Antique Baby Nurser
What do you think of my antique baby nurser… and isn’t it interesting how this shape for baby bottles keeps coming into and going out of style over the years? This nurser comes from my father’s family, and I know it was used by a relative who would now be 105 years old. Since there were fourteen children in that particular family, I’m pretty sure it would have been used by more than one of those babies through the years. The black rubber nipple was long gone by the time this nurser got to me, 
but the black rubber stopper and some of the other rubber fittings were there in a very crumbly condition that has since deteriorated even more. The glass tubing is as good as new, and the bottle is in perfect condition. The bottle itself is a light greenish blue, has a lot of air bubbles in the glass, and is obviously hand blown. There are no seams and no corners, and the contoured shape is comfortable to hold. The bottom of the bottle is flat… I wonder if this was so the baby could be fed without anyone having to hold the nurser. There are raised letters saying “Manhattan” on the top side, but I have never been able to find any information about a company of that name. 
Filed Under Simple Treasures
Comments
Comment by MamaArcher:
What a treasure to have! I would be afraid that it would break! We have eight children and only have one bottle in the house, breastfeeding is great but sometimes on the rare occasion a single bottle can come in handy especially as the babies get older.
Comment by Quinne:
Hi Shirley :) What an interesting show and tell! I had never seen an antique nurser before. Thanks for sharing this with us today. Blessings! Q
Comment by Sarah Rogstad:
Wow, old glass bottles and other things are really neat to look at. Thank you for sharing
Comment by LadySnow:
I found one of those in my grandmother’s belongings to. That is so awesome…the 14 kids I mean….I know families with 7, 10, and 14 children as well. :D
Comment by Love Sows Seeds:
What a wonderful thing to own and so interesting. Thanks for sharing it and a little of the history..
Comment by ellen b:
That is so interesting and 14 kids yikes! have a great weekend…
Comment by Mommy:
Wow! How very interesting! I always wondered what people “back then” did if they couldn’t nurse their babies. I always assumed they hired a wet nurse. But I guess they had bottles then too. Thanks for sharing. I really enjoyed reading about it! :)
Comment by jean:
What a wonderful treasure! I have never seen one before and how awesome that is was used by your family!
Comment by Kristy Jo:
wow, how absolutly facinating especially cause like you said most babys were probably nursed back then!
what a wonderful piece of history you got there! and glass? could you even imagine that now?? HA
Comment by Amy:
That is very neat! What a great treasure to have from your family
~Amy
Comment by Hootin' Anni:
*choking*….not over the baby bottle….but lordy….14 kids? And I think I’m tired and aged from having just a measly two kids!! LOL
Very INTERESTING piece to share with us this week.
Comment by Monica:
This is great. What a treat to learn of this with pictures to boot!
Comment by Mary:
This antique nurser is wonderful. And such precious family memories with all the babies it has fed. A great family keepsake. Be sure to hold onto it. These are not easy to find. Thanks for sharing this interesting bottle.
Comment by Jane:
At first I thought it was a glass bed pan - how funny is that ?!! I think it is unique and amazing how the invention of things changes so much through the years. Thanks for sharing,
Jane
Comment by Lana G!:
Wow!! to the nursing bottle and the 14 kids! Great treasure!
Comment by Sharon:
What a pretty piece of glass. It seems kind of sad that people didn’t want to hold their baby while feeding them. What a neat treasure to have though!
Hugs! Sharon
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