucket, completely immersed, using plastic or rubber gloves when handling.
After removing, fill the bottle partially with small size aquarium gravel and water and shake gently. This should help remove some of the encrusted stains and soil from inside the bottle. You can also clean the outside of the bottle with all-purpose cleaner and water, rubbing well with a damp cloth or very fine (0000) steel wool (steel wool does not scratch glass).
Keep in mind that some older bottles, especially if they have been buried in the ground for a long stretch of time, will not come totally clean and will have a residual dull staining which is called “sick glass”, an actual deterioration of the glass surface. White or grayish “Sick glass” stains can only be removed or lessened by bottle “tumbling”, a relatively expensive process that I don’t recommend except for very valuable or high-end bottles.
I don’t know about repro caps for soda bottles, but I would imagine there are still supplies of “NOS” caps that could be found for sale on ebay or other online sites.
About the date codes on your bottles…….yes, that sounds like they would be 1941 and 1951. Not all glass companies always followed that configuration but in many cases they did.
You might check out this .pdf article that includes some info on date codes on Coke and Pepsi bottles:
https://sha.org/bottle/pdffiles/OwensIll_BLockhart.pdf
Check out “Figure 17” under the section “Coca cola bottles”.
Hope this will help!
David
Hi David!
I have a very old bottle that I have never been able to find any information on. It has a very bubbled greenish glass, straight sides, and the Coca-Cola emblem down at the bottom. The only identifying marks are the city which is Atlanta GA, the number 1373 on the bottom and it says this bottle not sold. No other marks. Has anyone come across anything like this before? If so I would love more information!
I have a Coca-Cola bottle hobble skirt style. So according to the information from this website, the embossed code on the bottle reads 3 (C) 44, meaning it was made at the Chattanooga Glass Company in Chattanooga, Tennessee in 1944. Correct? The first number was a little confusing to me but I think I understand.
MCFG2017, yes, you are correct. On that bottle the “3” is a mold number. On many bottles, please keep in mind there can be variations in the way embossed code numbers are arranged, depending on the glass company, the time period, style of bottle, etc. It is a very confusing subject, to be sure!
David
this site is great
Hello. I didn’t see this mentioned but my husband found a Coca Cola bottle with 3•C on the side right under Vic’s cola. It’s quite large. He found it downtown Charleston SC in the harbor area. It is marked as Charleston as well. Any idea?
Hi Rebecca,
I’m not familiar with the bottle. If it reads “VIC’S COLA” it is not a Coca cola bottle, but a competitor soda.
Best regards, David
I have 3 coke bottles that have Greenville, sc on the bottom. one has small letters. the other two have large letters. one of them has a L in the center. one of the bottles that has the large letters has on the side pat D-105529. It also has 63L51 on the side. the others do not have this number. Do you have any info about these bottles. thank you.
Brent,
The only info I can pass along is that the bottle with the “63 L 51” was evidently made by Laurens Glass Company, Laurens, SC in 1951. The bottle that has the L on it was also (presumably) made by Laurens.
Best regards,
David
Hello out there,
I found an old heavy coke bottle with Raleigh N.C on the bottom and a slight green tint to it.
Hello, today my son and I were deep in the woods and he dug up a heavy green Coca Cola December 25, 1923 10H Root 32 with Gloucester Va on the bottom. We were hoping to find some information about it. Any suggestions would be appreciated.
Karin,
The only info I can pass along is this: your bottle was made by Root Glass Company of Terre Haute, Indiana. The “32” may be a date code for 1932. The Coke bottle was intended to be used/distributed in the Gloucester, Virginia area.
Best regards,
David
I have some property that was used as a dump 1895- 1940 in Arkansas have found two bottles one stamped “Texarkana bottling Co” the other simply” ARK with an “S” and patent#D-105529
I have a vernor springs water company strait sided bottle is this related to coke in any way and can you tell me what year it may be
John,
I’m sorry but I’m not familiar with any Vernor Springs Water Company bottles.
David
john,
did some research I am thinking that this is one of the first Coke bottles made by this company. your bottle was probably made in the early 1900s.
best of luck!!
Ian Dufour
Hi I found a Coca-Cola bottle in western NY that doesn’t have any of the makers marks in your list. It does have a 7 in a circle, says not to be refilled, has a trademark, says no refill and no deposit, AND has a verticle line with three horizontal lines. It’s like an “E” but not connected. I would love to find out where this was made. Thank you!
Hi Kelly,
That is a mark that is hard to “alphabetize” or categorize, but I have it listed in both the “E” and “M” sections of the bottle marks pages. Check here in the “M” listings, where I have a photo of the mark posted: https://glassbottlemarks.com/bottlemarks-4/
This mark stands for Midland Glass Company which was in business (under that particular name) starting in 1968. I’m not positive about the last year the mark was used, but believe it was around 1984. Thanks for letting me know it is on a Coke bottle, as I didn’t have that one on my list of Coke bottle makers.
Best regards,
David
Hi, I have a straight-side Coca Cola bottle, middle script location, with two C’s on the bottom of the bottle, as CC. I can’t find info on this Columbus, GA bottle with CC on the bottom.
NT,
The “CC” presumably stands for Coca-Cola, so if there is no glass manufacturer’s logo on the bottle, it may be difficult or impossible to know where and when it was made.
