Blenko Glass Company

{{further|Indiana gas boom}}

File:Map of the Indiana natural gas field with Kokomo circled and state inset.png William John Blenko, the founder of Blenko Glass Company, was born in London during 1854. At the age of{{nbsp}}10 he began working as an apprentice in a London bottle glass works, where he learned the basics of glassmaking.{{harvnb|Shotwell|2002|p=43}} He studied chemistry and learned to produce sheet glass.{{harvnb|Crain|2004}} Producing glass in England, he shipped his product to the United States.{{cite news

|title=West Virginia Upholds Venice (page B-2)

|url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83045462/1956-05-15/ed-1/seq-35/#date1=1890&index=1&rows=20&words=BLENKO+Blenko&searchType=basic&sequence=0&state=&date2=1963&proxtext=Blenko&y=0&x=0&dateFilterType=yearRange&page=1

|newspaper=Washington Evening Star (from Chronicling America: Historic American Newspapers. Lib. of Congress)

|date=May 15, 1956

|last=Vaughan

|first=Mary L.}} Blenko's first attempt to start a glass factory in the United States was in Kokomo, Indiana, during January 1893. His plant site was adjacent to the Belt Railroad, and he brought his own equipment.{{multiref|{{harvnb|Shotwell|2002|p=43}};|{{cite news

|last=

|first=

|title=Community History - 75 years Ago (4th paragraph)

|newspaper=Kokomo Tribune (Newspaper Archive)

|page = 6

|date = January 28, 1968

|quote=William Blenko, an English glass manufacturer, has arrived in Kokomo.}}}}{{#tag:ref|In 1886, a large quantity of natural was discovered in Indiana. Affecting 25 counties in the state including Howard County and the city of Kokomo, the amount of gas was large enough that it could be used for fuel. This low-cost fuel attracted glass factories, and by 1893 the number of glass factories in the state had increased to 45 from only one in 1886.{{harvnb|Peelle Jr|1894|pp=525–526}}|group=Note}} An 1896 insurance map shows a small unnamed glass works next to the Belt Railroad that was very small compared to the other two glass works in town.{{cite web

|title=Sanborn Fire Insurance Map from Kokomo, Howard County, Indiana. (images 13 and 19)

|publisher=Sanborn Map Company (U.S. Library of Congress)

|url=https://www.loc.gov/item/sanborn02382_004/

|access-date=October 10, 2024}}{{#tag:ref|A Sanborn Fire Insurance map for Kokomo as of March 1896 shows Pittsburgh Plate Glass (image 13), Opalescent Glass Works (image 19), and a small unnamed glass factory (image 19) near the Belt Railroad.|group=Note}}

Blenko's Kokomo glass business failed after about ten years. The reasons for the failure are: (1) an economic depression (the Panic of 1893) and additional recessions throughout the decade; (2) increased foreign competition because of the Wilson–Gorman Tariff Act of 1894; and (3) Americans believed that European glass was superior.{{multiref|{{harvnb|Shotwell|2002|p=43}};|{{cite web

|title=The Depression of 1893

|website=Economic History Association

|url=https://eh.net/encyclopedia/the-depression-of-1893/#:~:text=By%201890%2C%20the%20US%20economy,produced%20in%20manufacturing%20and%20mining.

|access-date=July 10, 2023

|archive-date=March 19, 2017

|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170319224742/https://eh.net/encyclopedia/the-depression-of-1893/#:~:text=By%201890%2C%20the%20US%20economy,produced%20in%20manufacturing%20and%20mining.

|url-status=live

}};| {{cite web

|title= US Business Cycle Expansions and Contractions

|publisher= National Bureau of Economic Research

|url= https://www.nber.org/research/data/us-business-cycle-expansions-and-contractions

|access-date= March 31, 2023

|archive-date= December 1, 2019

|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20191201170039/https://www.nber.org/cycles/cyclesmain.html

|url-status= live

}};| {{harvnb|Fones-Wolf|2007|p=11}};| {{harvnb|Shotwell|2002|p=43}}}} It is believed that Blenko resorted to shipping his glass to England, and then back, to give the appearance of European glass that appealed to potential customers.{{#tag:ref|A newspaper advertisement from 1956 repeats the claim of shipping to and from England.{{cite news

|last=

|first=

|title=Blenko Glass Chat with the Steele's - Steele's Patio Shop

|newspaper=San Rafael Daily Independent Journal (Newspaper Archive)

|page = M12 (29)

|date = August 25, 1956

|quote=For a while the wily Blenko shipped the product of his Indiana plant back to England—and re-imported it.}}|group=Note}} After the business failed, Blenko and his family moved back to London during July 1905.{{cite news

|last=

|first=

|title=(2nd column from left, almost half way down)

|newspaper=Kokomo Daily Tribune (Newspaper Archive)

|page = 6

|date = July 20, 1905

|quote=The family of William Blenko left today for New York, from which place they will set sail for London, England, to make their mother country their future home.}}{{#tag:ref|While a newspaper said that Blenko's family moved to England during 1905, another source says that Blenko returned to England in 1904 to start a glass factory.{{multiref|{{cite news

|last=

|first=

|title=(2nd column from left, almost half way down)

|newspaper=Kokomo Daily Tribune (Newspaper Archive)

|page = 6

|date = July 20, 1905

|quote=The family of William Blenko left today for New York, from which place they will set sail for London, England, to make their mother country their future home.}};|{{cite news

|last=Grimmett

|first=Mary Lee

|title=Sand to Shimmering Glass

|newspaper=Charleston Daily Mail (Newspaper Archive)

