Historic Treasure of the Week - May 10, 1992
By Barbara Carney
Vigo County Historical Society
Historic Treasure of the Week - May 10, 1992
By Barbara Carney
Vigo County Historical Society
Baby bottles have prehistoric roots
One of the special utensils produced for infants and babies is the feeding vessel.
Today’s baby bottles usually are made of plastic, which is both lightweight and hygienic. But feeding vessels actually go back to prehistoric times and have evolved in interesting forms.
The fact that feeding vessels date from the earliest times has been learned from paintings, sculptures and carvings. Probably the earliest form used was the animal horn.
Over the centuries, feeding vessels have been made in three basic shapes. A round, jug vessel first was mentioned in literature around 500 AD They were crudely fashioned from clay or pottery and had a sucking spout, usually a handle and an opening at the top.
Later, this design was refined and called a feeding can. These, looking something like a watering can, were made in tin, pewter and silver and were fashioned with a long, narrow spout and a handle. The top opening was covered with a lid.
Another popular form was the boat or turtle shape, such as the one pictured. Besides the rather plain glass ones, these could be found in ceramic, fine porcelain and bone china. Spode, Davenport and Wedgewood made boat-shaped feeding vessels. Some were beautifully decorated to match the adult dinnerware of the same period.
The third shape, the upright feeding vessel with a screw top and artificial nipple, first was seen in illustrations from the medieval period. These frequently were hand-crafted of pewter or silver with a mouthpiece of the same material. They have become museum pieces. This type of bottle was the forerunner of the feeding bottles in general use today.
As the Industrial Revolution progressed, glass became the choice material for infant bottles. Manufacturers offered private molds to commercial users. Frequently, the maker’s name and trademark were impressed along one side or on the base.
The feeding bottle pictured as the historical treasure of the week is made of glass. It is boat shaped and probably was used in the early 1900s.
Before the rubber nipple was invented, this type of bottle had a hole at the top and a neck tapering to a tiny lipped opening. The liquid was inserted through the aperture at the top, then covered with the mother’s thumb to control the rate of flow, while the baby sucked the liquid through the neck of the bottle.
This bottle has only one opening through which liquid was poured and then covered with a rubber nipple.
This bottle has the words, "The Improved Hagerty Feeder," imprinted on it, along with a design surrounding the letters "H B & CO." It was donated by Diana Tharp and is displayed on a shelf near the windows in the General Store at the museum.
The Historical Museum of the Wabash Valley, 1411 S. Sixth St., is open from 1 to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday.