Collecting antique bottles

[modo diver]

Hello Tetra

I have several friends who dive for bottles in the Sandy Hook area and have been very successful in finding bottles from the 1800's. I'm up in Albany, NY and we get together up here or down there to bottle hunt. You're welcome to join us. Get back to me and I'll hookyou up with the rest of the group.

Modo diver. 518 859 5594

 

[Tjack]

Here is a site which helps date old bottles.

Historic Bottle Website - Homepage

 

[Reef_Haven]

Can someone post the method you use to discover these bottles? Never been to these areas, so have no clue.
I've done placer dredging for gold in CA and shark toothing in the Peace River and Venice. I can't imagine bottles would be in very good condition in any of those areas. So are your rivers basically sand, mud, silt??? Do you probe for them with a rod? How deep below the river bed?
I never thought I would meet a blind diver, but for something like this I don't see why he/she wouldn't be just as; if not more capable.
and why are so many smoking pipes found in these areas? I can't imagine everyone passing by a river to think, "Maybe I should toss my pipe in here for good luck."
Pardon my ignorance.... and thanks in advance for any descriptions.

 

[Zodiacdiverdave]

Can someone post the method you use to discover these bottles? Never been to these areas, so have no clue.
I've done placer dredging for gold in CA and shark toothing in the Peace River and Venice. I can't imagine bottles would be in very good condition in any of those areas. So are your rivers basically sand, mud, silt??? Do you probe for them with a rod? How deep below the river bed?
I never thought I would meet a blind diver, but for something like this I don't see why he/she wouldn't be just as; if not more capable.
and why are so many smoking pipes found in these areas? I can't imagine everyone passing by a river to think, "Maybe I should toss my pipe in here for good luck."
Pardon my ignorance.... and thanks in advance for any descriptions.

Hi there Reaf Haven, the trick to finding good bottles is to know were to look. We get most of our best bottles in the Halifax Harbour which is and has been a busy sea port since 1749. In the Harbour there are some obvious spots that are more productive then others. Around the jetties and warfs, oul achorages and areas that have some good current blowing through to keep the silt down.

Here we can legally take old bottles and artifacts from the bottom because there is no law againts recovering discarded items no matter how old they are. Take it from a wreck site and that is a different story. In Fl. I understand that they have some crazy law that prevents you from taking bottles that are older then 50 years old. This may or may not be true. My buddies and I went to St. Augustine to try for some bottles there but were told that diving is off limits in the Harbour. Any way to avoid being fined or anything like that make sure of the laws befor diving for bottles.
Other sites can be areas that use to be habitations or swiming/boating areas along rivers. In this case you will be diving in zero vis. so you best be comfortable with that. Be sure you can deal with intanglements and snags on your own becouse your buddie will not see you. Get some good gloves that will protect your hands yet give you the feel and dexterity you will need. You will need a small goodie bag so it isn't getting cought on things.

If you are going to dive for bottles in FL. you will likely have to deal with 20 feet of sand on the bottom. I wouldn't waste time digging through that. Here we notice that the bottles will appear from the sand as the sand is always moving so if you are in a good area and find a few keepers in the sand just swim around and scan the surface of the sand and then try that spot again a few weeks latter to see if any more turn up.

Bottle diving is a good way to get out and dive if the sea conditions are to bad to go off shore, so the next time you can't get to your best wrecks or reef give it a go. Pick up some books on the subject and you will be surprised at how you will suddenly get really interested in the history of your area through bottle diving. Just to mention that it can be very lucrative as well. You will find more bottles then coins and in most cases the bottles will be worth more then coins.

Smoking pipes are found in the same areas as bottles for a couple of reasons. One smoking and drinking go to getter. Ask any smoker. Secondly, the stems on the old pipes use to plug up so the owner would break off an inch or two near the end in hopes to clear it. when the pipe was too short it would get to hot so over the side it would go and he would pull out a new one.

ZDD

 

[Reef_Haven]

Zodiacdiverdave,
Thanks for your reply. I do lake cleanups near my home once in a while, and occasionally come across older bottles. The "Isolated Finds" law was repealed a while back, with the promise to replace it with something everyone could live with. You know politicians and their promises.
So all the trash goes in the back of my truck and ends up at my home, to be disposed of.:wink1:
My son and I found 4 fire hydrants yesterday. They look like they may be over 50 yrs old so they may have to stay.

 

[Zodiacdiverdave]

Zodiacdiverdave,
Thanks for your reply. I do lake cleanups near my home once in a while, and occasionally come across older bottles. The "Isolated Finds" law was repealed a while back, with the promise to replace it with something everyone could live with. You know politicians and their promises.
So all the trash goes in the back of my truck and ends up at my home, to be disposed of.:wink1:
My son and I found 4 fire hydrants yesterday. They look like they may be over 50 yrs old so they may have to stay.

Wow fire hydrants definately keepers, sounds like you really did cleanup. We have a shipwreck here that was carrying hydrants and was wrecked off Scaterie Island, Cape Breton, NS. We made some dives in the area but never did find the wreck. Some of the fire hydrants were made from cast iron and if you ever brought up any cast iron objects from the ocean you know how brittle they can be. Treating them with electrolisis may or may not work to stableize them, it would depend alot on the casting quality.

Where do you do most of your bottle diving in FL? I went to St. Augustine in March but was told we couldn't dive in that area.

ZDD

 

[wreckvalle]

Check out some bottles found while wreck diving

Bottle Collecting

 

[Zodiacdiverdave]

Now there are some good finds. Did all those bottlescome from the north east USA?

ZDD

 

[wreckvalle]

Yes, here are some that were recovered from the Bald Eagle shipwreck just a couple wks ago. Second photo: Randy Eisen found two 1880's vintage bottles on the Pilot Boat wreck last Sat. They predate the wreck!

 

[thedrax]

Them are some nice finds, I stopped picking up glass bottles,I have found so many and no where to put them, but the clay ones that is different. This is a torpedo bottle or balast bottle.

If you ever feel like selling any bottles off I'm always interested. 905-627-2374 ask for Mark the bottle nut
Cheers