Wistarburgh Glass Works

Wistarburg Glass Works roadsign

The Wistarburgh Glass Works , also known as the United Glass Company, was the first successful glass factory in the United States. It was also the first joint venture enterprise in the US. It operated from 1739 until 1782.

Background

Casper Wistar (1696–1752) moved from Berks County, Pennsylvania, where he had owned iron forges, to Philadelphia in 1717. He began professionally crafting brass buttons, which he then took a business trip to sell in Salem County, New Jersey. There, upon visiting the township of Alloway and noticing its abundance of items applicable to glass manufacture - i.e. white sand, clay and wood, and accessible water from the nearby Deep Run and Alloway Creeks[1] - he became inspired to open a glass factory in the area.

Wistar bought about 2,000 acres of land some eight miles from Salem, New Jersey,[2] and began the construction of his factory in 1739; it became the first commercially successful glass factory to operate in America.[3][4][5] He first arranged with John Ladd on a lease of fifty acres that had 18,000 cords of wood on it.[6] He then arranged to have certain experienced professional European glass artisans come to America to build and operate the factory, brokering for the workers with European agents.[6]

Wistar had homes built near the factory for additional workers, with a mansion being provided for the factory's foreman. The mansion also served as a convenient place for Wistar to stay during his business trips to the factory from Philadelphia. A company store was also constructed there for the workers' needs. It served as a place of credit for the workers and was used in exchange for wages. The store also served the local residents in Alloway.[3]

Joint venture

Wistar began a profit sharing arrangement with four professional European glass makers, C. Halter, S. Griessmeyer, J. Wentzel, and J. Halter. To motivate their continued support, he set up a joint venture between the five members; this was the first cooperative manufacturing joint venture business in America. The umbrella company was called the United Glass Company, and consisted of three separate entities. Wistar was the primary share holder. He held two-thirds majority ownership in each of the three entities. The four European artisan glass makers held one-third ownership, and shared in the loss and profits of the three companies. The first entity under the umbrella company was between Wistar and Wentzel, the second entity was between Wistar and Halter, and the third entity was between Wistar and two artisans, Griesmeyer and Halter. The joint venture remained in effect until Wistar's death.[7][8][9]

History

Glass globes for Benjamin Franklin's electrostatic machines were made by Wistarburgh Glass Works for research.[10]

Wistar's factory made glass bottles at about 15,000 per year. The bottles were made in the Waldglas style. Waldglas, a greenish-yellow glass with impurities, was an inexpensive traditional method that had been made in Europe since the Middle Ages. The primary production of the facilities, however, was in window glass; at the time it was the main source of window glass for the Colonies.[3] Wistar had unlimited access to white silica sand, as well as other necessary materials, and the company's success was further aided by the low taxes in New Jersey at the time; Wistar was easily able to obtain more assets for the business.[11]

Wistar ran his business affairs from Philadelphia, spending little time in Alloway. He was friends with Benjamin Franklin,[3] and made the glass globes for Franklin's electrostatic machines that were used for electrical scientific research.[10] Franklin had built several of his machines, which used the glass globes, for Cadwallader Colden and Lewis Evans, for which they paid between ten and twelve pounds each.[12]

Because Wistar lived in Philadelphia he was aware that English Law forbade the manufacture of certain items that were in competition with imported products from England. Consequently, he downplayed the profitability of his glass business.[12] When Wistar died his son Richard inherited the glass factory. Richard also mostly ran the business from Philadelphia, but he worked on increasing the volume and making additional glass products to sell. Like his father, he also did not work with the furnaces nor the molten material to make the glass products, instead relying on hired artisans for this. The glass enterprise was in operation until early 1781 when Richard died. His son John took over the business and mismanaged it, leading ultimately to its failure. The company closed its doors December 29, 1781.[13]

Prior glasshouses

The first glasshouses that were built in colonial America were at Jamestown in 1607 and 1621. They were made so that glass items could be sent back to England, but ultimately these enterprises each proved to be failures and little, if any, glass production was achieved by either.[14]

See also

References

Citations

  1. ↑ Pierce 1960, p. 97.
  2. ↑ "The Wistars and their Glass 1739 – 1777 / Factory Operations". WheatonArts. 2015. Retrieved July 22, 2015.
  3. 1 2 3 4 "Wistarburgh". wistarburg.org. Retrieved July 21, 2015.
  4. ↑ Davidson & Stillinger 1985, p. 251.
  5. ↑ Cantele & Kaplan 2010, p. 275.
  6. 1 2 Beiler 2008, p. 155.
  7. ↑ "Bottle with the Seal of Richard Wistar". Corning Museum of Glass. Retrieved July 21, 2015.
  8. ↑ Atkinson, Stephen; Meyer, Ferdinand, V, (September 24, 2013). "The United Glass Company located at Wistarburgh". Peachridge Glass. Retrieved July 22, 2015.
  9. ↑ "The United Glass Company located at Wistarburgh". Historical American Glass. Retrieved July 21, 2015.
  10. 1 2 Lemay 2014, p. 65.
  11. ↑ Kummer, Insa (2014). "Caspar Wistar established the first successful glass manufacturing business in North America". Immigrant Entrepreneurship. German Historical Institute. Retrieved July 22, 2015.
  12. 1 2 Lemay 2014, p. 75.
  13. ↑ Ahl, Zachary (2013). "A Foundation Can Be Built on Sand, well, at least in Salem County". News of Salem County, LLC. Retrieved July 22, 2015.
  14. ↑ "Glassmaking at Jamestown". Historic Jamestowne. National Park Service. Retrieved July 22, 2015.

Sources

Further reading

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