HISTORY
Forerunners of the Sandwich works—Evolution of the Industry
In 1787 a factory was established on Essex Street, Boston by Whalley, Hunnewell and others for making crown window glass. This enterprise was not a success until 1803 when a German by the name of Lint arrived. From then on the factory became prosperous; the state paid a bounty and by 1822 the glass had become famous and was known as Boston Window glass. This factory was given the exclusive right in their charter for a number of years.
In 1811 they erected a larger and improved factory in South Boston, and sent to England for more blowers of window glass but could not get them on account of the war so they turned to using flint glass blowers, previously brought from Europe. This factory in South Boston was the “parent tree” of the Sandwich works. It failed in the thirties and started up again and failed many times but was running in 1854.
Another Company was formed in 1811 called the Porcelain and Glass Manufacturing Company at East Cambridge but it failed in the production of both attempted products because of poor management. The plant was sold at auction November, 1817, and bought by a new company which called itself The New England Glass Company. This enterprise was successful from the beginning—in 1817, thus we see that some specimens of N. E. G. are of earlier date than Sandwich glass.
Its capital of $40,000 in 1817 increased until in 1853 it was $500,000. The start was a six pot furnace with 700 pounds to each pot. Forty hands were employed and the yearly product was $40,000. In 1853 there were five furnaces with ten pots of 2,000 pounds each and 500 hands, and doing a business of $500,000. The author hopes that this may throw some light upon the incredulous amateur collector’s query of “Where does all the old glass come from?”