We have a number of glass artifacts at HSMC, but this one is particularly unusual. It appears to be a decorative, flower-shaped funnel. I’m not sure if it’s just decorative or whether it was meant to be used as a funnel. The smaller opening seems to be uneven, so perhaps it was part of a larger piece?
There are no maker’s marks or any other engraving to identify who made it. I sifted through many pages of old notes and accession records hoping to find something to identify this unique piece. Finally, after about a month or so of searching, I think I finally found a match!
I recently uncovered some notes from an inventory done around 1970 that described a flower like glass piece made by “Albertson Glass Works of Norristown c. 1870.” When I checked the Norristown directories, I did not find a company by that name, but I did find a Norristown Glass Co. owned by Amos L. Albertson.
According to the Biographical and Portrait Cyclopedia of Montgomery County Pennsylvania, Amos’ father, Jacob Albertson, was a local businessman most commonly known for his private banking business, J. M. Albertson and Sons. However, in 1870, Jacob decided to go beyond banking and purchased Star Glass Works.
It does not say exactly when this business became Norristown Glass Co., but the book does identify Amos as the head of both this glass company and the Albertson Trust and Deposit Company by the 1890s at the latest.
Prior to his glass business, Amos received his education from Tremont Seminary and Westtown Boarding School (Chester County). He married Kate Longaker on September 25, 1890. She appears with him in several of the Norristown Directories.
I don’t know exactly how long the business prospered, but the last entry in the directories is 1927. Amos died in 1941. He and Kate are buried in the way back of Historic Montgomery Cemetery by the Hartranft monument.
