DUMFRIES ANTIQUE BOTTLES

Home

Early Days
 

DIGGING BOTTLES IN & AROUND DUMFRIES
 

1975-2000
 

Here is a short story written by my Dad on how we began Collecting Dumfries Antique Bottles.

My earliest memory about digging Old Bottles is when I was working as a Scaffolder in the late 60's. The firm I worked for had an old disused railway  shed we used as a store for our scaffolding in what
is known as St Mary's  Industrial Estate roughly 1 mile from the centre of Dumfries. One day I saw these two guys coming out of this waste ground carrying forks & shovels.
I never thought anything about it until the next day when the same thing happened again my curiosity took over so I asked them what they were doing, they had a startled look on their face & they said they hadn't made a mess & had been digging Old Bottles. Looking back digging bottles meant nothing to me then, little did I know that in it would become a hobby or dare I say to my son & myself an obsession a type of fever.
It all started when my son David (The Bottle Digger) who was serving his apprenticeship as a Joiner with a local firm Robison & Davidson, they had been building a school at Dalbeattie. He came home one night with some glass Ink bottles which had been dug up On the site, he was instantly bitten by the Bottle collecting bug that he still has to this day. Then my mind rolled back to the day I saw two guys at St Mary's Industrial Estate & it blossomed from then. At the
time we lived on a council estate at Lochside on the outskirts of Dumfries, quite close by there was the Babbington Loch that had been filled in. David went to the Library to find out some details of the Loch from old maps it was likely that it had been filled in by household refuse, so David cycled to the said area with his shovel & fork strapped to his trusty bike sure enough on digging up some
turf there it was broken glass & pottery amongst ash.

From then on this became Dave's second home the dump dated from about the late 1880's to 1900 perfect for good quality gear, sure enough Lochside produced some lovely Pot Lids early incised GB's. Dave found the first ever Joseph Ross Botanic Beer with a rich brown top & with blue incised writing; only one complete example exists as the rest all had the bottoms broken probably for display purposes. Sadly to say that this dump is now under a bypass & has gone for
ever along with many gems from Dumfries's Victorian period. David & I have spent many great days together digging bottles sometimes from the crack of dawn until late at night. We have some great memories that will remain with us forever. The stuff we dug ranged from large Flagons to delicate Dolls head, which my dear wife Margaret who is very talented with her hands made dresses
in Victorian style & brought them back to a near original state of 100 years ago.

Below is a list of Companies from Dumfries who supplied Ginger Beer
from 1880 to 1925.

Last Updated 24th Sept 2007, London UK

Copyright davehiddleston.com ®2007