The Glassworks at Bellaire, Ohio.
By Glen & Stephen Thistlewood, August 2023. © 2023
An astonishing, reflective grouping of purple Imperial Ripple vases showcasing
the wide range of size. Courtesy and Copyright Joan Doty. |
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If ever a picture told a story, it is surely the 1908 Sanborn Fire Insurance Map of the Imperial Glass Co., which we show further down the page. Its imposing size and impressive organisation were remarkable. Construction had started in around 1903 and the plant was in operation by early 1904. The aim of the investors was to make it “the most modern glass factory in America.” The 1903 “Crockery and Glass Journal” commented in a review of glass factories, that Captain Edward Muhleman (the founder of Imperial Glass) “organized the Imperial Glass Company with its $500,000 capital, and built a mammoth plant at Bellaire”. The sketch of the Imperial Glassworks, below left, surely emphasises the claim. They chose the adjective “mammoth” well, as clearly, the Imperial glassworks was an immense structure comprising a steel frame and brick building, two-stories high and with an elevated basement.
Impression of the Imperial Glassworks at Bellaire.
Courtesy Ohio Valley Flashback. As you will see later from the Fire Insurance Map, there were comprehensive fire safety measures in place. Unfortunately for Imperial, they were not so well covered with regard to the flood risk from the adjacent Ohio River, such as happened in 1907 and shown by the postcard on the right. |
Imperial Glass Co., in 1907 after the Ohio River flooded.
Courtesy West Virginia and Regional History Center. |
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Again in 1913, there were devastating Ohio River floods, and the Imperial glassworks was under water. This amazing extract on the right from the 1913 “Brooklyn Daily Eagle” shows the factory surrounded by water; 28,000 barrels of glass had been submerged in the floods, and the ad was offering to sell half-price crystal glassware with water damaged packing. |
Above: Report of the Ohio Floods, “Brooklyn Daily Eagle” 1913.
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Imperial produced top quality Carnival Glass from c. 1908 and continued for several decades – as well as supplying the home market in the USA, they exported extensively heavily. Iconic designs such as the Ripple vase and Imperial Grape can be found in most Carnival collections, often in Imperial’s signature, brilliantly iridised purple.
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Left to right: Loganberry blow-moulded vase, amber; Diamond Lace water pitcher, purple; Imperial Grape chop plate, purple.
Plan of the Bellaire, Ohio works in 1908.
Sanborn Fire Insurance Map, 1908, showing the Imperial Glass Company building in Bellaire, OH., and the fire safety measures it had. Public Domain.
The map is extremely detailed and shows that there were comprehensive fire safety measures in place, included 3,420 automatic sprinkler heads which were "wet" in summer, and "dry" in winter. Water was supplied from the the plant's own water tower (fed from the city supply). Lighting was electric (also generated on site) and gas. It was noted that the natural gas supply "can be entirely shut off from buildings by one valve, and location of key
known to all employees". Security was provided by watchmen, carrying hourly rounds and clocking on at 32 stations throughout the site.
The map is extremely detailed and shows that there were comprehensive fire safety measures in place, included 3,420 automatic sprinkler heads which were "wet" in summer, and "dry" in winter. Water was supplied from the the plant's own water tower (fed from the city supply). Lighting was electric (also generated on site) and gas. It was noted that the natural gas supply "can be entirely shut off from buildings by one valve, and location of key
known to all employees". Security was provided by watchmen, carrying hourly rounds and clocking on at 32 stations throughout the site.
The overall and detailed arrangements disclosed on the map emphasise the original investors objective to make it “the most modern glass factory in America.
The overall and detailed arrangements disclosed on the map emphasise the original investors objective to make it “the most modern glass factory in America.
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Later Production and Revival Carnival at Bellaire
An interlude in Carnival production c. late 1930s-50s was broken when Imperial began making their Revival Carnival in the 1960s. Soon afterwards, Imperial needed new capital and a deal was struck with Lenox Inc., becoming known as Lennox Imperial Glass (LIG) in 1973. In 1981 the business was sold to Arthur Lorch and became known as Arthur Lorch Imperial Glass (ALIG) but the company still struggled financially. 
Imperial Glass factory in Bellaire, Ohio – courtesy of Jon D. Bartell and the Glass Paper Fanatics, from the George Shockley Archive at the West Virginia Museum of American Glass. Taken in the summer of 1983 by Ron Miller.
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1980 Lenox Imperial catalogue extract showing limited edition items.
Note that Imperial had purchased Heisey moulds in 1958. |
ALIG glass production continued for only a few years and stopped in 1984 and the factory closed. In around 1986, three ex-Fostoria glassmakers leased a small section of the old ALIG plant, as part of a plan by the "Save Imperial Committee" to rescue at least part of the factory and to turn it into a tourist attraction. They operated as the Pioneer Glass Company. Their glass was sold on site, and in local shops, but it was not a viable plan, and Pioneer ceased operating in 1988.
The factory doors were finally closed, and the building was eventually demolished in 1995.
All the information about Imperial on our website, including Carnival Glass Galleries, is linked from the Imperial Homepage. Click on the image below.
