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Cream Separating Milk Bottles
Before milk was homogenized the cream would rise to the top of the milk bottle. Consumers would want to pour the cream off but in a conventional milk bottle the milk would just mix with the cream as it was poured out. Thus there was a lot of interest in designing a milk bottle that would allow one to remove the cream without mixing it with the milk. All the bottles on this page are examples of trying to solve that problem.
There were devices to remove the cream from a regular bottle of milk. To go to the page with cream extractors click here. 
 The bottles shown in the two pictures above are Cream Top milk bottles. They have a bulb at the top of the neck that has a smaller diameter opening at the base of the bulb than the opening at the top of the bottle. When the cream rose up in the bulb a special spoon or separator could be used to close off the neck between the cream and the milk. This allowed the cream to be poured out of the bottle and the milk to remain. The separator was not intended to spoon out the cream as many people think.
These bottles were patented on March 3, 1925 by Norman Henderson of Albany, New York and the patent was assigned to the Cream Top Bottle Corporation. In the patent papers Henderson stated that the size of the bulb could be varied depending on the cream content of the milk. To our knowledge this did not actually occur and all cream top milk bottles use a standard bulb size of about one fifth of the bottle capacity. Literature from the Cream Top Bottle Corporation stated that milk with 3.5% butterfat test was sufficient to fill the cream bulb with cream and the separated cream would be 22 to 27% butter fat. The patent papers for the bottle described a separator disk on a wire handle rather than the common Cream Top separator. The actual Cream Top separator was marked with the Mar. 3, 1925 patent date of the bottle and also with the Sept. 2, 1924 patent date for the separator itself. The separator was patented by Herbert Hill, also of Albany, New York and the patent was also assigned to the Cream Top Bottle Corporation. One may notice that the separator was patented in 1924 prior to the bottle being patented in 1925. It appears that the bottle patent was applied for on April 16, 1921 and the separator patent was applied for a year later on August 3, 1922. For some reason the separator patent was granted prior to the patent for the bottle. We have seen trade advertisements for the Cream Top milk bottle as early as September of 1924 and that advertisement alluded to the bottles being already in use for two years, well before the issuing of the patent.
The Cream Top Bottle Corporation claimed many advantages for their milk bottles. Since they were only allowed to be used by one dairy in a given territory they were easily identified and difficult for other dealers to steal and use. The Cream Top Bottle Corporation also claimed that their bottles would experience less breakage due to their design. They also claimed that this unique design would discourage consumers from keeping bottles for preserving foods (a common problem with regular milk bottles) or storing other liquids. Since the Cream Top milk bottles were instantly recognizable they tended to be good advertisement for a dairy using them. They also were compatible with all filling, capping and washing equipment used with conventional milk bottles although Cream Top milk bottles were definitely more difficult to wash.
A Cream Top separator is shown hanging on the first bottle in the top picture. The curved end of the separator had a point that could be used as a milk cap remover. These separators were supplied to licensed dairymen by the Cream Top Bottle Corporation at a cost of 5 cents. They were usually given to customers for free.
These bottles can be found embossed (top picture) or pyroglazed (bottom picture) as well as round or square in shape. The first milk bottle in the bottom picture is a square Cream Top bottle. We have seen these square Cream Top milk bottles labeled as the Space-Saver Bottle. Many pyroglazed Cream Top milk bottles will also have pyroglazing on the bulb. "It Whips" was a common phrase. Cream Top milk bottles are found in half pint, pint and quart sizes. Many glass manufacturers made patented Cream Top milk bottles however the dairyman needed to be licensed to use it by the Cream Top Bottle Corporation of Albany, New York. The bottles were sold at a similar price as conventional milk bottles however the dairyman had to pay an annual licensing fee to the Cream Top Bottle Corporation. In exchange, the Cream Top Bottle Corporation would give the dairyman exclusive rights in his territory to sell milk in Cream Top bottles. However in 1933 this was challenged in court and not upheld. The court decided in a suit brought by the Cream Top Bottle Corporation on behalf of Meyer Sanitary Milk Company, one of their license holders in Kansas City, Kansas, that since it was the custom to be able to return any bottle in exchange for a full one if competitors acquired Cream Top bottles in this way they could then refill them. The case was complicated by the fact that Meyer had refused to trade its competitors back their bottles in exchange for Meyer's Cream Top milk bottles.
