Located in Mercersburg, Pa.

Victorian Pickle Castors

Pickle Castors / Casters were Fancy Silver plate and glass serving Pieces used on the dinner tables of the upper class & upper middle class Victorians.  Made between 1860 and 1910 with the majority be produced in the 1880's.

 

There were many Glass and Silverplate companies that produced pickle castors during that period.  Pickle castors are highly sought after in today's market.  Collectors need to be aware of reproductions and castors that are married together from parts.   We suggest that collectors take the time to learn about castors and the companies that produced them before investing several hundred dollars into a piece.  Buy only from a reputable dealer and look for repairs.   Repairs, chips to the glass, the condition of the silver & missing parts will all greatly effect the value of any Pickle castor. My wife and I have been collecting, buying and selling for many years and have seen a large increase of reproductions over the last few years.  BE CAREFUL!!!  A good rule to follow when buying a Pickle Castor is that if your not 100% comfortable with its condition or you get a bad feeling about the seller, Walk away no matter how cheap it may seem. There is a nice book on Pickle Castors listed at the bottom of this page we would recomend any collector.

 

 

The Book- "The American Pickle Castor" - Purchase information at the bottom of this page.

Pickle Castors We Have For Sale

Click on the link to the right of the picture to see Castors in that catagory that we have for sale.

Pickle Castors with Clear Glass inserts

Pickle Castors with Opalescent Glass inserts

  Pickle Castors with Cranberry Glass inserts

Pickle Castors with Blue Glass inserts

Pickle Castors with Amber Glass inserts

Pickle Castors with Other Colored Glass inserts

Information for Pickle Castor collectors

To help you better idenify original pickle castors from Reproductions, I am placing a list of some of the Glass & Silver Plate companies that produced Pickle Castors during the Victorian period below.  This in by no means all of them and some castors were not marked.  This is only some of the most common names you will come in contact with when looking at original Victorian Period Pickle Castors. We have also built a page with examples of some reproductions that are out in the collecting world today.  click here, Reproductions  to view them.

Glass Companies and Silver Companies that produced pickle castors

Please note that this is just a list of the most common companies we have encountered and by no means a complete list. During the period that Pickle Castors were produced (1860 - 1910) there were hundreds of glass and silverplate companies in operation and many of them would have produced Pickle Castors for at least a short period. Also some of these companies went through several name changes during that time.  We only listed the most popular name they used during this period so you may encounter several variations of their names.

Silverplate Companies that made Frames, Lids & Tongs

Acme Silver Plate Co., - Adelphi silverplate Co., - American Silverplate Co., - Aurora Silver Plate MFG. Company, - Barbour Brothers, - Barbour Silver Company, - Benedict Silver Plate Co., - Boston silverplate Co., -  Bristol Plate Company, - Britannia Metal Co., - Brooklyn Silver Plate Co., - Derby Silver Co., - E.G. Webster & Son, - Empire Co. Silver Plate, - Forbes Silver Co., - Halleltons Co., - Hartford Silver Plate Co., - Homan Silver Plate Co., - James W. Tufts, - Meriden B. Company, Meriden Silver Plate Co., - Middletown Plate Co., -  Monarch Silver Co., - M.S. Benedict Mfg. Co., - National Silver Plate, - New Amsterdam Co., - New Haven S.P. Co., - Oriental Silver Company, - Pairpoint Mfg. Company, _ Philadelphia Plate company, - Queeny Silver Co., - Racine Silver Plate Co., - Reed & Barton S.P. Co., - Rockford Silver Co., - Roger and Bros., - Roger Smith and Co., - Royal Silver Plate Co., - Shelfield Plate Co., - Simpson Hall Miller C0., - Standard S.P. Co., - Toronto S.P. Co., - Vanberg S.P. Co., - Webster & Son, - Wheeton Co., - Wilcox Silver Plate Co., - William Rogers.

Glass Companies That made the glass inserts for the silverplate companies

A. H. Hiesey, - Beaumont Glass Company, - Boston & Sandwich Glass Company, - Bryce, Higbee and Company, - Buckeye Glass Company, - Burlington Glass works, - Campbell, Jones Glass Company, -  Consolidated Lamp and Glass Company, - Degenhart Glassworks, - Dugan Glass Co., Flint Glass Co., - Fostoria Glass Company, - George Duncan and Sons,  - Hobbs Brockunier Glass Company,- Imperial Glass Company, - Jeanette Glassworks, -  Jefferson Glass Company, - McKee Bros., -  Model Flint Glass Company, - Mount Washington Glass Company, - National Glass Company, New England Glass Company, - Northwood Glass Company, - O'Hara Glass Company,-  Pittsburg Glass Company,  - Richard and Hartley Glass Co., -  Riverside Glass Company, - U.S. Glass Company,

There were also some 3rd party companies (jobbers) that bought Pickle Castors from the silver plate companies and then Hand decorated them with Enamel Painted flowers, animals, birds or children before selling them to the stores.  This was mostly done to colored glass inserts and made for some very beautiful and highly sought after castors. Most castors seen with this decoration have Cranberry or blue glass inserts but they are also sometimes seen in Green, Amber and clear Glass. Its not a well known fact but the founding Brothers that started the Fenton Glass Company got their start as a glass decorating company.  It is speculated that they may have worked decorating glass at the Northwood factory and Hobbs Brockunier Factory for a short time before starting the Fenton Glass Company. With this in mind, those of you that collect Fenton pieces, it makes a person wonder, if that pickle castor in grandma's china cupboard with the nice Northwood decorated cranberry paneled sprig insert may just be,,,,maybe,,,,an example of Pre-Fenton, Fenton work....ofcourse thats just food for thought.

Notes of  Special Interest

If you have a Pickle Castor   that you would like to have resilvered, you may wish to check out the link below.   They have resilvered several for us and we have been very pleased with their work. They also do repairs and give a 25 year guarantee.

Senti - Metal Co.

http://www.resilver.com/

America's largest, most distinguished silver restoration company for over 65 years!

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Here is a book that we recommend for any Pickle   Castor collector or Dealer.

"The American Pickle Castor"

Antiques dealer Bernice Thach of Wichita, Kan., collected pickle casters for 12 years before selling them to finance her book about them, The American Pickle Castor. (The book, featuring 500 color photos, is available for $39.95 plus shipping and handling by contacting Thach at  ACCGC@cox.net or writing her at 4500 N. Ridge Road, Wichita, KS 67205. you can also contact her by  phone at 316 - 722 - 5837

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