LETTERS
to the Editor
Yellow American Life: The Rest of the Story Hi, John,
Remember the Mampe Bottle Hi, John, In July you had a very interesting article by Frank and Frank Jr. Wicker about the firm of Dr. Carl Mampe. I recently was lucky to acquire this Mampe bottle with the elephant trademark on both sides.
Here is the story about the American Life Bitters from the Ballentine collection. I got a call one day from a friend of my sister-in-law who said she had a bottle she wanted to sell. I believe this was around 1977 or ’78. I went to her house and sitting on top of her refrigerator was a yellowish bottle shaped like a cabin.
Thanks for your help. Regards,
She knew I liked bottles and I thought to myself this could be a good one. We settled on a price of a few hundred dollars. At the time I was teaching school, while my wife stayed home with the small children. Even though I collected bottles and other antiques, I was tempted to make a quick profit. What if I could triple my investment in one day?
Horst Klusmeier Dusseldorf, Germany
I knew Mary Ballantine well. She lived about ten minutes from my house. Mary
In thirty years of collecting I’ve never seen or heard of this bottle. Would you please be so kind and forward this picture to the Franks with the question if they are familiar with this example?
2
Antique Bottle & Glass Collector
came to the door when I knocked. I said, “Mary, would you be interested in this bottle I have for sale?” She said yes, and we made the deal. If I remember right I heard her husband Paul was a little irritated at the purchase. I found out a few years later that the yellow American Life bitters was considered to be one of the special items in Mary’s collection. Pictured (above) is the New Carlisle, Ohio, Kennedy farmstead home of the Ballentine’s American Life Bitters. There was a Kennedy, I believe, involved in the patent of this bitters but I do not know if there was a connection. The bottle sold in September 2020 in the Glassworks auction for $49,000, including sale premium. It was exciting being a part of this bottle’s story. Paul Snyder New Carlisle, Ohio