Milk bottles top picture left to right:
Parkside Dairy, quart, Fresno, California, Illinois Pacific Glass Co., pre-1930
Gold Valley Creamery, pint, Dodge City, Kansas, Berney Bond Glass Co., 1929
Wildwood Dairy, half pint, Santa Rosa, California, Pacific Coast Glass Co., 1931
Milk bottles bottom picture left to right:
Country Maid Creamery, quart, Sacramento, California, Owens-Illinois, 1961
Crystal Creamery, quart, Sacramento, California, Owens-Illinois, 1946
Home Milk Company, quart, Sacramento, California, Owens-Illinois, 1947
Sunshine Dairies, half pint, Utica, New York, Owens-Illinois, 1940 
These are Modern Top milk bottles. They worked on the same principle as the Cream Top milk bottle but the bulb was a different shape and the separating device was different. One of the patent dates associated with these milk bottles was March 29, 1938 and was granted to William Teunisz of Detroit, Michigan. The patent was for the cream separator and the milk container but most of the patent deals with the cream separator device. This was patent number 2,112,233 which is the number most commonly associated with Modern Top milk bottles. The patent papers describe the bulb size of the milk bottle to be one fifth of the bottle volume, similar to the Cream Top milk bottle. The separator device was described as having weakened areas that could bend so that it could pass through the cream in the vertical position and not disturb the cream and then fold over into the horizontal position to block the neck. Hard pressed, tough paper was the material described for the separator. We have found this type of separator which was stamped PAT'D, but the ones that are most commonly found actually hinge rather than fold and are made of metal or plastic. The patent also describes a way to place the separator device in the bottle with the milk so that it would always be available for the user. We do not think this idea was ever utilized but rather the metal and plastic separator devices were given away to customers with the intention to be reused. A second patent was issued to William Teunisz covering the shape of the bottle. This second patent was design patent 111,311 and it was granted on September 13, 1938. Many round Modern Top milk bottles will be embossed with both of these patent numbers. William Teunisz was granted a third patent on April 14, 1942 that covered the design of the hinged, metal cream separating device that is commonly found stamped Modern Top (picture). We have never seen this patent date or number used on Modern Top milk bottles or separators however. The metal separators are usually stamped Pat. Pend. Also shown in the picture is a newer, plastic separator embossed Modern Top Cream Separator. In the picture, the separator on the left is a paper one that was described in the original 1938 patent, in the middle is a metal separator with a rubber disc detailed in the 1942 patent and the one on the right is a later plastic version.
In the picture above, the first and third milk bottles are round, quart, pyroglazed examples of the Modern Top milk bottle. The center bottle is a square, quart bottle and is labeled as the Spas-Savr Modern Top. Note that the spelling is different than the Space-Saver Cream Top milk bottle. The fourth bottle is a half pint Modern Top. These small Modern Top bottles were only used by a few dairies. These bottles are also found in a pint size. A few California dairies even used a half gallon Modern Top milk bottle. Click here to see a quart and half gallon Modern Top milk bottle used by one San Diego, California dairy. The dairies in California that we know of that used the half gallon Modern Top milk bottle were Mountain Meadow Creameries of San Diego, Kirk Ragland Creamery of Bakersfield and Pioneer Dairy Company of Pittsburg. Modern Top milk bottles can also be found embossed (picture). Modern Top milk bottles are much less common than Cream Top milk bottles.
