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What is Depression Glass?

Everyone has heard of Depression Glass, but exactly What is Depression Glass?

Depression Glass was made primarily during the Depression years (from 1929 to 1939). The economy was very bad and most people could not afford to purchase items (like glassware) for their homes. Glass companies began to make very cheap glass and it was sold at in five and ten cent stores and given away by companies as premiums or included with other purchases (like gasoline, cereal, soap, Quaker Oats and even local movie theatres). Depression Glass is know for its colors which included pink, red, blue, green, yellow, amber, white and clear.

Some people claim that Depression Glass is the most collected item in the United States. If this is true, it is because so many of us have pieces of the glass that were handed down from our mothers or our grandmothers. Most collector's interest in glass collecting starts with trying to find out about the glass that has been passed down through the generations.

The more expensive, higher quality glass of the depression era was sold in department and jewelry stores and is called Depression Era Elegant Glass. It is also highly collectible, and usually more valuable than Depression Glass.

Glass made in the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s is also very collectible - both the cheap "dime store" glass and the elegant patterns.

Here is a nice video documentary about Depression Glass: