Lot of 6 Antique Keene NH Druggist Bottles Dort Chandler Bullard Shedd Cheshire For Sale

**Item:** Antique Pharmacy / Druggist Prescription Bottle Collection

**Origin:** Keene, New Hampshire (NH)

**Era:** Circa 1880s–1900s (Pre-machine, tooled cork tops, corks not included)

**Quantity:** 6 Bottles total

**Local Businesses Included:**

- Do,rt & Chandler Druggists

- Bullard & Shedd Pharmacists

- Cheshire House Drug Store

1. Bullard & Shedd Co. Pharmacists (Tallest, Back Left)Embossing: THE BULLARD & SHEDD CO. / PHARMACISTS / KEENE, N.H. inside an elegant embossed crest / mortar-and-pestle motif.Shape & Features: Large, rectangular prescription style with deeply chamfered edges and a thick, hand-tooled patent lip designed for cork sealing.Historical Context: Founded in 1884, Bullard & Shedd was located at 37 Central Square on the corner of Main and Winter Streets. It stood as the oldest operating drugstore in Keene and one of the longest-running pharmacies in New Hampshire history, operating all the way until 2000. Because this bottle carries the corporate \"Co.\" designation, it likely dates to the later window of their early period, roughly 1895–1908.

2. Dort & Chandler Druggists (Large Center and Smaller Horizontal)Embossing: DORT & CHANDLER / DRUGGISTS / KEENE, N.H. wrapped around a deeply embossed apothecary mortar and pestle graphic.Shape & Features: You have two distinct sizes of this variant. A medium 4-5oz rectangular panel flask standing upright in the center, and a smaller 2oz pocket prescription flask lying horizontally in the foreground. Both have classic flared, tooled collar rims.Historical Context: Dort & Chandler was one of the most prolific and celebrated Victorian-era medical partnerships in Cheshire County, established on Keene\'s Central Square in the mid-19th century. They were famous regional distributors for major national cures of the 1880s (such as Horsford\'s Acid Phosphate and Lydia Pinkham\'s Vegetable Compound). These graphic variants featuring the mortar-and-pestle emblem are highly sought after compared to plain text versions, dating cleanly to circa 1880–1895.

3. Cheshire House Drug Store (Center Right)Embossing: CHESHIRE HOUSE / DRUG STORE / KEENE, N.H. wrapped in an elegant, stacked text configuration.Shape & Features: Rectangular, clear glass pharmacy paneled bottle with crisp, indented panels to protect the hand-embossed lettering from clashing with other bottles in transport.Historical Context: This bottle holds immense cross-collectible appeal for local historians. It was the dedicated pharmacy housed within or directly adjacent to the legendary Cheshire House hotel, the massive, multi-story brick luxury hotel that dominated downtown Keene\'s Central Square throughout the 19th and early 20th centuries. This piece speaks directly to the bustling traveler and tourism commerce of Victorian-era New Hampshire, dating to circa 1885–1900.

4. Fluted Hexagonal \"Slug Plate\" Bottle (Bottom Left)Embossing: Features an elaborate multi-sided shape with an architectural frame/slug-plate on the front panel containing a distinct mortar and pestle emblem.Shape & Features: Multi-sided (hexagonal) body, muddy amber/aqua antique patina, with a distinct short-neck tooled lip. Multi-sided bottles were purposefully designed this way in the 19th century so a patient could reach into a dark medicine cabinet or drawer and instantly recognize by touch that the contents were a potent remedy (such as liniments, tooth washes, or targeted nerve tonics) rather than standard table water.Historical Context: This represents an earlier form of proprietary prescription bottle, likely dating to the 1880s. The detailed multi-sided mold makes it visually unique and excellent for display.

5. Plain Tapered Paneled Pharmacy Bottle (Far Right)Embossing: Features faint vertical paneled text or a generic local druggist imprint near the bottom face.Shape & Features: Classic French-square or long oval prescription style. It possesses an asymmetrical neck finish with an uneven, hand-applied tooled collar—clearly showing the stretch marks and tiny seed air bubbles in the glass neck where the glassblower manipulated the hot rim before it cooled.Historical Context: A standard daily workhorse of late-Victorian New England pharmacies, dating circa 1890–1905.

**Condition:** Antique, ground-found/attic-found condition. Expect minor cloudiness, light surface scuffs, and interior residue characteristic of age.

No major cracks found [Please see photos for exact lip conditions, one shows an interior crack that can not be felt, appears sturdy, see photo]. One bottle looks melted over and has some smooth top chips.

Please inspect photos, they are part of the description.

**Shipping:** Will be carefully wrapped individually in bubble wrap and securely packed. Combined shipping available.