Description

Fostoria Colony Clear Footed Shallow Fruit Bowl in great condition. They measure 2.5″ high x 10″ diameter.

History of the Fostoria Glass Company
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The Fostoria Glass Company began trading in December 1887 at South Vine Street, Fostoria, Ohio on land donated to it by the townspeople. Due to a lack of natural resources in the area, however the business moved to Moundsville, West Virginia in 1891 where they built one furnace capable of firing 14 pieces of glass at a time. This furnace stayed in active use until 1972, a testament to the original design.

By 1925, Fostoria had five more furnaces, producing stemware pieces and decorative lamps for American homes, and during this period they began marketing colored stemware and dinnerware pieces. The company survived through The Great Depression, and World War II, producing depressionware and milk glass. and producing famous Fostoria patterns such as Chintz (1940), Colony (1940), Romance (1942) And Holly (1942)

Fostoria’s labor force was reduced by half during the Second World War, and much of it’s resources were devoted to the war effort, but by 1950 the company had grown to such an extent that they manufactured over 8 million pieces of glass and crystalin one year. This was Fostoria’s heyday, and during this period many wonderful lines of crystal such as Century (1950), Rose (1951) Wedding Ring (1953) and Jamestown (1959) were produced.

Throughout the 1960’s business continued to do well, with Fostoria building Boutiques and display rooms in jewelry & department stores. Fostoria also produced its own magazine, “Creating with Crystal”

Foreign competition increased rapidly throughout the 1970’s and by 1983 Fostoria could no longer survive. The company was sold, along with all stock and the Factory to the Lancaster Colony Corporation, and by 1986 they took the decision to close the doors to the Fostoria Glassware factory for good.
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