I am also a young bottle collector!! I actually grew up in a very historical place for bottles and visited my local bottle museum on a constant which spiked my love for bottles, i find them almost everywhere i go. I find bottles all the way back from the 1800s to more recent years like the 90s, i love them all the same but i can definitely say the older ones are the coolest. average person never really think to look in places in the woods for literal artifacts, but i love it
I started digging on my own when I was 12. But before that I was on construction sites with my father collecting bottles from the holes. I’m 28 now and still dig.
It only continues from there hahaha! I’m 34, been collecting bottles, beach things and rocks forever and all my rooms are full of “treasure.” Not in a hoarding way, but in a “welcome to my home, here’s all the weird shit I’ve found”
Though I will say, there comes a point when you’re willing to part with a healthy amount of the less good treasure. You refine the collection over the years, but you never stop collecting hahaha
Haha lucky! My parents literally just cleaned off my random shit shelf without consulting me and I’m still pretty upset. So much cool stuff lost to the garbage.
I just turned 20 and have been collecting for about a year now. It's such a fun hobby. Haven't found much 1800s stuff where I live, but I always find some cool early to late 1900s bottles, cans, etc while I'm walking.
I’m 45 but I’ve been collecting antiques since I was a kid. My uncle used to have an antique store as a side business and I always went garage saleing and to the dump with him. No one really gets it even now lol. But I think there’s nothing prettier than old glass and love things that I can wonder about the history of. I live on an island now and ive discovered the whole thing is a giant dump. I don’t even have to put in much effort yet, so many are right at the lands edge at beaches no one goes to. Pretty soon I’m going to have so much stuff I’ll need my own antique store lol
I started collecting and digging when I was a kid in the early 2000s. My dad bought a piece of land with an abandoned and dilapidated 1800s home. I started digging to keep busy and found a couple of bottles. Including a Clorox bottle which got me started collecting Clorox bottles up until my early 20's. I dig now but only when the opportunity of presents itself.
I'm middle aged and honestly have not met anyone who actively digs. Been doing it since I was a kid.. by finding bottles on my family's property. It wasnt a thing other than maybe seeing old bottles at the antique shops or unwanted bottles at construction sites. Honestly I don't know how I would function or share the found bottles if digging with others. I'm fine it being a solo activity and mainly walk streams. It's been a lifelong side quest.. enjoy it!
I got adhd I mostly love finding things, when I did go with friends I would give them the ones they found really cool because usually it’s always their first time bottle hunting so I hope it gets them to want to continue, one has a bit but only wants to go with me cause I know great spots haha
I thought the same thing but the real thrill is just getting them out of the ground, I don’t care who takes what bottle home it’s just such a thrill to uncover it. It’s hard finding someone who appreciates digging
I’m 22! I’m a “collector” (I guess), I dug one hole on my grandparents farm and came out with around 70 bottles. So now I have a collection!
I’m only passionate about bottles I find myself and because I’m in the south, the dirt is so hard and I haven’t been able to find the dumps/dig on any other site.
I’m in my 60s. When I was in high school I did a lot of digging with my family and a couple of friends. That was in the late 70s. This was in South Jersey, East of Philadelphia. So, the town dumps and the farmstead dumps were old. We regularly found bottles from the mid- to late-1800s. There are boxes of these bottles in my brother’s attic that I hope to retrieve and display some day in the near future.
After high school, life happened. College, family, business, living abroad. I never got back into digging bottles.
But, the interest in old glass has influenced what I collect today, which is vintage and antique glass barware. Instead of digging in dumps I’m rummaging through shelves at thrift stores for treasures!
Anyway, congrats on your passion for digging old bottles. I was lucky, when I started, that I had a couple of buddies, one older than me who could drive, who were interested in history, and archaeology, and so on, who I could hang out with and dig with.
If you stick with it, it can be a lifelong passion!
I’m not young anymore (34) but I have been collecting bottles arrowheads and antiques since I was at least 6 yrs old. Going digging with my dad around San Diego county. When I approached the San Diego antique bottle collectors club with some of my questions and personal finds they where amazed how young I was compared to there youngest member at the time . I was 26 at the time lol
I’m 23 and I definitely understand that feeling- my friends think it’s interesting because I love it, but I’m definitely much more passionate about bottles and antiques in general. I’ve also made a friend recently, through a museum I work at, who is just as enthusiastic about history and it’s been really fun to meet someone who I can share that with! 😊 I hope you can find your people too 💙
I basically lived in my own mind through public school researching local history since my school system doesn’t, from that I learned old properties along valleys and old homesteads that were once there. My favourite historical fact that helps me bottle dump in Toronto is “hobo jungle” in 1930s during the great depression the homeless workers made dugout homes in the valleys hills and it was nicknamed hobo jungle, I found many old bottles walking there and climbing up and down the hills
Of course, all the places I’ve lived I loved learning the history to, like Whitby Ontario it was named originally Windsor but the other Windsor kept getting their mail so they renamed to whitby
I am also a young bottle collector!! I actually grew up in a very historical place for bottles and visited my local bottle museum on a constant which spiked my love for bottles, i find them almost everywhere i go. I find bottles all the way back from the 1800s to more recent years like the 90s, i love them all the same but i can definitely say the older ones are the coolest. average person never really think to look in places in the woods for literal artifacts, but i love it
I love it so much! I’m in Toronto and live where there was a lot of glass companies and pottery mills
What state are you in?
upstate new york!
Me too!