Best regards,
David
Hi, I have found a few wartime vintage coca cola bottles here in Newfoundland, not far from an American Base set up in 1941. I have some “TRADE MARK” bottles one of which has markings I have not been able to identify. It has on the base E-UGB-44 over the number 24. I assume the 44 is the year as all the other bottles cluster around that date, it is a green glass bottle with just the Coal-Cola and TRADE MARK and no waist mark. Another bottle also marked TRADE MARK, is a colorless bottle with no base marks., and a good 31 (c) 45 on the waist, and another is Dominion made, colorless “The Coca Cola Company of Canada Limited” bottle with a 7043 on the base and no waist marks. Do you have any idea who or where the E-UGB-44 bottle was made. I know that British and Canadian vessels did call at this port during the war?
Newfoundland was a dependency of the UK during the war. I know of no coke products being sold there before the war.
Thanks,
Dave Roberts
Dave, see my entry for UGB (United Glass Bottle Manufacturers, Inc) in the alphabetically-arranged glass bottle marks listings. It is a mark from Great Britain. I don’t know about the date codes used by UGB (assuming they used them) but “44” sounds like it could well be a date code for 1944.
~David
Thanks! Found another UGB COCA COLA LTD and two groups of very faint numbers 44 and ?? as a base mark. All the characters on the base are faint. There is a blank field where all the details go between the skirt and the shoulder. Clear glass. Would you know when a printed and not embossed bottle would have been made by UGB? THX again!
Hi Dave,
I don’t have information on UGB concerning date codes or other base markings they may have used.
~David
The bottom base of my NEHI bottle says Design Pat D MAR 3.25 Any idea on what that means?
Thanks for your help. Love your site.
Mel, I assume it means “This bottle design patented March 3, 1925”. However, many NEHI soda bottles were marked with that phrase, even bottles made into the 1950s. I haven’t found the exact patent (patent number) this refers to.
David
I recently found a green bottle with nothing but the words.. Return To The Bottler Of Coca Cola no numbers or letters on the bottom or anywhere else. Any info on this bottle would be very helpful. I have had no luck finding this exact one anywhere on line. Most have skinnier necks where this one is fatter.
I found a glass Coca Cola bottle with stars at the top, and on the bottom it says property of Coca Cola bottling company contents 6 fl oz Scranton PA Anyone know how old it is
I found an “old”? Coke bottle. It’s clear glass, with a slight greenish tint. It has an L on the bottom and the numbers 63-42 on the side of the bottle. The Coca Cola logo is faded, but still visible. Any idea what year this may be from?
Helene, the positioning of date and mold codes on Coke bottles varied over the years. On your particular bottle, the date code is the left pair of digits, and apparently stands for 1963. Coke required date codes to the left of the dash from circa 1952-1990s. The “42” is a mold number. See this page by researcher Bill Lockhart which has a brief entry on Coke bottle codes. Although the page is concerning the Owens-Illinois Glass Company, other bottle makers would have also complied with their guidelines for mark placement:
https://sha.org/bottle/pdffiles/OwensIll_BLockhart.pdf
Your bottle was made by Latchford Glass Company of Los Angeles.
Hope this helps,
David
My bottle says CC Co 649 mold line ends under the crown top like it’s an 1800s bottle. I believe this may be a prototype. No one has seen one like it
Travis,
Your bottle sounds like a beer bottle with the initials “C G Co”, a product of Coshocton Glass Company of Coshocton, OH. They made tons of beer and soda bottles in the early years of the 20th century. Many of them have the marking on the lower “heel” area of the bottle. See my alphabetical listings of “C” glass marks on this site.
Best regards, David
any pictures of some of the irradiated ones ? I have some australian amber cokes and we are discusing if they are genuine or not not sure how to post pics here but have alook here
https://www.facebook.com/groups/1431233053841324/
david smith
Hi David,
That bottle group on Facebook you supplied the link to is a “closed” group so I could not view the pictures you mentioned. However, here are some thoughts. Sorry I don’t have my website configured so that everyone can post pics here. The site would soon be overloaded with thousands of pictures, and would eventually make the pages somewhat slower to download, especially for those with older computers.
In any case, I would suggest you search Google Images with the keywords “Irradiated Coke Bottle” (without quotes) or similar phrases, and check out some of the webpages that come up in the search. Of course many of the returns will be irrelevant but you should be able to see some examples of Cokes that have been “nuked”. They typically appear in shades of purple or dark odd ambers. Also, I might suggest you try posting queries on the http://antique-bottles.net site, which is a great discussion forum for collectors of all kinds of bottles and jars. There are many knowledgeable people who frequent that site and who might offer their input on the subject of irradiated Coke bottles.
Best regards, David
Only X is found on the bottom of my amber Coca Cola from Washington, NC. Any ideas as to the maker of this nice bottle?
Hi Bob,
I assume you have a “straight-sides” amber Coke from sometime in the 1900s or 1910s. Are there ANY markings of any kind along the lower heel area of the bottle? Occasionally there could be a glassmaker mark along the heel that is very faint. If there is not, I can’t be of much help here. However, there may be knowledgeable, “hardcore” Coca-Cola bottle collectors/specialists out there (especially those familiar with early Coke bottles from the southeastern states) who might have input or suggestions on what glass company made your bottle. Perhaps someone will chime in and post an answer to your question! Thanks for writing~
David
Is there a listing of all the cities that Coke bottles had embossed on the bottom. We collect sea glass and find partial bottle bottoms and it would be helpful to figure out what some of the cities are.
Hi Don, I believe a few individual Coke bottle collectors have tried to compiled their own lists of known cities, but I don’t know if that information is available anywhere online. I am under the vague impression that the total number of different American towns and cities that had their name embossed on the bottom of Coke bottles (at one time or another over the years) ranges somewhere between 2000 and 4000! I am hoping that any Coke collectors who have more information on this subject will chime in and educate us!
Thank you, David