|page = 9

|date = March 29, 1958

|quote=Blenko returned to England in 1904 and opened another factory producing the same type of glass.}}}}|group=Note}} Producing the same glass in England, Blenko was able to sell his imported glass to glass studios in the United States.{{cite news

|last=Grimmett

|first=Mary Lee

|title=Sand to Shimmering Glass

|newspaper=Charleston Daily Mail (Newspaper Archive)

|page = 9

|date = March 29, 1958

|quote=Blenko returned to England...opened another factory producing the same type of glass.}} Blenko and family returned to the United States about 14 months later, and decided to have a permanent home in Pennsylvania.{{multiref|{{cite news

|last=

|first=

|title=(3rd column from left at bottom)

|newspaper=Kokomo Daily Tribune (Newspaper Archive)

|page = 7

|date = September 28, 1906

|quote=William Blenko and wife, the well known socialists, have returned from an extended visit in England, their native land.}};| {{cite news

|last=

|first=

|title=(4th column from left near bottom)

|newspaper=Kokomo Daily Tribune (Newspaper Archive)

|page = 5

|date = October 1, 1906

|quote=...Blenko, who recently returned from England, have decided to locate permanently in Pennsylvania.}}}}

File:BlenkoAntiqueArtGlassCompany.png

Blenko's next attempt to start a glass works in America was at Point Marion, Pennsylvania. A fire insurance map published September 1909 shows a small "Blenko Glass Works" located near the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad line along with several other glass factories.{{Cite map

|author = Sanborn Fire Insurance

|year = 1909

|title = Sanborn Fire Insurance Map from Point Marion, Fayette County, Pennsylvania. (see image 4)

|url=https://www.loc.gov/item/sanborn07914_001/

|location = Pelham, New York

|publisher = Sanborn Map Company (U.S. Library of Congress)

|accessdate=October 11, 2024}} Blenko abandoned this glass works when he built a factory in Clarksburg, West Virginia, where fuel was cheaper. Construction of the Clarksburg glass works began during late summer 1911.{{cite news

|title=Another Factory Will Be Erected (page 1)

|url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn85059715/1911-07-22/ed-1/seq-1/#date1=1890&index=18&rows=20&words=Blenko&searchType=basic&sequence=0&state=&date2=1963&proxtext=Blenko&y=0&x=0&dateFilterType=yearRange&page=1

|newspaper=Clarksburg Daily Telegram

|date=July 22, 1911

|last=

|first=}} A significant factor in the 1913 failure of the Clarksburg works, known as the Blenko Antique Art Glass Company, was the Underwood-Simmons Act that reduced the tariff rate on imported glass.{{multiref|{{cite web

|title=Office of the Historian - Protectionism in the Interwar Period

|website=Office of the Historian, Foreign Service Institute - United States Department of State

|url=https://history.state.gov/milestones/1921-1936/protectionism

|access-date=October 24, 2024

|archive-date=October 6, 2024

|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241006195131/https://history.state.gov/milestones/1921-1936/protectionism

|url-status=live

}}; | {{cite news

|last=Katonak

|first=Lynne

|title=Blown away by Blenko (Blenko bits)

|newspaper=Aiken Standard (Newspaper Archive)

|page = 1C (25)

|date = August 25, 2002

|quote=Then, in 1913, a 4 per cent tariff reduction on imported glass shrank an important share of the market, forcing Blenko to close his shop.}}}}

File:BlenkoAd1917.png

After the third failure, Blenko remained in the United States. A 1916 newspaper notice shows that a William Blenko had a telephone line in Lancaster, Ohio.{{cite news

|last=

|first=

|title=Central Union (far right column)

|newspaper=Lancaster Daily Gazette (Newspaper Archive)

|page = 6

|date = September 19, 1916

|quote=List Showing New Bell Telephone Subscribers....}} A stained glass trade magazine for July 1917 contained an advertisement at the bottom of page one that simply said "Antique{{nbsp}}-{{nbsp}}if you want any, address W. Blenko" with an address of Follansbee, West Virginia.{{harvnb|Flanagan|1917|p=1}} By July 1920 Blenko was apparently living on Wheeling Street in Lancaster, Ohio. He posted in classified advertising that he wanted a position in glassmaking, and that he could make "every variety of color including opal and opalescent".{{harvnb|Hammer|1920|p=30}}

{{further|Glassmaking at Blenko Glass Company}}

File:EurekaArtGlass1926.png

In the January 1922 edition of a glass trade magazine, it was noted that a "W. Blenko, of Lancaster, Ohio" recently purchased land at Huntington, West Virginia, and he expected a plant for the manufacture of colored antique glass would be operating by mid-March 1922.{{harvnb|Krak|1922|p=23}} Blenko named his new glass business Eureka Art Glass Company.{{#tag:ref|Gallerist Damon Crain wrote that Blenko's Eureka Art Glass Company was founded in December 1921.{{harvnb|Crain|2007}}|group=Note}} By 1923 the company was listed as an antiques and specialties business, and it had eight employees.{{harvnb|Daugherty|1924|p=62}} A new Eureka employee was William Henry Blenko Sr., who joined his father's company during the year. Born in 1897, he was described as "energetic and commercially astute" and an important contributor to the company's success.

