According to New Albany city directories and genealogical records, William E. Hammersmith was born on June 12, 1879, in New Albany, Indiana. He only appears in the late 1910s directories under dairies. He’s not listed in the 1913 edition. The bottle shown below is marked “15” on the base for 1915, so he was likely a dairyman from around 1915 until his death on February 8, 1921. More research is still needed on this one.
See the directories tab for more details.
The bottle below is the only example we have of this neat bottle!
New Albany, IN Directories
1913 — Not listed.
1915 — Hammersmith Wm., gardener, boards at north side of Hamilton Rd., west of Grant Line Rd.
1917 — Hammersmith Wm., dairy, northside of Grant Line Rd, east of Vincennes.
1919 — Hammersmith Wm., dairy, northside of Grant Line Rd, east of Vincennes.
1921 — No longer listed.
Bottle Type: Quart milk
Embossing: Embossed picture of a hammer with the word “SMITH” inside the handle for HAMMERSMITH / NEW / ALBANY / IND.
Glass Maker: TMFGCO (embossed on base), Thatcher.
Other Marks: 15 (embossed on base).
Notes:
Photo Credit: Grayson Abernathy / Brayden Kyger (dug this bottle)