Milk bottles left to right:
American Dairy Co., quart, San Jose, California, Owens-Illinois, 1944
Premier Creamery, quart, Coalinga, California, Lamb Glass Co.
Mother Lode Dairy, quart, Angels Camp and Sonora, California, Owens-Illinois, 1945
Mayflower Milk, half pint, Vancouver, Washington, Lamb Glass Co.
Off page milk bottles left to right (picture 1):
Mountain Meadow Creameries, quart, San Diego, California, Lamb Glass Co.
Mountain Meadow Creameries, half gallon, San Diego, California, Lamb Glass Co.
Off page milk bottle (picture 2):
Hudson Dairy, half pint, Rochester, New York, Lamb Glass Co.
Weir Cove Dairy Company, quart, Holliday's Cove, West Virginia, Lamb Glass Co. 
The bottles shown above are Baby Top milk bottles. They were a cream top style of milk bottle that had a baby's face embossed on the cream bulb. These bottles are found in both embossed and pyroglazed versions as well as round and square bottles. They are found in half pint, pint and quart sizes. In addition, Associated Dairies of Los Angeles, California used a round, half gallon Baby Top milk bottle. There was also a rectangular, half gallon double Baby Top milk bottle (picture). We believe this bottle was a prototype and may not have been actually used for the sale of milk.
These bottles were granted a design patent on February 18, 1936 as an ornamental design for a milk bottle. The round bottles often are embossed with this patent number. The patent was granted to Michael Pecora of West Hazleton, Pennsylvania and was assigned to Pecora's Farm Dairy. The milk bottles were sold by the Pecora Baby Top Products Company, also of West Hazleton, Pennsylvania. They were advertised as increasing milk sales because consumers preferred these milk bottles. The square bottles also are found in a version that has a baby's face embossed on the front and back of the cream bulb and are known as double Baby Top milk bottles. Michael Pecora was granted another design patent on November 1, 1949 for a round milk bottle with a double baby face. However we have never seen this patent date or number embossed on these milk bottles. Michael Pecora also was granted a patent for an ice cream cone with a man's face on it. He definitely got the most out of his idea.
The first bottle on the left is a square, pyroglazed quart Baby Top, the second bottle is a square, pyroglazed quart double Baby Top, the third is a round, pyroglazed pint Baby Top and the last bottle is a round, embossed half pint Baby Top. Many Baby Top milk bottles were manufactured by Lamb Glass Company of Mt. Vernon, Ohio. The only California dairies that we know of that used Baby Top milk bottles were Associated Dairies of Los Angeles and Riviera Dairy of Santa Barbara.
Milk bottles left to right:
Pecora's, quart, Hazleton, Pennsylvania, Lamb Glass Co.
W. B. Brown & Sons Inc., quart, location unknown, Lamb Glass Co.
Upton's Farm, pint, Bridgewater, Massachusetts, Lamb Glass Co.
Brookfield Dairy, half pint, Hellertown, Pennsylvania, Lamb Glass Co.
Off page milk bottle:
No dairy identification, half gallon, no location, Lamb Glass Co. 
Similar to the Baby Top milk bottle was the Cop the Cream milk bottle. This was a cream top style milk bottle with a policeman's face embossed on the cream bulb. They are found in round versions pictured on the right and left, and square versions pictured in the center. Around the lip of the round bottles it is embossed COP THE CREAM BOTTLE CO. INC. and on the bottle's shoulder under the policeman's collar is a circle or line embossed COP THE CREAM. This company was also located in Hazleton, Pennsylvania. Robert, Vincent and Emil Gennaro were issued a design patent for the ornamental design of this bottle on January 25, 1938. These milk bottles are often embossed with this patent number. The square milk bottle is embossed THE SQUARE COP on the bottle shoulder. The bottle base is embossed COP THE CREAM and PATENT APPLIED FOR. We do not know if a patent was ever issued for this square Cop the Cream milk bottle. Cop the Cream milk bottles are found embossed like the bottle on the right and pyroglazed like the left and center bottles. In addition to the quart and pint sizes pictured above we have also seen a half pint size. The round, pyroglazed, quart Cop the Cream milk bottles were the most widely used. The only California Cop the Cream milk bottle that we are aware of was from Alameda Dairy in Alameda, California
Milk bottles left to right:
Watkins Farm Dairy, quart, West Minster, Vermont, Universal Glass Products Co.
