About Those Denvers
by Warren L. Olson

Reprinted from "INSULATORS - Crown Jewels of the Wire", January 1970, page 13

Insulators manufactured in the Denver area during the period 1895 to 1910 are among the most interesting and varied in the whole field of insulator collecting. Furthermore, they were not made in tremendous numbers and their use was not particularly widespread. Woodward's fine book' traces the manufacture of these insulators through 4 firms and approximately 15 years of production. I have found nothing new historically.) to add to his information.

The purpose of this article will be to discuss briefly the varieties, styles and colors of those "Denvers" that the author has turned up through diligent search by mail, telephone and personal contact. The author is indebted to pioneer collectors in the Colorado area such as Mr. and Mrs. Gerald Brown, Mr. and Mrs. Benjamin Clark, and Mr. Sidney White for their able assistance in this pursuit.

R. GOOD JR. / DENVER,CO. Insulators manufactured prior to 1897 bear this embossing. Two styles have been located so far: CD 121 toll and CD 162 which is further embossed PETTICOAT on the reverse. The toll comes in two shades of aqua; one is more green than the other. It has also been found in light SCA so it seems logical to assume that it exists also in clear though none have been reported as yet. The CD 162 PETTICOAT also has been found in aqua and in light SCA and also is absent in clear.

R. GOOD JR. The CD 162 PETTICOAT variety also exists without the DENVER, COLO. embossed line. The only specimens that the author has seen are in aqua. Because the omission of the DENVER, COLO. line was probably an error and likely occurred with only one mould, it would seem that this variety is the scarcer of the two.

GOOD Insulators embossed with only the single word GOOD were apparently made during 1897 and 1898 and have been reported in two styles only: CD 134 and CD 106 pony. Both styles are found in aqua and the CD 134 has also been reported in clear.

W.F.G. Co. / DENVER, CO. This embossing covers the year 1900 only. The old Valverde Glass Works factory in which the previous firms were located, burned down in 1899 and a new building was built in 1900 and the firm became the Western Flint Glass Company. By 1901, the firm's name had been changed to the Western Glass Manufacturing Company and it is assumed that the embossing was changed at the same time, although this is not a certainty. This embossing has been found in four styles: CD 106 pony, CD 121 toll, CD 134 and CD 162, the latter also being embossed on the reverse with the word PETTICOAT. Thus far the pony has been reported only in aqua but the other 3 styles have been found in aqua, clear and SCA. Both the CD 134's and the tolls show an extraordinary range of colors ranging from a true clear through "normal" aqua to a beautiful aquamarine shade.

W.G.M.Co. More than the name of the company seems to have been changed in 1901, because insulators of this embossing are found in a deep purple shade unlike the SCA of the other embossings. Perhaps the recipe of the glass mixture was changed. Or, perhaps the source of sand was changed and the addition of more manganese to the glass mixture, which, in turn, caused the deep solarization of these insulators. There has been considerable speculation that these were deliberately made of purple glass mixture. This speculation can now be laid to rest, for both the CD 121 and the CD 162 have been found in clear glass. In all the reported instances, the insulators had been stored inside or used inside where the insulators had not been exposed to the sun. Furthermore, none of the five reported styles have been found in any shade of aqua as yet. The five styles found are: CD 106 (slightly flared skirt), CD 121 toll, CD 134, CD 162, and, for the first time in the Denvers, CD 145 beehive. All five have been found in shades of purple varying from a light lavender to a deep royal purple.

Woodward's book mentions an anecdote concerning a large power distribution insulator that has not yet been seen. It seems entirely logical that other styles were produced to compete with the products of other companies and it is also entirely possible that some few of these will find their way into some lucky collector's display case in the near future. Wouldn't a deep, deep SCA W. G. M. Co. Roman Helmet be a "show stopper"?

"A word to the wise is sufficient" goes the old saw: or perhaps I should say, "Gather ye rosebuds while ye may"! At any rate, a year ago, the deep SCA W.G.M. Co. tolls could be picked up readily for $4-5 -- I doubt seriously that such is now the case. For what it's worth, here are my candidates for "sleepers" in the Denver line: any clear W.G.M.Co.; W.F.G.CO. toll in SCA; CD 134 W.G.M. Co. in any color; and CD 162 R. GOOD JR. without the DENVER, COLO. embossing.

I have made up a chart showing at a glance, the known (to me, anyway) styles and colors of Denvers. This does not include the many shades of aquas and purples; how much of a difference in shade is required to constitute a new variety is a question that each collector must answer for himself. There are 25 varieties listed on the chart, 18 of which I have been able to obtain. I have added several shades of aqua and purple to bring the total number of Denvers in my collection to 26 different ones. I would be most interested in hearing from anyone who has any varieties not listed and would, of course, like to acquire any of the listed varieties that I do not have.

*Woodward, N. R. The Glass Insulator in America 1967 Report, Press of Premier, Houston, Texas, 1967.