NYT on glassmaking in US

The New York Times' Louis Uchitelle takes a look at the industry of glassmaking in the United States and how it is suffering due to cheaper imported Chinese glass. He also looks at the art glass market which is failing due to a fall in discretionary income. Tim Tuttle, chairman of the glass industry branch of the US Steelworkers, argues for tariffs on Chinese glass, and Sherrod Brown (Ohio-D.) is mad that Chinese glass will be used to rebuild the World Trade Center, as the gig was awarded to the lowest bidder. Despite the fall in sales of their art glass, George Fenton, of Fenton Art Glass, doesn't know if the government should tax incoming glass or subsidize U.S. glass as it does steel. And It was also only a matter of time before Wal-Mart showed up in the blog somewhere and this time it's unexpected: Bottles made by Anchor Hocking for Wal-Mart are still made in the U.S., but in fully-automated plants.

2010 Louis Uchitelle:

"The majestic steel beams of a soaring office tower beginning to rise from the ruins of the World Trade Center are a tribute to American resilience..."

Uchitelle, L. "Glassmaking thrives offshore, but is declining in US." The New York Times. January 18, 2010. http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/19/business/19glass.html

Dirty Jobs: Glassblower

Mike Rowe from the Discovery Channel visits Fenton Art Glass, an AFGWU shop.

"I've learned that I'm a Bad Gatherer."



"About 1900, glassworker Frank O. Myers got his start at a glass factory in Indiana, Pennsylvania, the very same plant where our company's founder, Frank L. Fenton, had begun as a glass decorator in 1897. A loyal member of American Flint Glass Workers Local Union No. 71, Myers became an apprentice, first learning to gather glass and, before long, mastering pressing and blowing operations.By about 1910, Myers was a skilled finisher, able to reshape pieces, such as flaring and crimping the tops of vases in many different ways. He was also adept at attaching handles to cruets or pitchers then called "jugs." From time to time, his employer marketed glass baskets, and Myers was the fellow who put the handles on the baskets. The glass plant at Indiana, Pa., was destroyed by fire in mid-1931, leaving many without jobs. Myers came to work at Fenton on February 1, 1932, transferring his union card to Local Union No. 22 of the AFGWU, which enrolled Fenton's skilled glassworkers. When Fenton decided to create baskets about 1939, Myers became our first basket handler. "He was very good at that job," Frank M. Fenton recalled. "And, he was very helpful in training other skilled glassworkers to become handlers. That was important to us in the early 1940s when several different baskets were in our line."

"Frank O. Myers, Fenton's First Basket Handler." Accessed November 11, 2009. http://www.fentonartglass.com/history/frankmyers.htm

November 10th--Glassblowing is a 'Dirty Job'

This will probably be fun...

2009 Huntington News.net:

"Glassworkers and other employees at the Fenton Art Glass Co. will appear with the Discovery Channel’s “Dirty Jobs” star Mike Rowe in an episode scheduled to air on Tuesday, Nov. 10, 2009, at 9 p.m. (Eastern/Pacific time).

“I gained great respect for what these folks do,” Mike Rowe said. “They make it look easy, but I soon realized that it takes great skill and years of experience to do these jobs.”

“Many jobs at Fenton are ‘tough’ jobs,” said Fenton historian James Measell. “Mike Rowe tries his hand at glassblowing and pressing glass as well. He works with a team making what we call a ‘swung vase,’ and that’s fun to watch. Mike uses a heavy steel ladle with molten glass at 2000 degrees F., and he joins our pot-setting crew as they face an even hotter task. Later, he does some handpainted decorating on a glass T-shirt paperweight.”

After meeting Mike during the filming of the show, officials at Fenton agreed to offer several new products to benefit http://www.mikeroweWORKS.com, a website started by Mike that is designed to provide resources and assistance to those in (or seeking to enter) the skilled trades and that generally celebrates hard work. "Our black T-shirt paperweight has one of Mike Rowe's great lines on it," said company president George Fenton. "It reads 'Get Ready to Get Dirty' and is handpainted." Other items include mikeroweWORKS paperweights, an Alley Cat figurine, and an art glass vase similar to one that Mike Rowe tried to make when he was at Fenton."

Unknown. "Fenton Art Glass featured on 'Dirty Jobs' on Discovery Channel." November 2, 2009. Accessed November 2, 2009. http://www.huntingtonnews.net/entertainment/091102-staff-entertainmentdirtyjobs.html