Instead of using the new automated Colburn process to make flat glass, or the Lubbers machine to blow the glass without human glassblowers, Blenko's antique flat glass was made using a variation of the older cylinder method. Blenko's process involved hand blowing the glass into a cylinder inside of a mold, cutting the glass lengthwise, and flattening it in an oven—a system that made the glass appear old.{{multiref|{{cite news

|last=

|first=

|title=Taking panes for the White House

|newspaper=Frederick News Post (Newspaper Archive)

|page = B-7 (15)

|date = May 1, 1995

|quote=Antique glass has lines, tool marks, waves and bubbles.}};|{{harvnb|Shotwell|2002|p=95}};|{{harvnb|Shotwell|2002|p=309}}}} William Blenko filed for a patent on this process in 1924, and the patent was granted in 1926.{{cite patent

| country =U.S.

| number =1,583,441

| status =patent

| title =Art Glass and Method of Making the Same

| pubdate =

| gdate =May 4, 1926

| fdate =February 26, 1924

| pridate =

| inventor =William Blenko

| url =https://patentimages.storage.googleapis.com/9c/c0/52/9978ab52194873/US1583441.pdf

}}

Another innovation for the elder Blenko was his 1924 success in developing a formula for ruby-red glass that could be reheated without altering its color. By 1926, Eureka Art Glass could replicate most of the glass used in old European stained glass windows.{{harvnb|Flanagan|1928|p=8–9}} One use of Eureka Art Glass in this form was for the stained glass windows of the Liverpool Cathedral in England in 1927.{{multiref|{{harvnb|Blenko Glass Company|2002|p=2}};| {{harvnb|Jackson|2000|p=31}}}} Business improved enough that in 1928 plans were made to erect a larger plant.{{harvnb|Flanagan|1928|p=9}}

File:CarboneImporter.png

An economic depression began in the United States during August 1929, becoming known as the Great Depression.{{cite web

|title=The Great Depression 1929-1941

|website=Federal Reserve History

|url=https://www.federalreservehistory.org/essays/great-depression

|access-date=October 21, 2024

}} The downturn caused a sharp decrease in demand for stained glass. To keep the business from failing, William Henry Blenko championed producing an additional line of glass: decorative glassware.{{multiref|{{harvnb|Crain|2004}};| {{harvnb|Crain|2007}}}} Because the Blenkos only knew how to make flat glass, they hired two Swedish-American brothers from the Huntington Tumbler Company to train Eureka employees in glassware production. The brothers were Louis Miller (a finisher) and Axel Muller (a glassblower), and they had been trained at the Kosta glass works in Sweden.

The Eureka glassware products were originally sold by Carbone and Sons of Boston, which was a reseller of high-quality Italian goods. Eureka wares had Italian and Scandinavian influences on their designs, and took advantage of the company's ability to create hundreds of shades of colored glass. Carbone's sales brochure called the glassware "Kenova" glass, and said it was made in the foothills of West Virginia by foreign craftsmen. Aware that glassware made by Eureka Art Glass could have trouble competing with European makers, an editorial in the May 1932 issue of Carbone's sales brochure known as The Shard described tool marks and unevenness in hand blown glassware as qualities to be desired. The writer of the article was "W.H.B", and one author says the writer was "presumably William Henry Blenko".

File:Blenko Williamsburg.jpg

Eureka Art Glass Company was renamed Blenko Glass Company during August 1930. An advertisement in the December 1931 edition of a Charleston newspaper said that "distinctive and different hand made" glassware could be purchased at the Milton factory, and used the name Blenko Glass Company.{{cite news

|last=

|first=

|title=A Gift For That Fastidious Friend (advertisement)

|newspaper=Charleston Daily Mail (Newspaper Archive)

|page = 18

|date = December 11, 1931

|quote=Distinctive and different....}} During 1932, Blenko glass was used for windows in the American Memorial chapel on the Meuse-Argonne battlefield at Romagna, France. The artists designing the windows preferred the Blenko glass because of the colors available and the texture of the glass.{{cite news

|last=

|first=

|title=Made at Milton (near bottom of page)

|newspaper=Charleston Gazette (Newspaper Archive)

|page = *9 (19)

|date = September 4, 1932

|quote=The work of this art glass company has been used in some of the greatest churches and cathedrals in this country and abroad.}} William J. Blenko died suddenly on November 24, 1933, at the age of 79.{{cite news

|last=

|first=

|title=William Blenko - Glass Manufacturer in Huntington Dies Suddenly

|newspaper=Portsmouth Times (Newspaper Archive)

|page = 12

|date = November 25, 1933

|quote=William Blenko, 79, for years a prominent glass manufacturer....}} His son, William Henry Blenko Sr. became company president.{{harvnb|Blenko Glass Company|2002|p=2}}

After discussions that occurred in 1936, the Blenko Glass Company was contracted in 1937 to produce all glass reproductions for the Colonial Williamsburg restoration project.{{harvnb|Byrd|1963|p=A4043}}{{#tag:ref|Three additional sources, two 1937 editions of newspapers and a museum's book, use 1937 as the year Blenko received the contract to produce glassware for Colonial Williamsburg.{{multiref|{{cite news

|last=

|first=

|title=State News In Brief - Huntington

|newspaper=Charleston Daily Mail (Newspaper Archive)

|page = 3

|date = April 14, 1937

|quote=The Blenko Glass company received a contract for making reproductions of colonial glassware to be used in the Williamsburg, Va., restoration project.}};| {{cite news

|last=

|first=

|title=To Copy Glassware (bottom of page)

|newspaper=Beckley Post Herald (Newspaper Archive)

|page = 1

|date = April 14, 1937

|quote=The Blenko Glass company received a contract for making reproductions....}};| {{harvnb|Venable|Denker|Grier|Harrison|2000|p=353}}}} Two other sources, Shotwell and a Blenko timeline from 2002, use 1936.{{multiref|{{harvnb|Shotwell|2002|p=43}};| {{harvnb|Blenko Glass Company|2002|p=2}}}}|group=Note}} The original quality and shapes of the Williamsburg glassware were determined by glass fragments found on site. Using the company's old-style process, Blenko glassblowers were able to replicate the original glassware.{{cite news

|title=West Virginia Upholds Venice

|url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83045462/1956-05-15/ed-1/seq-35/#date1=1936&index=0&rows=20&searchType=advanced&language=&sequence=0&words=Blenko+BLENKO+Williamsburg&proxdistance=5&date2=1963&ortext=&proxtext=&phrasetext=&andtext=Blenko+Williamsburg&dateFilterType=yearRange&page=1

|newspaper=Washington Evening Star (from Chronicling America: Historic American Newspapers. Lib. of Congress)

|date=May 15, 1956

|last=Vaughan

|first=Mary L.}} For its own line of glassware, the company began producing a somewhat rectangular water bottle in 1938, which is still being produced in the 21st century.{{cite web

|title=Blenko Glass Company - Producing Glass

|website=Bard Graduate Center (Bard College)

|url=https://exhibitions.bgc.bard.edu/studioglasshistory/places/blenko-glass-company/

|access-date=November 12, 2024

|archive-date=August 17, 2024

|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240817131146/https://exhibitions.bgc.bard.edu/studioglasshistory/places/blenko-glass-company/

|url-status=live

}}

File:BlenkoFactory1944InsMap.png

During 1947 the company hired Winslow Anderson as its first full-time designer, and the company began to establish itself as a leader in contemporary art glass.{{#tag:ref|Art glass is considered glassware made more for ornamental purposes than utilitarian, and is typically made in limited quantities.{{harvnb|Shotwell|2002|pp=19–20}}|group=Note}} During the same year, the company received a new charter on May 1. The firm was incorporated by "W. H. Blenko, Marion H. Blenko, and W. H. Blenko Jr." with a capitalization of $250,000.{{cite news

|last=

|first=

|title=State Charters Seven Concerns

|newspaper=Charleston Daily Mail (Newspaper Archive)

|page = 14

|date = May 1, 1947

|quote=The Blenko Glass Company, Inc., of Milton, Cabell county....}}{{#tag:ref|Marion Hunt Blenko (1900–1989) was the wife of Willam H. Blenko Sr. She would eventually be the secretary-treasurer of the board of directors of Blenko Glass Company. She was also the daughter of Henry Hunt, of Hunt Stained Glass Studios in Pittsburgh.{{harvnb|Unknown|1989|p=180}}|group=Note}} Blenko's son, William H. Blenko Jr., had joined the company in 1946—a third generation of the Blenko family.

The Blenko Glass plant employed 115 people near the end of 1950. Daily production was about 1,000 square feet of stained glass sheets and about 3,000 pieces of glassware. William H. Blenko Sr. was the president, and his son William H. Blenko Jr. was company secretary and plant manager.{{cite news

|last=Boggs

|first=Neil

|title=Rt. 60 Village is Composite of Small Towns

|newspaper=Charleston Gazette (Newspaper Archive)

|page = 13 of Section 2 (37)

|date = November 26, 1950

|quote=Exquisite glass products from the Blenko Glass Co. plant have made Milton world-famous....}} The factory was producing about 280 types of glassware sold by retailers throughout the world. Its flat glass was produced in about 1,000 different tints.{{cite news

|last=Downs

|first=Bill

|title=Many Tourists Drawn to Milton to See Production of Famed Blenko Glassware

|newspaper=Charleston Gazette (Newspaper Archive)

|page = 28 (66)

|date = April 30, 1950

|quote=...Blenko Glass Co., which is one of the nation's leading producers of fine quality handmade glassware and antique stained glass....}}

In 1955 Blenko Glass became the first American manufacturer of a thick slab type of glass previously made in France known as {{Lang|fr|dalle de verre}}.{{multiref|{{harvnb|Blenko Glass Company|2002|p=2}};| {{harvnb|Shotwell|2002|p=127}}}}{{#tag:ref|The term {{Lang|fr|"dalle de verre"}} translates from French to "glass slab".{{cite web

|title=Dalle de verre Sample - Margaret Traherne (1919-2006) - The Stained Glass Museum

|publisher=The Stained Glass Museum, Cambridgeshire England

|url=https://artuk.org/discover/artworks/dalle-de-verre-sample-328054

|access-date=May 8, 2025}}|group=Note}} Blenko's {{Lang|fr|dalle de verre}} was used in the 1964 New York World's Fair at the Hall of Science.{{harvnb|Blenko Glass Company|2002|p=2}} By the beginning of 1965, Blenko had grown to 160 employees, and continued to produce glass using its handcrafted method.{{cite news

|last=

|first=

|title=Blenko Glass Exhibit Scheduled Thursday and Friday

|newspaper=San Antonio Express and News (Newspaper Archive)

|page = 2G (67)

|date = February 28, 1965

|quote=Contemporary shapes, subtle and brilliantly beautiful colors....}}

File:Blenko Glass Visitor Center.jpg

William H. Blenko's wish for a visitor center became reality when the center was dedicated in 1966. The two-story building has an outlet on the first floor that sells factory seconds that have minor flaws. The upstairs is a museum with products on display such as stained glass, the Colonial Williamsburg restoration glass, and collectable pieces. It is also the starting point for tours of the factory.{{cite news

|last=Fields

|first=Dan

|title=Blenko Unveils $175,000 Tourist Center At Milton (Newspaper Archive)

|page = 2

|date = July 28, 1966

|quote=The tourist facility, long a dream of the son of the founder, William H. Blenko Sr., was dedicated today....}}

Blenko died on March 11, 1969, only three years after the visitor center dedication.{{cite news

|last=

|first=

|title=Head of Blenko Glass Co. Dies

|newspaper=Raleigh Register (Beckley, West Virginia)(Newspaper Archive)

|page = 30 (29)

|date = March 12, 1969

|quote=}} His son, William H. Blenko Jr., became company president. In 1972, the Blenko Visitor Center and Museum was visited by as many as 2,000 people per day during the tourist season.{{cite news

|last=

|first=

|title=Morgan Museum Finds New Home at Milton

|newspaper=Charleston Gazette (Newspaper Archive)

|page = 7A (7)

|date = April 1, 1972

|quote=The Morgan Museum near St. Albans has found a new home, a site adjacent to the Blenko Glass Co. Visitors Center at Milton.}} Stained glass windows made by Blenko were still popular in 1974, and a major reason was the "vivid, clear colors" of the glass.{{cite news

|last=

|first=

|title=Sweep of Color Captured in Glass

|newspaper=Charleston Daily Mail (Newspaper Archive)

|page = 1

|date = June 22, 1974

|quote=You are looking at nearly $20,000 worth of stained glass art work.}}

During the 1980s and 1990s, the company became the manufacturer of various award trophies, such as the Country Music Award and an Indy Racing League award. The company made glassware used at President Ronald Reagan's inaugural dinners in 1981. Because of high prices for natural gas and inexpensive imports, 1982 was a difficult year for glass makers.{{cite news

|last=

|first=

|title=Imports, Gas Prices Squeeze Glass Makers

|newspaper=Bluefield Daily Telegraph (Newspaper Archive)

|page = 25 (47)

|date = December 9, 1982

|quote=...state manufacturers have been forced to lay off employees....}}

File:Blenko glassware ruby and clearCropped.jpg

By 1990, Blenko was one of the few glass factories still operating in West Virginia.{{cite news

|last=Barber

|first=Curt

|title=Glass collection on display at Craft Memorial Library

|newspaper=Bluefield Daily Telegraph (Newspaper Archive)

|page = B1 (9)

|date = January 23, 1990

|quote=Blenko (in Milton) is the only one left.}} As of 1995, about 30 percent of Blenko's business was flat glass such as hand-blown window panes. The remaining 70 percent was glassware such as bottles, vases, and lamps. Blenko Glass Company employed about 130 workers.{{cite news

|last=Nussbaum

|first=Nancy

|title=White House windowpanes must meet standards of being 'perfectly imperfect'

|newspaper=Clearfield Progress (Newspaper Archive)

|page = Two (24)

|date = May 30, 1995

|quote=...Blenko has developed prototypes for White House review.}} Blenko had produced the glass globes for lights at the United States Capitol, and was involved with replacement windows for the White House. Blenko glassware was sold at Bloomingdale's, Nordstrom, and Sharper Image.

Richard D. Blenko had joined the company in 1976, and he represented the fourth generation of the Blenko family. He became president of the company in 1996. He often promoted Blenko glassware by making appearances at retailers to interact with customers. He was also involved with documentary films about the company.{{multiref|{{cite news

|last=

|first=

|title=It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas at Art Institute gift shop

|newspaper=Orland Park Star (Newspaper Archive)

|page = D-3 (25)

|date = November 17, 1996

|quote=Richard Blenko of Blenko...will be available from 10:30 a.m. until 4 p.m.}};| {{cite news

|last=

|first=

|title=A Family Name in Glass

|newspaper=Olney Enterprise (Newspaper Archive)

|page = 22

|date = March 18, 2004

|quote=When Richard Blenko began working....}}}} Near the end of the century, a PBS documentary called "Hearts of Glass: The Story of Blenko Handcraft" was released that described William J. Blenko's quest to produce glass in the United States.{{multiref|{{cite news

|last=Davis

|first=Bev

|title=A ministry of light and color

|newspaper=Beckley Register Herald (Newspaper Archive)

|page = E1 (43) Tempo

|date = July 11, 1999

|quote="Hearts of Glass: The Story of Blenko Handcraft" will be shown....}};|{{cite news

|last=

|first=

|title=Tuesday Prime Time (PBS 44, 8:00)

|newspaper=Dover New Philadelphia Times Reporter (Newspaper Archive)

|page = 16 (52) of Showcase Television Magazine March 14-March 21

|date = March 14, 1999

|quote=The dream of English immigrant William John Blenko to produce....}}}} Additional documentaries were produced, including "Blenko Retro: Three Designers of American Glass" (2001); and "Blenko - Spirit of American Stained Glass" (2005).{{multiref|{{cite news

|last=

|first=

|title=Saturday Afternoon - December 1, 2001 (channel 46)

|newspaper=Daily Review (Newspaper Archive)

|page = 11 of TV Week (57)

|date = November 25, 2001

|quote=The people and ideas behind Blenko's production....}};|{{cite news

|last=

|first=

|title=Think TV PBS - Blenko Spirit of American Stained Glass

|newspaper=Middletown Journal (Newspaper Archive)

|page = A9 (9)

|date = March 9, 2005

|quote=The history of the Blenko Glass Company and its influence on American stained glass and art glass.}};|{{cite web

|title=WorldCat - Blenko retro : three designers of American glass

|website= WorldCat

|url=https://search.worldcat.org/title/blenko-retro-three-designers-of-american-glass/oclc/49807613

|access-date=May 9, 2025}}}} Even more documentaries were produced more recently, such as "Blenko Glass: Behind the Scenes" (2012); "Blenko Glass: Creating Iowa Sunrise" (2015); and "Blenko Glass - The Collectors" (2020).{{multiref|{{cite news

|last=

|first=

|title=Movies this week - Wednesday Evening (13 WQED) - Blenko Glass: Behind the Scenes

|newspaper=New Castle News (Newspaper Archive)

|page = 33

|date = November 23, 2012

|quote=Go behind the scenes at Blenko Glassworks}};|{{cite news

|last=

|first=

|title=Monday Evening Mar. 2 (IPT)

|newspaper=Cedar Rapids Gazette (Newspaper Archive)

|page = 48

|date = February 28, 2015

|quote=Blenko Glass: Creating Iowa Sunrise}};|{{cite news

|last=

|first=

|title=TV/Weather (IPT-PBS)

|newspaper=Cedar Rapids Gazette (Newspaper Archive)

|page = 19

|date = March 2, 2020

|quote=Blenko Glass: The Collectors (TVG) cc}}}}

Water bottles in a variety of colors were still the company's most popular product.{{cite news

|last=

|first=

|title=Travel - From page 9

|newspaper=New Castle News (Newspaper Archive)

|page = 13

|date = July 7, 2003

|quote=...most popular item—water bottles in a variety of colors with a $11.50 price tag.}} A problem for Blenko was that glassmaking in the United States had begun a gradual decline in the 1990s.{{cite news

|title=Glassmaking Thrives Offshore, but Is Declining in U.S.

|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/19/business/19glass.html

|access-date=November 8, 2024

|newspaper=New York Times

|date=January 18, 2010

|last=Uchitelle

|first=Louis

|archive-date=November 8, 2024

|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241108233105/https://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/19/business/19glass.html

|url-status=live

}} In 2003 Dean Six, curator of the West Virginia Museum of American Glass, believed that it was not foreign competition that was causing financial problems for American glass factories. He said the problem was that people "weren't buying glass at all".{{cite news

|last=

|first=

|title=Glass industry is changing, but still holding on

|newspaper=Bluefield Daily Telegraph (Newspaper Archive)

|page = A-11 (20)

|date = July 27, 2003

|quote=We don't need two or three sets of glassware any more.}} He also said that plastic did not exist 100 years ago, and that people stopped having family meals after World War II.

File:BlenkoVase1.jpg

The Great Recession, beginning in December 2007 and ending in June 2009, accelerated the American glass industry's decline.{{multiref|{{cite web

|title=The Great Recession

|website=Federal Reserve History

|url=https://www.federalreservehistory.org/essays/great-recession-of-200709

|access-date=November 8, 2024

|archive-date=October 8, 2024

|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241008213208/https://www.federalreservehistory.org/essays/great-recession-of-200709

|url-status=live

}}| {{cite web

|title= US Business Cycle Expansions and Contractions

|publisher= National Bureau of Economic Research

|url= https://www.nber.org/research/data/us-business-cycle-expansions-and-contractions

|access-date= 2023-03-31

|archive-date= December 1, 2019

|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20191201170039/https://www.nber.org/cycles/cyclesmain.html

|url-status= live

}};| {{cite news

|title=Glassmaking Thrives Offshore, but Is Declining in U.S.

|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/19/business/19glass.html

|access-date=November 8, 2024

|newspaper=New York Times

|date=January 18, 2010

|last=Uchitelle

|first=Louis

|archive-date=November 8, 2024

|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241108233105/https://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/19/business/19glass.html

|url-status=live

}}}} In late September 2008, Blenko Glass Company changed its leadership. Company president Richard Blenko left the company and was replaced by Walter Blenko Jr. The reason given for the change was "changing market conditions".{{cite news

|last=

|first=

|title=Blenko president, two other execs leave in shakeup

|newspaper=Beckley Register Herald (Newspaper Archive)

|page = 10A

|date = October 1, 2008

|quote=The company says it will remain a family run business.}} By January 2009, Blenko was considering bankruptcy, and it stopped producing glass on January 30.{{multiref|{{cite news

|last=

|first=

|title=Blenko idles furnaces, ponders bankruptcy filing

|newspaper=Morgantown Dominion Post (Newspaper Archive)

|page = 2-A

|date = January 31, 2009

|quote=...the company can't afford to send its gas supplier a check....}};| {{cite news

|last=

|first=

|title=Blenko needs investors soon to avoid bankruptcy

|newspaper=Beckley Register Herald (Newspaper Archive)

|page = 3A

|date = February 23, 2009

|quote=...the family has been talking with several possible investors.}}}} After the shutdown, orders increased and Blenko was able to resume glassmaking. By August, the company was providing employment to about 50 people.{{cite news

|last=

|first=

|title=Festival signals Blenko Glass Company's vitality

|newspaper=Bluefield Daily Telegraph (Newspaper Archive)

|page = A-6

|date = August 8, 2009

|quote=A historic West Virginia glassmaker is celebrating its economic recovery....}}

Many of the products made by the art glass companies such as Blenko are discretionary instead of necessary, and discretionary spending is muted in a recession. On May{{nbsp}}12, 2011, Blenko Glass Company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, but the company still planned to continue producing and selling glass.{{cite news

|last=

|first=

|title=Blenko files for bankruptcy

|newspaper=Bluefield Daily Telegraph (Newspaper Archive)

|page = A-5

|date = May 14, 2011

|quote=...the Milton glassmaker made the filing Thursday in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Charleston.}} By August 2012, the company's situation improved because of lower natural gas prices and a surge in sales.{{cite news

|last=

|first=

|title=W.Va. glassmaker Blenko rebounds after bankruptcy

|newspaper=Beckley Register Herald (Newspaper Archive)

|page = 6A

|date = August 6, 2012

|quote=Blenko Glass Co. is rebounding after filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in 2011.}} In December, a judge approved a reorganization plan.{{cite news

|last=

|first=

|title=Blenko Glass set to emerge from bankruptcy

|newspaper=Beckley Register Herald (Newspaper Archive)

|page = 3A

|date = December 15, 2012

|quote=...all creditors who voted on the plan approved it.}} The company began a customer focus on middle- to high-income women between the ages of 30 and 50. It began using more social media and videos to promote its products.{{cite news

|last=Born

|first=Molly

|title=Blenko (continued from page B4)

|newspaper=Winchester Star (Newspaper Archive)

|page = B5 (17)

|date = May 7, 2021

|quote=The success of the monsters makes for a surprising chapter in Blenko's history.}} With its new focus, the company relied less on department stores, and more on internet sales and merchandisers that would sell Blenko glassware via the internet.{{harvnb|Casto|2017|p=12}}

Walter Blenko Jr., president of Blenko Glass Company, died on August 11, 2019—just a few months before the country began a struggle with the COVID pandemic of 2020 and the recession it caused.{{multiref|{{cite web

|title=President of Blenko Glass, grandson of founder, passes

|website=Nextstar Media Group, Inc. - Channel 13 News

|url=https://www.wowktv.com/news/west-virginia/president-of-blenko-glass-grandson-of-founder-passes-away/

|access-date=November 13, 2024

|archive-date=November 28, 2020

|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201128033514/https://www.wowktv.com/news/west-virginia/president-of-blenko-glass-grandson-of-founder-passes-away/

|url-status=live

}};| {{cite web

|title=Chart Book: Tracking the Recovery From the Pandemic Recession

|website=Center on Budget and Policy Priorities

|url=https://www.cbpp.org/research/economy/tracking-the-recovery-from-the-pandemic-recession

|access-date=November 8, 2024

|archive-date=September 8, 2024

|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240908190804/https://www.cbpp.org/research/economy/tracking-the-recovery-from-the-pandemic-recession

|url-status=live

}}}} He was replaced by John W. Blenko, who had joined the company as vice president in 2016.{{cite web

|title=the History of Blenko Glass

|website= Blenko Glass Company

|url=https://blenko.com/pages/blenko-history?srsltid=AfmBOopQDgwB_4Vyehzzub0PFw_p4rfwZ66jWmnhzT9d8kYNdXXiLsYE

|access-date=November 13, 2024}} The COVID-19 recession began in February as governments shutte businesses in an attempt to slow the spread of the disease, and it lasted until April of the same year. Although it was one of America's shortest recessions, it was also one of the deepest as Gross Domestic Product dropped 31.4 percent.{{multiref|{{cite web

|title=It's official: The Covid recession lasted just two months, the shortest in U.S. history

|website=CNBC

|url=https://www.cnbc.com/2021/07/19/its-official-the-covid-recession-lasted-just-two-months-the-shortest-in-us-history.html

|access-date=November 8, 2024

|archive-date=October 10, 2024

|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241010072803/https://www.cnbc.com/2021/07/19/its-official-the-covid-recession-lasted-just-two-months-the-shortest-in-us-history.html

|url-status=live

}};| {{cite web

|title=Chart Book: Tracking the Recovery From the Pandemic Recession

|website=Center on Budget and Policy Priorities

|url=https://www.cbpp.org/research/economy/tracking-the-recovery-from-the-pandemic-recession

|access-date=November 8, 2024

|archive-date=September 8, 2024

|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240908190804/https://www.cbpp.org/research/economy/tracking-the-recovery-from-the-pandemic-recession

|url-status=live

}}}} Blenko Glass shut down for several months beginning in March. All 48 employees were laid off. In June, the company began to gradually reopen to produce glassware, and most of the workforce was hired back by August. The company was helped by a $250,000 ({{Inflation|US|250000|2020|fmt=eq}}) loan from the federal government's Paycheck Protection Program.{{cite news

|last=Born

|first=Molly

|title=How a mythical backwoods monster saved a struggling West Virginia glass company

|newspaper=Winchester Star (Newspaper Archive)

|page = B4-B5 (16-17)

|date = May 7, 2021

|quote=Blenko Glass Company would partner with a West Virginia artist on immortalizing the mythical Flatwoods Monster, Big Foot's Appalachian cousin....}}

Blenko Glass survived, and even prospered, in part because of a new product: a figurine of West Virginia's mythical Flatwoods monster. The product was 16.5 inches tall, and was colored clover green and ruby red. Production was limited to about 800 pieces, and the figurine was popular among millennials—a new market segment. The product was priced at $129 ({{Inflation|US|129|2020|fmt=eq}}), much higher than most of the company's other products. Sales of the Flatwoods monster enabled the company to have its most profitable year in two decades. By 2024, Blenko was still making glassware, and it had ten furnaces to make its glass.{{cite news

|last=Richardson

|first=Jesten

|title=Blenko (continued from page 1A)

|newspaper=Charleston Gazette Mail (Newspaper Archive)

