Don’t Leave South Jersey Without Some Glass

Southern New Jersey’s contribution to the American glass industry has always been a source of great of pride for the state. After all, Salem County was home to the first commercially successful glass factory in the Western Hemisphere back in the early 1700s, and at one time there were over 100 glass factories operating in the state, most of them in South Jersey.
Although the number of glasshouses diminished over time, New Jersey remained a major glassblowing center up through the 1960s. The art and skill involved in glassblowing have long been respected, particularly in South Jersey. Over the years, glassblowers from around the world have come here to ply their trade.
One immigrant glassmaker that this area is especially proud of is Victor Durand, Jr. who was born in Baccarat, France, in 1870, and apprenticed at the famous glass factory from the age of 14. Eventually he moved to America to join his father working at the Whitall-Tatum & Co. glass factory in Millville, N.J.
By 1897, Durand and his father decided they were ready to strike out on their own. They leased the old Vineland Glass Manufacturing Company and created the Vineland Flint Glass Works to make inexpensive scientific glass for pharmaceutical and medical use.
Since his days in Baccarat, however, Victor, Jr. had always dreamed of making art glass. In 1924, he got his opportunity. In 1924, Durand convinced some prominent glass artists – Martin Bach, Jr. Emil Larsen, William Weidenbine and Harry Britten – Many of whom had worked for Tiffany, to join him in Vineland and create what they would call the “fancy shop” to make Tiffany-style art glass.
Just two years earlier, in 1922, King Tut’s tomb was unearthed and the Durand artists were right there with patterns like King Tut and Egyptian Crackle. Other patterns like Peacock Feather, and Pulled Feather, Venetian Lace, Oriental and Moorish Crackle also fed the demand for stylish Art Deco pieces.
Only about 30 percent of Durand pieces are signed. When they are, it is with the name “DURAND,” hand-written in capital letters with a silver-finish aluminum pencil. Often the name will appear inside a large letter “V.” Sometimes numbers are a part of the mark.
Victor Durand died in a car crash in 1931. His company was taken over by Kimble Glass, which operated it for a year and then closed it down.
Durand glass, like Tiffany, can be expensive, but there are many less expensive examples of South Jersey’s love affair with glass that would make wonderful souvenirs. Just about every antique shop in the area displays some dazzling examples.
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Greenwich, N.J., one of the oldest towns in the state is about and hour northwest of Cape May County, and well worth the trip. They have an “Artisan’s Faire” each fall on their main thoroughfare, “Ye Greate Street,” where most buildings date from the 1700s. I will be there doing appraisals at the library from 12 p.m. to 4 p.m. Sept. 28. Call 856-455-8580 for more information.
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Arthur Schwerdt, a certified appraiser, is the author of “The Antique Story Book: finding the Real Value of Old Things,” and co-owner of The August Farmhouse Antiques on Route 9 in Swainton. Send your comments, questions and appraisal requests to: aschwerdt@cmcherald.com.