Wandering around the site of old encampments

Manganese dioxide was once used as a clarification agent in glass, mostly between 1880 and 1914. When such treated glass is exposed to ultraviolet light – say intense desert sun – over a period of decades, it turns purple from exposure.

Shards of purple glass are sure signs of “settlement”, even if said settlement consisted of a handful of tents lasting only long enough to establish that this strike wasn’t the strike.

When I think about it, I was wandering around these places in the late 70s – pushing all too hard on 50 years ago. I used to find almost-complete purple bottles; now a complete top such as this is becoming rare. Hell, all of that is becoming rare.

I left it behind.

I’ve only found one complete unblemished bottle in all my searching – not that I bottle hunted in many of the places I poked around. For those that know railroads, there was a Wye for helper engines near the 10,000+ft Tennessee Pass station on the D&RGW. I was up there one spring poking around back by the tail end of the wye when a portion of the bottle had been exposed by melting snow and rain.

There was no label or markings – no surprise – but the presence of air bubbles in the glass suggest a date before 1920. Perhaps it too would be purple if it had been exposed to the sun.

I can imagine some engineman sitting out in a winter night at treeline, baby-sitting the engine, waiting for the next assignment; burning or freezing at turns around the engine – a contraband bottle of warm keeping him company.

The call comes, the bottle of warmth is emptied and tossed off in the weeds where it won’t be readily visible should someone bother looking.

The engine rolls on.

That bottle looked at me liked a bedraggled hungry kitten – I just had to take it home and adopt it.