Historical Glass Museum — Attraction in Redlands

This is a small museum, dedicated to the many companies that manufactured glassware in the United States. Sadly, nearly all of the companies represented by items in the museum are out of business. The combination of labor costs, government regulations (OSHA, EPA) and cheap foreign competition ultimately made the business unprofitable. So, we are left with museums to tell us the story of this, the first industry in America (Jamestown colony) and the many craftsmen that designed and produced some of the most beautiful glassware you'll ever see.

This museum houses case after case of glass, from early American glass to American Brilliant cut glass, to carnival glass, depression glass, elegant glass, mid-century modern glass to glass made by contemporary studios. Companies represented include Fostoria, Cambridge, Heisey, Steuben, Jeannette, Indiana, Federal, Blenko, Fenton, and many more. You will find bud vases made specifically for automobiles (yes, that's true) and a whole window full of cruets. There's an iron made of glass for ironing clothes. There's a display of just a few different goblets (one company made over 10,000 different goblets). At one time, there were well over 100 companies manufacturing glass products in the United States.

The museum is operated by volunteers, and is supported by donations (they suggest $3/person). The volunteer docents can show you around and tell you about the various displays. The museum has been in business for 30 years, and is a well-kept secret in Redlands. It is housed in a 1905 Victorian house (worth looking at by itself). Parking is free, and the museum is handicapped friendly. Finally, there is a gift shop which has examples of some of the glassware displayed, and the prices are very reasonable. Maybe not the best place for small children, but youngsters of school age might very well enjoy it and will definitely learn something about...

First, this museum isn't for everyone. It's not for bored teens, definitely not for children. The clumsy need to avoid. It is a unique home that was converted into a museum dedicated to glass and it's history, as assembled by purchases and donations. To enter, we donated $5 each for my wife and myself, which goes towards upkeep. It's a single story exhibit, and one could spend 5 minutes, or 5 hours looking at everything--depending on their own fascination over the types of glass or even the pieces from different modern periods. It's interesting (at least was to me, and I'm 51) the different items that used to be made from glass that are now plastic or other materials. And my wife, who has more of an eye for this stuff, was recalling seeing some of the pieces at various relatives' homes as she was growing up. There was a gentleman who served as the "tour guide" and offered great information on the different rooms and pieces on display. To be honest, I expected to be bored during this visit (wife likes to choose a variety of unique destinations during our mini-vacations), but it...

The museum is free, so you really can't complain about anything.

It's a tiny museum inside an old house in Redlands. All over the house there's cases full of different kinds of glass of different colors, textures, styles, and ages. There's a few info signs in the display cases letting you know about the type of glass, when it was popular, interesting uses for it, etc. There's a gift store inside the house as well. You can spend 5-20...