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Kusbel & Smolen

  • County: Lake County
  • Location: Whiting
  • Years Active in the Business:

This one still needs a lot more research, but the names on this bottle are Andy Kusbel and Andrew Smolen. According to an article published in The Times (Hammond, Indiana) on May 26, 1928, the two filed a trademark for their brand and were associated with the address 409 Steiber Street.

There is also a known variation of this bottle embossed with “409 Steiber” along with their names.

Only one example is posted here for now, but if you have a bottle from Kusbel & Smolen (or any related embossing variation), we’d love to add it to the archive.

“We, ANDY KUSBEL and ANDREW SMOLEN, conducting a milk business under the firm name and style of THE NATIONAL DAIRY CO., do hereby declare that we have adopted for a trade-mark the following words, stamped, blown or impressed upon the glass containers or bottles, used by us, to-wit:

Upon the outer upper half of an oval the words KUSBEL & SMOLEN, and upon the lower outer edge of the oval, the words WHITING, IND., and across the center of the oval, 409 STEIBER ST.

In witness whereof, we have hereunto set our hands and seals this 21st day of May, 1928.”
The Times (Hammond), May 29, 1928.

Bottle Photos

#1

Bottle Type: Quart milk
Embossing: KUSBEL & SMOLEN / 1537 STEIBER ST. / WHITING, IND. 
Glass Maker: , Thatcher Glass Manufacturing Co. 
Other Marks: REGISTERED (above front heel), THIS BOTTLE PROPERTY OF & FILLED BY (above slug plate). 
Notes: There is another variation embossed “403 BROWN AVE.” that we still need a photo of.
Photo Credit: Indiana Bottle Collectors

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