The Westmoreland Glass Company was founded in 1889, and
was based in Grapeville,Pennsylvania (which is not too far from Greensburg,
Pennsylvania). The company was run by
brothers George and Charles West, which were the majority shareholders of the
company.
When the company opened, the main production was pressed
glass tableware lines, mustard jars, and even candy containers.
The brothers ran the company until 1921, when George West
went on to run his own company.
The company was then run by Charles West and his close
friend Ira Brainard. When this happened,
the name of the company changed from Westmoreland Specialty Company to
Westmoreland Glass Company. Shortly
after the change, Westmoreland started to produce cut glass and even high
quality hand decorated glass.
The 1940’s saw James H. Brainard (Ira’s relative) take
over ownership of the company. At this
time, they went with mass produced milk glass and discontinued the hand
decorated glass.
The company eventually went out of business in 1984, and
the building was apparently converted into a storage facility.
There’s a very wide range of glassware that Westmoreland
produced over the many years they were in business. This can be very helpful for a collector
that’s on a very strict budget, and they can find something to decorate with or
collect for not much money.
What kinds of Westmoreland pieces that you have found
that you treasure?
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