Orchard Farm Dairy, quart, Dallas, Pennsylvania, Thatcher Glass Manufacturing Co., 1949
Glenside Dairy, pint, Deepwater, New Jersey, Universal Glass Products Co. 
Pictured above are two cream separating milk bottles used by J. F. McAdams & Brothers. The first milk bottle on the left is a common Cream Top Bottle. The bottle on the right is an uncommon cream separating bottle used by this dairy. On August 9, 1938, John Neal of Allston, Massachusetts patented an idea for a milk bottle and cream separator. The bottle in this patent was shaped similar to a conventional milk bottle however. On May 7, 1940 John Neal was granted a design patent for the bottle shape pictured above on the right. On both of these patents he assigned thirty-seven and one half percent to Fredrick McAdams of Revere, Massachusetts and twenty-five percent to Everett Kent of Newton, Massachusetts. Fredrick McAdams must have been involved with the J. F. McAdams & Brothers dairy. The idea behind this milk bottle and cream separator was to improve upon some disadvantages of other cream separating milk bottles. Most other cream separating milk bottles have a restriction below the cream bulb that is smaller than the opening at the top of the bottle. This allows the cream separating spoon or device to fit in the top of the bottle, seal the base of the bulb and allow the cream to be poured off without the milk following. The problem was this restriction made it difficult to clean the lower portion of these bottles. There also was a tendency for the milk to splash and gurgle as it passed this restriction during pouring. And last this restriction could affect the filling of the milk bottles. In the bottle pictured here there is no restriction at the base of the neck, only a shoulder. The cream separating device that went with this bottle could be folded to fit in the top of the bottle and once inside the bottle it would unfold and could be held against the shoulder in the glass by a wire rod. This idea was very similar to rubber cream separating discs sold for regular milk bottles that were folded to fit in the bottle. The advantage of this bottle over that system was that the shoulder in the glass allowed one to easily locate the cream separating device so it was level and sealed off the skim milk in the lower portion of the bottle. We have never seen the cream separating device that goes with this patent. These bottles are usually embossed with the number of the 1938 patent and we have only seen them in the quart size and pyroglazed.
John Neal and Fredrick McAdams were both assigned two other patents for improved cream separating devices that went with this shouldered bottle. Both patents were dated April 7, 1942. One was invented by Everett Kent and the other was invented by Joseph Birchall.
Milk bottles left to right:
J. F. McAdams & Bros., quart, Chelsea, Massachusetts, Owens-Illinois, 1949
J. F. McAdams & Bros. Inc., quart, Chelsea, Massachusetts, Lamb Glass Co., 1938-1940's 
Shown above are two more cream bulb style milk bottles. The first bottle on the left is a short, squat style granted a design patent on December 9, 1941. The patent was granted to William Teunisz, who now resided in Grand Rapids, Michigan. He had been issued the patent for the Modern Top milk bottle three years earlier. Teunisz was granted several milk bottle patents however most of them we have never seen in actual use. This design patent was for an ornamental design of a milk bottle and no new claims were made for the bottle. This bottle is embossed with both the Modern Top patent number that covered the cream separating device and the design patent number for this bottle shape. These milk bottles are a full inch shorter than a conventional Cream Top milk bottle and slightly larger in diameter. These bottles are not that common.
