FOUNDING THE T. C. WHEATON COMPANY:
On October 24, 1888, Dr. Theodore C. Wheaton, a pharmacist and practicing physician, purchased controlling interest in the Shull, Goodwin glass company of Millville, New Jersey and renamed it the T. C. Wheaton Company. The newly renamed company would specialize in the manufacture of ampules and vials for the medical and research laboratories. The quality and precision of the glass implements manufactured by the T. C. Wheaton Company quickly gained favor in the medical and scientific community enabling a growth and expansion of the manufacturing plant as well as leading to new product offerings. EXPANSION OF THE T. C. WHEATON COMPANY:
In 1892 400 acres of adjoining property was purchased to facilitate the manufacturing operation. Because of the familiarity of the chemists involved in the production of perfumes it was not unexpected that the Wheaton Company would be called on to produce perfume bottles in addition to their scientific glass production which led to another facility expansion in 1937 to accommodate the growing consumer products division. On March 1, 1946 the Wheaton Glass Company was established to delineate the different productions. This increased capacity together with their growing reputation made them a robust producer of glass bottles for distilled spirits. DESIGNING JEANNIE’S BOTTLE:
Mr. Martin Lewin, President of the Jim Beam Distillery traveled through Europe several times annually to visit various distilleries and inspect the operations of the European branch of the Jim Beam Company. It was on one such tour through Germany in Autumn of 1963 that Mr. Lewin viewed a cut crystal decanter of relatively the same size and shape of what would eventually become Jeannie’s bottle. In communications with the T. C. Wheaton Company, Mr. Lewin described the decanter to Jack Becker, the conceptual artist at the T. C. Wheaton Company. Mr. Becker worked up a series of sketches depicting the decanter as described by Mr. Lewin and one the preliminary concept was approved the artwork was forwarded to Roy Cramer, the bottle architect. Mr. Cramer was responsible for translating Mr. Becker’s concepts into a bottle that would hold the required volume, provide for standardized corkage and be easily manufactured on the plant’s glass molding and pressing equipment. The blueprint of the bottle, pictured above, was completed on March 23, 1964 and following their approval by Mr. Lewing the bottle went into production the summer of 1964 with a run of 500,000 to 600,000. The blueprints appear on eBay periodically. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:
Follow the links below for additional information on the T. C Wheaton Company and the Wheaton Arts and Cultural Center formerly the Wheaton Village. | 
