Mantua Glassworks Collection

Collection — Multiple Containers

Identifier: MS-0113

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

This collection includes two separate items: 1) an account ledger for a general storekeeper or merchant named Dudley Williams and 2) a set of legal documents from the 1820s relating to the Mantua Glassworks. The ledger spans the period 1802-1830. In 1820, Dudley Williams moved to Franklin (now Kent), Ohio, possibly from New Jersey. The legal documents involve glassblower Jonathan Tinker, glassworks founder David Ladd, and several other partners.

Researchers will find a wealth of information in the ledger describing various transactions that often involved using spirits, such as brandy or cider, as a form of payment. The ledger contains transactions between Dudley Williams and David Ladd, as well as Jonathan Tinker. According to noted glass historian Harry Hall White, David Ladd operated Mantua Glassworks from December 1821 to the summer of 1823, with Jonathan Tinker as his glassblower. In 1823, Ladd relocated to Franklin, where Dudley Williams had moved just three years prior. For the next five years (1823-1828), Tinker and four other individuals continued making glass in Mantua. The legal documents in the collection illustrate the problems that evolved between Jonathan Tinker and his partners: William and Joseph Skinner, Joel Scovill, and Samuel Jones. The collection includes court subpoenas, witness statements, rulings, and other court records.

Dates

1802-1835

Creator

Williams, Dudley, 1776- (Person)

Language of Materials

Materials are in English.

Conditions Governing Access

This collection is open for public research. Researchers must make an appointment to view the collection.

Conditions Governing Use

The Copyright law of the United States (Title 17, United States Code) governs the making of photocopies or other reproductions of copyrighted material. Under certain conditions specified in the law, libraries and archives are authorized to furnish a photocopy or other reproduction. One of these specified conditions is that the reproduction is not to be "used for any purpose other than private study, scholarship, or research." If a user makes a request for, or later uses, a photocopy or reproduction for purposes in excess of "fair use," that user may be liable for copyright infringement. The user agrees to defend, indemnify, and hold harmless the Corning Museum of Glass and the Rakow Research Library against all claims, demands, costs and expenses incurred by copyright infringement or any other legal or regulatory cause of action arising from the use of Library materials.

Biographical / Historical

Mantua Glassworks was located in Mantua, Ohio, and produced glass bottles in the 1820s. The business was started by David Ladd and glassblower Jonathan Tinker in 1821. Ladd relocated in 1823 and the glassworks was operated by various individuals for the next few years. In 1829, glass production ceased.

Bibliography

Harry Hall White, “The Story of the Mantua Glass Works: Part I. Quest and Quarry,” _Antiques_ 26 (July 1935), 212-216.

Extent

3.0 Linear Feet (2 flat boxes )

Additional Description

Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements

Documents in Box 1 are fragile. Please handle with care.

Ledger in Box 2 is also fragile. The Ledger also contains a number of folded material laid between pages. Researchers are asked to return folded material to the original location.