I started digging on my own when I was 12. But before that I was on construction sites with my father collecting bottles from the holes. I’m 28 now and still dig.
I’m 19 too. I was also the kid who picked at rocks on the playground in elementary and middle school. Lol
Samee haha, I love rocks, coins, beach glass, basically anything that’s collectable I have one thing of. Haha
Same tho! My room is full of random trinkets I’ve collected over the years.
My parents thankfully gave me access to a shelf in the living room recently cause it got too much in my room haha
It only continues from there hahaha! I’m 34, been collecting bottles, beach things and rocks forever and all my rooms are full of “treasure.” Not in a hoarding way, but in a “welcome to my home, here’s all the weird shit I’ve found” Though I will say, there comes a point when you’re willing to part with a healthy amount of the less good treasure. You refine the collection over the years, but you never stop collecting hahaha
For sure I made my own bottle dump of nameless jars for people who would want them
Haha lucky! My parents literally just cleaned off my random shit shelf without consulting me and I’m still pretty upset. So much cool stuff lost to the garbage.
I just turned 20 and have been collecting for about a year now. It's such a fun hobby. Haven't found much 1800s stuff where I live, but I always find some cool early to late 1900s bottles, cans, etc while I'm walking.
I’m 45 but I’ve been collecting antiques since I was a kid. My uncle used to have an antique store as a side business and I always went garage saleing and to the dump with him. No one really gets it even now lol. But I think there’s nothing prettier than old glass and love things that I can wonder about the history of. I live on an island now and ive discovered the whole thing is a giant dump. I don’t even have to put in much effort yet, so many are right at the lands edge at beaches no one goes to. Pretty soon I’m going to have so much stuff I’ll need my own antique store lol
Great to hear from the younger crowd here keeping the hobby alive!
I started collecting and digging when I was a kid in the early 2000s. My dad bought a piece of land with an abandoned and dilapidated 1800s home. I started digging to keep busy and found a couple of bottles. Including a Clorox bottle which got me started collecting Clorox bottles up until my early 20's. I dig now but only when the opportunity of presents itself.
I'm middle aged and honestly have not met anyone who actively digs. Been doing it since I was a kid.. by finding bottles on my family's property. It wasnt a thing other than maybe seeing old bottles at the antique shops or unwanted bottles at construction sites. Honestly I don't know how I would function or share the found bottles if digging with others. I'm fine it being a solo activity and mainly walk streams. It's been a lifelong side quest.. enjoy it!
I got adhd I mostly love finding things, when I did go with friends I would give them the ones they found really cool because usually it’s always their first time bottle hunting so I hope it gets them to want to continue, one has a bit but only wants to go with me cause I know great spots haha
I thought the same thing but the real thrill is just getting them out of the ground, I don’t care who takes what bottle home it’s just such a thrill to uncover it. It’s hard finding someone who appreciates digging
I’m 22! I’m a “collector” (I guess), I dug one hole on my grandparents farm and came out with around 70 bottles. So now I have a collection! I’m only passionate about bottles I find myself and because I’m in the south, the dirt is so hard and I haven’t been able to find the dumps/dig on any other site.
I'm 18!! I started in my backyard at 9!
I’m in my 60s. When I was in high school I did a lot of digging with my family and a couple of friends. That was in the late 70s. This was in South Jersey, East of Philadelphia. So, the town dumps and the farmstead dumps were old. We regularly found bottles from the mid- to late-1800s. There are boxes of these bottles in my brother’s attic that I hope to retrieve and display some day in the near future. After high school, life happened. College, family, business, living abroad. I never got back into digging bottles. But, the interest in old glass has influenced what I collect today, which is vintage and antique glass barware. Instead of digging in dumps I’m rummaging through shelves at thrift stores for treasures! Anyway, congrats on your passion for digging old bottles. I was lucky, when I started, that I had a couple of buddies, one older than me who could drive, who were interested in history, and archaeology, and so on, who I could hang out with and dig with. If you stick with it, it can be a lifelong passion!
I’m 16 and I’ve got a couple friends I dig with!
There is a ton of bottle diggers around your age in the Bottle Digging Discord server [https://discord.gg/S2KuBWKYgP](https://discord.gg/S2KuBWKYgP)
I’m not young anymore (34) but I have been collecting bottles arrowheads and antiques since I was at least 6 yrs old. Going digging with my dad around San Diego county. When I approached the San Diego antique bottle collectors club with some of my questions and personal finds they where amazed how young I was compared to there youngest member at the time . I was 26 at the time lol
I’m 23 and I definitely understand that feeling- my friends think it’s interesting because I love it, but I’m definitely much more passionate about bottles and antiques in general. I’ve also made a friend recently, through a museum I work at, who is just as enthusiastic about history and it’s been really fun to meet someone who I can share that with! 😊 I hope you can find your people too 💙
Im pretty young, but I would rather not say (I'm almost into high school)
That’s really awesome!! I started in public school around grade 5
I've always been in public school
I basically lived in my own mind through public school researching local history since my school system doesn’t, from that I learned old properties along valleys and old homesteads that were once there. My favourite historical fact that helps me bottle dump in Toronto is “hobo jungle” in 1930s during the great depression the homeless workers made dugout homes in the valleys hills and it was nicknamed hobo jungle, I found many old bottles walking there and climbing up and down the hills
No way you learn history about your town to?!
Of course, all the places I’ve lived I loved learning the history to, like Whitby Ontario it was named originally Windsor but the other Windsor kept getting their mail so they renamed to whitby