An accumulation of screw stoppers collected along the River Thames foreshore
When mudlarking along the River Thames foreshore, we often find old bottle stoppers (screw stoppers). Sometimes they are still embedded in the broken glass neck of the bottle they belonged to, and other times, they are poking out of the mud on their own - presumably not far from where they were last tossed by whoever opened the bottle. There is something appealing about these black screw stoppers, especially the ones which are imprinted with names of old breweries, or have an old logo on them. When we recently realised that we now have well over 200 of them at home - but knew very little about them, I was motivated to do a little more research into them. I embarked upon a mission to find out as much info as possible– and so have used a variety of web-based sources, notably the Kent History Forum to whom I am grateful for the wonderful pictures. If any of the details are not correct then apologies in advance.
It was Henry Barrett, in 1872, who invented this particular type of screw stopper – and they were subsequently used then for well over 100 years until the 1970s. Henry actually patented the design in the early 1880s, and he was also the person who designed the internal screw thread for the interior of the bottle neck. The stoppers themselves are made from hard, non-elastic, India rubber, also known as vulcanite. The process of “vulcanisation” involved heating rubber to 115 degrees Celsius with sulphur and also linseed oil – thereby converting it into a more durable material. The stoppers are also sometimes described as being made from ebonite, which in fact was the brand name for the vulcanised rubber – patented by Charles Goodyear in 1846.
Wrapped around the stopper is a sealing washer of pink India rubber.
Wrapped around the stopper is a sealing washer of pink India rubber.
Screw stopper - invented by Henry Barrett - circa 1872 and patented in the early 1880s
These screw stoppers took the place of corks on most beer bottles and the popularity of bottled beer really took off! Stoppers often carried company names and trademarks. Below is a gallery of some such screw stoppers. Each stopper has a little history of its own, and many of these companies/breweries are of course now defunct.
In 1885 a chap called Riley brought out the "new improved" chisel shaped thumb screw stopper which was designed to be easier to grip with the fingers, or in a bottling machine. He also bought out, in the same year, the first machine for screwing and unscrewing the stopper whilst the bottle was being filled.
The "new improved" screw stopper by Riley. Designed to be easier to grip, by fingers and machines alike. Nearly all have "Rileys" on the reverse of them.
screw stoppers manufactured during the war were stamped with "war grade", and had a sizeable portion scooped out to save on materials. During the war, with rubber in short supply, it is possible that an inferior material was used for a while. Also, the scooped out stopper means that less material was used. The stoppers made in this fashion during the war, were stamped with “war grade”.
In the 1890s, yet another improvement! Lignum Vitae wooden top screw stoppers were brought out. The screw was still made from vulcanite, but the top was wooden. The seal was supposedly far more secure!
The Lignum Vitae wood screw stopper was introduced in the 1890s - with a more effective seal system.
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