The Union Dairy of Sacramento, California used a squat cream separating bottle that had almost identical dimensions to the Teunisz bottle discussed above. However the Union Dairy bottle had a different shape to the cream bulb and we do not think it came under the Teunisz patent. However it did not have the 1925 patent date of the Cream Top milk bottle either. This bottle was produced by the Thatcher Manufacturing Company of Elmira, New York and there was no patent date or number on the bottle. Since there were several creameries operating in Sacramento, California, using Cream Top milk bottles (see picture under Cream Top milk bottles above) this might have been an attempt by Union Dairy to make their bottles unique and easy to distinguish from their competitors. Click here to see a picture of the Teunisz squat cream separating bottle, the Union Dairy Squat cream top and a conventional Cream Top milk bottle.
The second bottle is embossed THE GRADUATE MILK BOTTLE on the shoulder. It gets that name because along the side of the bottle are graduated marks measuring out cups in increments from one half cup up to 3 cups. We have never seen a patent date or patent number on these milk bottles however we came across a patent drawing that is very similar in shape to this bottle and also has measurements along the side from one half to 3 cups. This design patent was granted to Arthur Bramhall on March 28, 1939 and we suspect that it was for this milk bottle. Graduate milk bottles can be found either embossed or pyroglazed but we have only seen bottles round in shape and one quart in size. Arthur Bramhall was also granted two patents for cream separating devices to go with his milk bottle. One dated December 10, 1940 was designed for use with his graduate milk bottle and one dated June 1, 1943 was designed to be used with a conventional milk bottle, a Cream Top milk bottle or his graduate milk bottle. We have never seen either of these cream separating devices. Even though his 1940 patent was for a cream separating device, he also describes his milk bottle (which he did not do in the original patent since it was a design patent). One interesting feature was that he said the diameter of the constriction below the cream bulb was at least as large as the diameter of the bottle's mouth. In the Cream Top milk bottle this constriction would have been a smaller diameter than the bottle's mouth and that resulted in difficulties cleaning those milk bottles, which would have been improved upon in the graduate milk bottle.
Milk bottles left to right:
Thompson's Dairy, quart, Washington D. C., Lamb Glass Co.
Valley Dairy, quart, Syracuse, New York, Lamb Glass Co.
Off page milk bottles left to right:
Thompson's Dairy, quart, Washington D. C., Lamb Glass Co.
Union Dairy, quart, Sacramento, California, Thatcher Manufacturing Co., 1945
Purity Milk Co., quart, Stockton, California, Owens-Illinois, 1946
The two bottles pictured above are designed to allow one to pour the cream off of the skim portion of the milk without the need for a separating device such as a spoon. Above on the left is a cream separator bottle. This bottle is a little different in that it did not have a cream bulb at the top but rather a dent in the bottle shoulder that was designed to hold back the milk while the cream was poured off. This bottle was patented on July 8, 1930 by George West of Van Buren, Arkansas. The patent was assigned to Cream Separator Bottle, Inc. of Delaware, who marketed the bottles but did not manufacture them. The bottles usually are embossed THIS SIDE UP just above the dent and often are embossed with the patent date and patent number. George West was also granted a second patent on Dec 8, 1931 for a similar bottle but we have never seen this patent date on a cream separator milk bottle. That patent described a different shaped dent that did not require the bottle to be held with the dent perfectly at the top and also was claimed to be easier to clean. Cream separator bottles can be found embossed or pyroglazed but we have only seen them round in shape. They came in half pint, pint and quart sizes. The only Cream Separator milk bottles we have seen from California were used by Mission Creamery of Daly City, Ideal Dairy of Fresno and Nobles Dairy of Porterville.
