“I’m pleased to announce that this year’s convention will be held in our Western Region, in the ‘Biggest Little City in the World’, and be our first national event after a two-year pause due to the pandemic,” said Ferdinand Meyer V, past three-time president of the FOHBC and one of the driving forces for the event. “Along with the traditional bottle show and sale will be educational seminars, a judged bottle shootout competition, silent auction, cocktail party and banquet, membership breakfast meeting, displays, team bowling event, bottle appraisals, youth events, raffles and many other activities.”



Mr. Meyer implored everyone to “come see some great Western glass and pottery from the major Gold Rush cities of the West and towns in-between, for just five dollars general admission on Saturday and Sunday. It’s a wonderful way to learn about American history from the 1800s through the turn of the century.”



The many events will make for a packed itinerary. People don’t have to be an FOHBC member to attend, but membership is encouraged and available at the show, plus online, at www.fohbc.org. There will be two very special exhibits at this year’s convention:



– Top 25 Western Whiskey Cylinders: This display is expected to attract a special grouping of bottles that will easily approach $1 million in total value. Such a display may never happen again and, with the help of the collecting community, will provide an attraction that, alone, is worth attending the Reno 2022 Convention to witness.



– Artifacts from the S. S. Central America: Come see this once-in-a-lifetime exhibit of recovered artifacts from the S.S. Central America known for its vast cargo of gold. The ship sank in a storm in 1857. There will be bottles, Gold Rush jewelry, firearms, luggage tags, photographs, currency, gold pokes, clothing and a treasure box and lid.



This year’s FOHBC show is a must-attend for antique bottle and glass enthusiasts and members of the many antique bottle clubs scattered across the country. Diggers and pickers will also find the show of great interest. Antique bottle collectors are very passionate about a category of collecting that’s enjoyed a meteoric rise in popularity in recent years. There will even be a free appraisal table for people to bring in their finds and possessions.



The convention schedule will kick off with the semi-annual FOHBC Board Meeting slated for 8 am to 12 o’clock noon on Thursday, July 28th, in the Carson 1 Room. A VIP Reception & Dealer Registration will take place from 4:30-6:30 pm, followed by an evening Reno Shootout bottle competition in the Grand Salon and Crystal Ballroom.



The Reno Shootout will be a friendly competition that will compare and judge three types of bottles (all entrants are welcome; limit three bottles per category per person). The judging events will be for the ‘best’ J.F. Cutter star shield type whiskey fifth; Bay City Soda Water Company bottle; and the Old Sachem’s Bitters and Wigwam Tonic. The merits of each bottle will be judged by a panel of veteran collectors experienced in each type.



For more information about the Federation of Historical Bottle Collectors (FOHBC) and this year’s National Antique Bottle Convention, slated for July 28-31 at the Grand Sierra Resort in Reno, Nevada, please visit www.fohbc.org. As of this writing, there were still dealer tables available, should you want to sell antique glass.

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