Today in Wheeling History: June 30--Harry C. Northwood, renowned glassmaker and founder of Northwood Glass Company, is born in Wordsley, England (1860).
Harry C. Northwood (1860–1919) was a pioneering glassmaker whose artistry and entrepreneurial spirit helped define Wheeling’s reputation as a center of American glassmaking. Born on June 30, 1860, in Wordsley, Staffordshire, England, Northwood was the eldest son of famed cameo glass artisan John Northwood. At age 14, he began his apprenticeship in the glass trade. In 1881, he emigrated to the United States and initially worked as a glass etcher at the J.H. Hobbs, Brockunier & Co. plant in Wheeling. He later held leadership roles at glass factories in Martins Ferry, Ohio; Ellwood City, Pennsylvania; and Indiana, Pennsylvania.
In 1901, Northwood returned to Wheeling and founded H. Northwood & Co., taking over the shuttered Hobbs-Brockunier factory at 36th and McColloch Streets. The company became famous for its innovative pressed glass and especially for its iridescent “carnival glass,” which remains highly collectible today. At its peak, the factory employed 300 workers and produced 1,000 barrels of glass weekly. Northwood’s brother Carl managed sales and decoration. Harry died in 1919, followed by Carl in 1918. Though the company closed in 1925, Northwood’s legacy endures in museums and private collections worldwide.
To learn more: Wheeling Hall of Fame: Harry C. Northwood – Ohio County Public Library Archives, Wheeling WV (https://tinyurl.com/4psus4f7); Northwood Glass Company – Wikipedia (https://tinyurl.com/3db2bn4m), Harry Northwood: The Wheeling Years, 1901–1925 – Internet Archive (https://tinyurl.com/4wcawcz3)
Photo credits: Ohio County Public Library Archives, Wheeling WV; Wikimedia Commons, Library of Congress
Harry C. Northwood (1860–1919) was a pioneering glassmaker whose artistry and entrepreneurial spirit helped define Wheeling’s reputation as a center of American glassmaking. Born on June 30, 1860, in Wordsley, Staffordshire, England, Northwood was the eldest son of famed cameo glass artisan John Northwood. At age 14, he began his apprenticeship in the glass trade. In 1881, he emigrated to the United States and initially worked as a glass etcher at the J.H. Hobbs, Brockunier & Co. plant in Wheeling. He later held leadership roles at glass factories in Martins Ferry, Ohio; Ellwood City, Pennsylvania; and Indiana, Pennsylvania.
In 1901, Northwood returned to Wheeling and founded H. Northwood & Co., taking over the shuttered Hobbs-Brockunier factory at 36th and McColloch Streets. The company became famous for its innovative pressed glass and especially for its iridescent “carnival glass,” which remains highly collectible today. At its peak, the factory employed 300 workers and produced 1,000 barrels of glass weekly. Northwood’s brother Carl managed sales and decoration. Harry died in 1919, followed by Carl in 1918. Though the company closed in 1925, Northwood’s legacy endures in museums and private collections worldwide.
To learn more: Wheeling Hall of Fame: Harry C. Northwood – Ohio County Public Library Archives, Wheeling WV (https://tinyurl.com/4psus4f7); Northwood Glass Company – Wikipedia (https://tinyurl.com/3db2bn4m), Harry Northwood: The Wheeling Years, 1901–1925 – Internet Archive (https://tinyurl.com/4wcawcz3)
Photo credits: Ohio County Public Library Archives, Wheeling WV; Wikimedia Commons, Library of Congress
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