The bottle on the right is known as a toothache milk bottle. It was invented by Royden A. Blunt of Baltimore, Maryland and was granted a utility patent on July 7, 1953. These milk bottles are usually embossed with this utility patent number but Blunt was also granted two design patents on the same day for ornamental variations of this milk bottle. They were marketed by Richer-Pour Bottle Inc. These bottles are only found in square versions but can be embossed like the bottle pictured above or pyroglazed (picture). We have only seen quart bottles. Royden Blunt was associated with Buck Glass Company of Baltimore, Maryland so most if not all of these milk bottles will be manufactured by Buck Glass Company. These bottles were only used in the eastern part of the United States. Many are from the state of Virginia. We do not know of any dairies that used them in the west. The lop-sided cream bulb allowed one to pour off the cream if held correctly. The patent papers describe lab tests that showed these bottles could pour off the cream with less mixing in of the skim milk than standard cream chamber bottles. This meant that the cream removed had a greater fat content. The toothache milk bottle was the last of the cream separating milk bottles. Around this time homogenized milk was becoming more popular. As milk was homogenized and the cream no longer could rise in the milk, the need for cream separating bottles disappeared. In fact Blunt mentioned that homogenized milk removed the need for this type of milk bottle in his patent application.
Milk bottles left to right:
Rothermel's, quart, Minersville, Pennsylvania, Lamb Glass Co.
Richmond Dairy, quart, Richmond, Virginia, Buck Glass Co., 1954 Off page milk bottle:
Birtcherd Dairy Farms, quart, Norfolk, Virginia, Buck Glass Co., 1957
Foremost Emmadine, quart, location unknown, Buck Glass Co., 1958 
All the cream separating milk bottles shown previously on this page required that the cream be removed from the bottle before the skim portion of the milk. Basically the consumer had two choices. They could either pour out the cream followed by the skim milk or mix up the milk and have whole milk to pour out. This was not surprising since the opening of the bottle was at the top and the cream would rise to the top of the bottle.
One of the first patents for a cream separating milk bottle actually worked from the bottom. It was a conventional milk bottle with a small hole on the bottom edge that was sealed by a small plug. In this bottle the skim milk was drained through the hole first and then the cream could be poured out last. This patent was granted to Ray Dunn of Tipton, Iowa on July 17, 1923. This was two years before the patent for the Cream Top milk bottle was granted. For some reason we guess that this milk bottle was not a hit with consumers. If the plug was accidentally knocked from the bottle the milk would spill all over the table or the ice box.
The milk bottle pictured above was another attempt to allow the skim milk to be removed before the cream. Notice the web along the side of the cream bulb. When the cream separating device was placed in the milk bottle and sealed the bulb, it also formed a passage in this glass channel. The top of the bottle now had two openings. One opened into the cream bulb and the other opened into this passage which lead to the skim milk portion of the bottle. Depending which opening one poured out of they could either pour out the cream first and leave the skim milk like a regular Cream Top milk bottle or pour the skim milk from the bottom chamber first and leave the cream in the upper bulb. Of course they could also mix the milk up and just pour out whole milk without using the separating device.
The idea for this milk bottle belonged to Emile Scheemaeker of Blackstone, Massachusetts. He was granted two patents on March 30, 1937 for the principles behind this milk bottle. However these two patents utilized a bottle with a diamond shaped mouth rather than the round mouth normally found on milk bottles. The bottle also had complicated guides in the wall of the bottle to engage the cream separator device. Since the bottle mouth was not round it did not work with conventional filling and capping machines. The guides in the glass bottle also proved difficult to manufacture. Scheemaeker was granted another patent on October 25, 1938 that addressed these problems.
We believe the milk bottle pictured here was a prototype for the 1938 patent and was never put in production. It was manufactured by the Baltimore Glass Company of Baltimore, Maryland. An advertising booklet for the E. S. Dairy of Woonsocket, Rhode Island referred to it as the Magic milk bottle. Scheemaeker was also granted a design patent on March 25, 1947 for a square version of this milk bottle. We have seen a pyroglazed, quart version of this bottle called the Deluxe Cream Separator. Scheemaeker was granted a fifth patent for this milk bottle on July 14, 1953. This last patent dealt with improvements in the bottle and the separating device. By 1953 however homogenized milk was making cream separating bottles obsolete. |
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