American Made Glass Paperweights
_The history of glassmakingin America follows the record of settlement in
Virginia, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, and New England, and the
migrations westward to the Ohio Valley. Associated with the early days
of the glass industry were the names of Wistar and Stiegel, but these
came long before the days of Sandwich . . . before the glass makers of
young America had tried their hand at making paperweights. The story of
the early adventurers into the field of glass manufacture is still quite
obscure and confused. Much remains to be done by research workers and
historians before the haze is cleared away from this department of our
industrial history. For our present purposes it will be sufficient to
note that the glass industry gained a foothold in this country as a
result of the great need of the early settler for window glass. In
colonial times window glass was used as ballast in vessels sailing from
Europe to America. The breakage was so great, however, that the price
was prohibitive, and the colonits began to take thought whether they
could not somehow supply their own necessities.
