Ambered Candy Dish

Director Matthew Braun talks with Morning Report host, Casey Stevens about artifacts from the collections on WHCU 870AM, Thursday mornings at 9:45.

Ambered glass is said to have been discovered by accident when a child dropped her mother's glass slipper into an open mineral spring. Days later upon retrieving the slipper, the child discovered that the slipper had turned an iridescent amber color. This accident led the way to the marketing and sale of Slaterville Springs Ambered Glass, sold at Macys in New York, and Rothschilds in Ithaca. Ambered glass was created by allowing mineral-rich spring water to flow over porous glass, and as the glass absorbed the minerals it turned a permanent iridescent amber color.

The candy dish pictured here was once clear glass until it was purchased by Mrs. Beatrice L. McDaniels who later "ambered" it. This small pressed glass dish is about 6.5 inches in diameter and is an incandescent amber-gold color. Mrs. McDaniels ambered the glass in her home in Brooktondale, NY. Her house had an artesian well that was 147 feet deep with a constant overflow. By piping this overflow into her basement she created an ideal place to amber glass. Two showerheads were attached to the overflow pipe and drained into a small sink. The glass object was then placed in the sink and a constant stream of water flowed over it. For this piece, Mrs. McDaniels left the dish in the sink for two days. It was then washed and scrubbed with detergent upon removal from the sink. This was done to remove any deposits in the design that could dull the coloration. Mrs. McDaniel's end result was a beautiful ambered candy dish. She continued to pursue ambering as a hobby, often presenting friends and relatives with gifts of ambered glass for Christmas and birthdays. This candy dish was donated to the DeWitt Historical Society by Mrs. McDaniels in October of 1983.

Sources:

DeWitt Historical Society files; Accession file

DeWitt Historical Society, Tompkins County Museum, exhibit featuring the town of Caroline

Past Objects:

Paint Box of W.C. Baker