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Sunday, May 18, 2003

By Dave Zuchowski

When I arrived an hour early at the recent monthly meeting of the Washington County Antique Bottle Club at Courthouse Square, member Peter Shulin was busy pulling stoneware pieces out of old boxes in preparation for that evening's show-and-tell.

"I have a lot more of these at home, plus a lot of whiskey, milk and medicine bottles," he said, obviously proud of his collection.

My purpose in arriving long before the start of the meeting was to interview Russell Crupe about the club's 29th annual Antique Bottle Show and Sale to be held today in the Alpine Star Lodge in Washington.

Crupe, a state constable by day and an avid Atlas fruit jar collector, is president of the club and chairman of this year's show. He arrived a few minutes later carrying what I took to be a bottomless umbrella stand. To my surprise, the round, salt-glazed clay piece turned out to be a piece of sewer pipe that dates to the 1850s. He brought it in as his personal contribution to that evening's show-and-tell stoneware presentation.

"At our annual show, we don't necessarily limit our dealers to bottles," he said. "They bring in a lot of different items, including tabletop antiques. Right now we have about 25 tables reserved for local dealers, as well as some who'll be coming in from Ohio, Michigan, even South Carolina."

The show and sale is open to everyone, even those who might want to simply look around (after paying the $2 admission donation) or those who might want to plunk down $18 and rent one of the 8-foot-long tables to sell their horde of old bottles.

For the past 27 years, Bill Cole has been the editor of the club's monthly newsletter, "The Bottle Nut News." In all that time, he's never missed a single issue, even after his stroke and open heart surgery a few years ago.

"Our club was founded in 1971 by Jack Fowkes of Washington, who put an ad in the newspaper asking those interested in bottle collecting to meet at his house," said Cole, the club secretary, who with his wife, Dorothy, are the only remaining original charter members.

Another longtime club member, Don Mazzie of Wolfdale, collects fruit-canning jars and dabbles in other items such as political memorabilia and autographs.

"We're both a lot like pack rats," Shulin said in jest about their collecting habits. "We collect just about everything and anything."

Mazzie's political materials include an 1824 Andrew Jackson medal and a pin advocating the election of Ernest Acheson of Washington, who ran for Congress in 1896 and won.

"My autograph inventory includes the signatures of stars such as Humphrey Bogart and Dale Evans," he said. "I did have a Jean Harlow at one time but sold it at a show."

Members obviously have eclectic tastes. Carnegie resident Dave Fassinger, the club's vice president, for instance, has a penchant for whiskey flasks, especially those commemorating a special event or election.

Beginning in 1985, when his father came home with a couple of old bottles he found at a construction site, Fassinger has amassed close to 60 flasks, including his favorite, a historical beauty designed for Andrew Jackson's reelection campaign of 1836.

"To support my collecting habit, I buy at flea markets and sell at shows and on eBay," he said.

Crupe started collecting antique bottles long before he married his wife, Heidi, in 1977. But when the newlyweds took up canning, he developed an affinity for old fruit jars of all makes and models. In 1980, however, he became the first person in the country he knows of to specialize in the Hazel-Atlas brand.

"I've always liked history, and the fact that the company was located in Washington piqued my interest," he said. "Another factor is that my mother worked for Hazel-Atlas for a while."

Crupe said he's amassed 1,200 jars or more (thought to be the largest collection in the nation), all of which he keeps packed in boxes. In the past, he's taken his collection to shows as far east as Baltimore, north to Rochester and west to Indianapolis, where he's won numerous awards, mainly in the Most Educational and Peoples' Choice categories.

His collection includes many different-size jars, starting with a small quarter-pint and ending with a half-gallon embossed giant. Jars also come in a variety of colors -- clear, green, aqua, blue and amber. The highest price he paid for a jar was $350 for an amber Atlas E-Z seal that he dates back to the 1930s.

Despite the slowdown in the economy, most club members remain optimistic about the success of today's show and sale.

"I don't think the economy has ever hurt bottle collecting," Crupe said. "If you want something bad enough for your collection, you'll find a way to come up with the money."

The 29th annual Washington County Antique Bottle Show and Sale will run from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. today in the Alpine Star Lodge, 735 Jefferson Ave., Washington. A $2 donation is requested for admission. Call 724-345-3653.

Dave Zuchowski is a freelance writer who covers arts and entertainment for Washington Sunday. He can be reached by e-mail at: owlscribe@yahoo.com.