Antique bottle and glass enthusiasts will want to mark their calendars for Thursday to Saturday, August 1st - 3rd for the Federation of Historical Bottle Collectors (FOHBC) 50th Anniversary National Antique Bottle Convention. The event will be held in the downtown, riverfront Augusta Marriott Hotel and Convention Center.

“I’m pleased to announce that this year’s event will be held in our Southern Region, in the fine city of Augusta, Georgia and will celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Federation of Historical Bottle Collectors,” said Ferdinand Meyer V, past President of the FOHBC and one of the co-chairs for the event. “Along with the traditional bottle show and sale will be exciting field trips, educational seminars, a judged bottle competition, cocktail party and banquet, membership breakfast, displays, bottle appraisals, youth events, raffles and many other activities. Come see some great Southern glass and pottery from the major cities of the South and towns between. Five dollars general admission on Saturday. It’s a wonderful way to learn about American history from the 1800s through the turn of the century.”

The many events will make for a packed itinerary. People don’t have to be an FOHBC member to attend, but membership is encouraged and available at the show, plus online: https://www.fohbc.org/2019/05/2019-augusta-georgia-convention-news/.

This year’s FOHBC show is a must-attend for antique bottle and glass enthusiasts and members of the many antique bottle clubs scattered across the country. Diggers and pickers will also find the show of great interest. Antique bottle collectors are very passionate about a category of collecting that’s enjoyed a meteoric rise in popularity in recent years.There will even be a free appraisal table for people to bring in their finds and possessions.

The convention schedule will kick off with the Newman Open House Event in nearby Martinez, Ga. (about 15 minutes away by car), to view his impressive collection of mostly Georgia and South Carolina pottery and soda bottles, as well as inks, flasks and bitters. The presentation and lighting are museum-quality. Lunch will be served. Newman’s address is 600 Medinah Drive in Martinez. Mike Newman may be contacted via email, at [email protected], or by phone at 706.829.8060. The open house is expected to run from noon to about 3 pm Eastern.

After that, a VIP reception will be held from 3:30-6:30 pm, at the Augusta Museum of History. VIP is defined as dealers, assistants, displayers, early admission, seminar givers and approved volunteers. Please add this to your agenda! At the event, guests will be able to view the impressive Bill and Bea Baab Bottle Collection that’s permanently housed at the museum. The collection of 531 bottles includes examples from a brewery, patent medicine, and mineral water and soda water bottlers, most of them from Augusta; plus 81 Augusta pharmacy bottles dating from 1830 thru the early 20th century; and merchants’ whiskey jugs made by master potters in nearby North Augusta and Trenton, S.C.

On Thursday evening, the Sweet Georgia Peaches Bottle Competition will be held from 7-10 pm at the Augusta Marriott Estes Room. Mike Newman will serve as host and coordinator. Three categories will be presented and judged: Southern Pottery, Southern Soda Bottles and Best Georgia Bottle. Attendees are challenged to enter a bottle that can pass muster with an esteemed panel of judges. Anyone can enter, all can attend.

On Friday morning, August 2nd, the FOHBC General Membership Breakfast Meeting will take place, from 7-8:30 am. The membership meeting will start promptly at 7:30 am in the Augusta Marriott Estes Room. This event is specifically for current and paid-up FOHBC members and will be at no-cost to attendees. People will have the opportunity to join or renew their membership with the FOHBC prior to the breakfast.

Friday is also the day educational seminars will be held, six in all, from 9 am until 12 noon, in the Augusta Marriott Lamar A-C and Cumming rooms. Some are simultaneous. Seminars are open to FOHBC members and the public. Any questions about the seminars can be directed to Bill Baab at [email protected], or any of the event co-chairs.

Friday evening will give attendees the chance to relax and socialize at a cocktail hour from 5:30 to 6:30 pm, at the Augusta Marriott Oglethorpe Ballroom, Prefunction AB area. A cash bar will be available. That will be followed by the annual FOHBC Banquet from 6:30-8:30 pm. The cost is $45 a person and should be reserved in advance. This year’s keynote speaker is Justin Guy, a longtime local potter who was born and reared in Edgefield County, South Carolina in the Trenton area and has worked in clay for over twenty years. He grew up living only a short distance from where Dave and other potters made their wares for over a century. He became fascinated with pottery at a young age and apprenticed under Stephen Ferrell at Old Edgefield Pottery. Justin will be giving an update on current events related to the Old Edgefield Pottery tradition and how our perception of its history has evolved over the past few years. Attendees are encouraged to reserve their place for the banquet early though a limited number of walk-in tickets that evening are usually available.

A pair of fun Youth Corner activities are planned for Saturday, August 3rd. The first one involves Children’s Bottle Grab Bags where the FOHBC will provide about 50 bottle grab bags for kids ten and under, during the General Admission hours of the show (8-5). Each bag will have an antique bottle that was hand-blown, in good condition and embossed. Limit one bottle grab bag per child.

The other event is a Scavenger Hunt, one in which the FOHBC encourages children aged 8 and up to participate in an organized scavenger hunt, on the Convention Center showroom floor. Organizers will prepare a list defining specific items, which the participants will seek to gather or complete all items on the list, usually without purchasing them, either individually or in small teams. The goal is to complete most or all of the items on the list. While all this is happening, there will be hourly prize drawings and raffles to stimulate the audience.