Today in Wheeling History: December 27--Michael Joseph Owens, the inventor of the automatic glass bottle-blowing machine and a former glassblower in Wheeling, passed away (1923).
Michael Joseph Owens was born on January 1, 1859, in Point Pleasant, West Virginia, to Joseph and Mary Owens, Irish immigrants from County Wexford. His father was a coal miner, and the family faced financial hardships. At the age of 10, Owens left school to start a glassware apprenticeship at J. H. Hobbs, Brockunier and Company in Wheeling, West Virginia. By the age of 15, he had become a skilled glassblower, working alongside craftsmen much older than himself.
In 1888, Owens moved to Toledo, Ohio, to work for the Toledo Glass Factory owned by Edward Drummond Libbey. He quickly rose through the ranks, becoming a foreman and then a supervisor. Owens' innovative spirit led him to invent a mould-opening device that significantly reduced the cost of glass bulbs, making them more accessible to the public. In 1895, he patented a completely automatic glass bottle-blowing machine, revolutionizing the glass industry by automating the production process and reducing labor costs.
Owens founded the Owens Bottle Machine Company in 1903 and later established the Libbey-Owens Sheet Glass Company in 1916. His inventions helped eliminate child labor in the glass industry and earned him numerous accolades, including the Elliott Cresson Medal in 1915. Owens passed away on December 27, 1923, in Toledo, Ohio, and was buried in Calvary Cemetery in Toledo.
To learn more: Find a Grave (https://shorturl.at/J87Ff), Wikipedia (https://shorturl.at/3utVw), West Virginia Encyclopedia (https://shorturl.at/RlUMl)
Photo credits: Wikimedia Commons, Library of Congress, Find a Grave
Michael Joseph Owens was born on January 1, 1859, in Point Pleasant, West Virginia, to Joseph and Mary Owens, Irish immigrants from County Wexford. His father was a coal miner, and the family faced financial hardships. At the age of 10, Owens left school to start a glassware apprenticeship at J. H. Hobbs, Brockunier and Company in Wheeling, West Virginia. By the age of 15, he had become a skilled glassblower, working alongside craftsmen much older than himself.
In 1888, Owens moved to Toledo, Ohio, to work for the Toledo Glass Factory owned by Edward Drummond Libbey. He quickly rose through the ranks, becoming a foreman and then a supervisor. Owens' innovative spirit led him to invent a mould-opening device that significantly reduced the cost of glass bulbs, making them more accessible to the public. In 1895, he patented a completely automatic glass bottle-blowing machine, revolutionizing the glass industry by automating the production process and reducing labor costs.
Owens founded the Owens Bottle Machine Company in 1903 and later established the Libbey-Owens Sheet Glass Company in 1916. His inventions helped eliminate child labor in the glass industry and earned him numerous accolades, including the Elliott Cresson Medal in 1915. Owens passed away on December 27, 1923, in Toledo, Ohio, and was buried in Calvary Cemetery in Toledo.
To learn more: Find a Grave (https://shorturl.at/J87Ff), Wikipedia (https://shorturl.at/3utVw), West Virginia Encyclopedia (https://shorturl.at/RlUMl)
Photo credits: Wikimedia Commons, Library of Congress, Find a Grave
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