History of the Harvest Molds
The Harvest molds were created in the 1950's. The Harvest molds are extensive. They include a whole dinnerware line. There are dinner plates, salad plates, bread and butter plates, cups, saucers, goblets, large ice tea tumblers, mid-size tumblers, juice tumblers, large serving platter, salt and pepper shakers, covered butter dish, sugar/creamer/tray set, covered and uncovered wedding bowls, a three piece canister set, lace edge spooners both covered and uncovered, water pitcher, cake stand, snack sets, sherbet set, punch set, candle holders, large and small vases, compotes and more.
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Some of the Colony Harvest milk glass items.
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The Harvest molds were first used to produce beautiful snowy white, handmade milk glass items. The milk glass items were called Colony Harvest. Colony is a trademark of the Lancaster Colony Corporation. Indiana Glass produced the milk glass Harvest items but they were never sold under the Indiana Glass name.
Indiana Glass continued to produce the milk glass Harvest items through out the 1950's and 1960's. The "Colony Harvest" pattern was obtained most often through the redemption of S & H green stamps in the midwestern states. You received a stamp for each $1.00 you spent and when a book of 300 or so was filled, you could redeem it for merchandise. Colony Harvest was a very popular pattern and soon there was a need to increase production to meet the demand. Some of the more popular Harvest molds were adapted to machine use.
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Harvest Goblets
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Snack Set with box
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Beverage Set
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Harvest Goblet Box
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Harvest Wedding Bowl with Colony Sticker
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Beverage Set Box
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So which are the handmade and which are the machine made milk glass items? If you examine some of the Harvest milk glass items you can see some distinct differences. Below are two 9 piece beverage sets both bearing the Colony name. You can see the differences in the pitchers.
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Handmade Pitcher and Tumblers
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Machine made Pitcher and Tumblers
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Hand made Pitcher
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Machine made Pitcher
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You can see the difference better in the larger examples below.
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Original Harvest Pitcher Mold
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Modified Harvest Pitcher Mold
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The original Harvest pitcher mold was a sleek beauty. Perhaps it could not be adapted to machine use? If you examine the pitchers above you will see the differences. The leaf on the machine made pitcher matches the leaf on the canisters not the leaf on the tumblers or goblets. The grape formations are very different too.
You can very clearly see the lines where the spout was added. If you turn machine made pitcher over, you can see the line where the pedestal foot was added. Could it be that the machine pitcher mold was adapted from a canister mold? Or maybe just a new creation. But it is clear to see, it is NOT the original Harvest Pitcher pattern.
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There are differences in the punch sets too. Below are two of the Colony Harvest Punch Sets.
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Handmade Original Harvest
Milk Glass Punch Set
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Machine Made Harvest
Milk Glass Punch Set
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If I was a Harvest milk glass collector, I would be looking for the handmade Harvest pieces. They seem to be a better quality milk glass and you just can't beat the hand making process. But that's just my opinion.plain one.
I have had both sets. The handmade punch bowl is thicker and heavier. Same goes for all the handmade pieces, they are thicker and seem more detailed. If I was a Harvest milk glass collector, I would be looking for the handmade Harvest pieces. They seem to be a better quality milk glass and you just can't beat the hand making process. But that's just my opinion.
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Indiana Glass added some of their own molds to the milk glass line. The Garland compote, hen on a nest, oval center bowl, etc. The oval center bowl (The big fruit bowl with the four feet), was never an original Colony Harvest mold. It was always an Indiana Glass mold but it kind of fit the pattern so it was included in the Harvest line. When the milk glass craze was over, Indiana Glass used the Harvest molds to make colored glass items. Some of the colors were satin blue and green, olive green, amber, ruby flash glass, horizon blue and clear glass. Then in 1971, Indiana Glass introduced the Blue Harvest Carnival line. By 1974, gold and lime green carnival colors were added. The Harvest carnival was produced for about 10 years.
None of the Harvest molds have been used since about the mid 1980's. Indiana Glass closed in 2002. As of 2005, there are been no Harvest reproductions in any color or glass treament. From what I understand, Fenton purchased approximately 300 Indiana Glass molds. I have been unable to obtain a list of the glass molds sold. I do not know if any of the Harvest molds were part of that 300 mold purchase. Could be in the not so distant future, we will see Fenton marked Harvest items???? Only time will tell, but Fenton is a very WONDERFUL and very responsible company. If they make any Harvest pattern reproductions, they will be clearly marked Fenton.
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