|page = 7A

|date = February 21, 2024

|quote=...Blenko will probably keep around 10 furnaces....}}

Blenko Glass Company has made numerous products.{{#tag:ref|Links to two of the catalogs posted by Blenko (2002 and 2014–2015) are in the References section herein.{{multiref|{{harvnb|Blenko Glass Company|2002|p=1}};| {{harvnb|Blenko Glass Company|2015|p=1}}}}|group=Note}} Several items are typically mentioned in books or newspaper articles. First, the company's stained glass was known worldwide for its use in cathedrals and churches.{{multiref|{{cite news

|last=

|first=

|title=Astrological Glass Display at BC Library

|newspaper=Bluefield Daily Telegraph (Newspaper Archive)

|page = 4B (36)

|date = February 18, 1979

|quote=Blenko is known around the world for the production of glass for church and cathedral. windows.}};| {{cite news

|last=Abernathy

|first=Dorothy

|title=Almost Heaven - Watch glass being made by hand at Blenko in West Virginia

|newspaper=Traverse City Record Eagle (Newspaper Archive)

|page = 5E (33)

|date = February 14, 2016

|quote=The company is famous for its stained glass and handcrafted glass tableware....}}}} Second, the 384 Water Bottle is often mentioned and is usually the company's biggest seller.{{multiref|{{cite news

|last=Pace

|first=Fred

|title=Blenko (From Page 1A)

|newspaper=Charleston Gazette Mail (Newspaper Archive)

|page = 7A

|date = October 17, 2022

|quote=...one example is the iconic 384 Water Bottle.}};|{{cite news

|last=Zuchowski

|first=Dave

|title=Travel (From Page 9)

|newspaper=New Castle News (Newspaper Archive)

|page = 13

|date = July 7, 2003

|quote=...the most popular item—water bottles in a variety of colors....}}}} Third, since 1947 the company has hired designers to create unique glassware.{{multiref|{{harvnb|Jackson|2000|p=32}};|{{harvnb|Crain|2007}}}} Last, the company has produced limited-edition collectible glassware that honors the state of West Virginia.{{multiref|{{cite news

|last=Bundy

|first=Jennifer

|title=Residents to blow out 132 candles

|newspaper=Beckley Register Herald (Newspaper Archive)

|page = 4B (14)

|date = June 20, 1995

|quote=This year cobalt blue vases with clear handles sell for $55....}};| {{cite news

|last=Parsons

|first=Baylee

|title=Blenko's 2024 West Virginia Day glass piece honors Green Bank Telescope

|newspaper=Charleston Gazette-Mail (Newspaper Archive)

|page = 1

|date = June 6, 2024

|quote=...in the design of Blenko Glass Co.'s 2024 West Virginia Day Piece.}}}}

File:Blenko colored glass used by Franklin Art Glass Studios to make a stained glass window.jpg using Blenko glass]]

Blenko's flat glass was used by its customers to make stained glass windows. After World War I, Blenko glass (named Eureka at the time) was used to rebuild the Reims Cathedral in France.{{cite news

|last=Little

|first=Glade

|title=The Art That Time Didn't Kill

|newspaper=Charleston Gazette (Newspaper Archive)

|page = 20-m Magazine Section (83)

|date = July 21, 1957

|quote=...products range from glassware for home decorations to stained glass for windows.}} The Hall of Science at the 1939 New York World's Fair used Blenko glass.{{harvnb|Jackson|2000|p=31}} During the first three decades of the company's existence, Blenko stained glass was used at the Washington National Cathedral, Saint Patrick's Cathedral in New York, the Cathedral of St. John the Divine in New York, and the Duke University Chapel.{{multiref|{{harvnb|Jackson|2000|p=31}};| {{cite news

|last=

|first=

|title=Many Tourists Drawn to Milton to See Production of Famed Blenko Glassware

|newspaper=Charleston Gazette (Newspaper Archive)

|page = 28 (66)

|date = April 30, 1950

|quote=A growing tourist attraction in West Virginia....}}}} By 1950 the Blenko glass factory was producing flat glass in about 1,000 different tints that was shipped all over the United States and Canada.

It was noted that in 1958 the Blenko glass works was the only one in the United States that produced hand blown church window glass. At least part of the glass used in the United States Air Force Academy Chapel, completed in 1962 in Colorado Springs, Colorado, was supplied by Blenko.{{cite news

|last=Riffe

|first=Harold

|title=Fair and Mild (left column)

|newspaper=Charleston Gazette Mail (Newspaper Archive)

|page = 11

|date = April 29, 1962

|quote=...at least a part of the glass which went into the new Air Force Academy Chapel...was supplied by Blenko.}} Blenko stained glass was also used in secular places such as the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio and Grant's Tomb.{{harvnb|Jackson|2000|p=31}}; {{cite news

|last=Little

|first=Glade

|title=The Art That Time Didn't Kill

|newspaper=Charleston Gazette (Newspaper Archive)

|page = 20-m Magazine Section (87)

|date = July 21, 1957

|quote=...products range from glassware for home decorations to stained glass for windows.}} The process for making antique flat glass involved a glassblower blowing glass into a mold the shape of a cylinder. The cylinder's ends were cut off, then it was split lengthwise. Finally, it was reheated and flattened into a sheet of glass available in about 1,100 shades.

In 1992 Blenko Glass was selected to produce replacement window panes for the White House. To have the replacement windows look similar to the antique windows still in place, the White House needed a manufacturer that made window glass the old hand-blown way that was used to make the existing panes. Blenko was the only domestic manufacturer that still used the older method. At that time, the company was still producing flat glass blown to look antique, and it could create over 1,300 colors.{{cite news

|last=

|first=

|title=W.Va. glass firm works on White House

|newspaper=Herald Star (Newspaper Archive)

|page = 8-A (8)

|date = May 10, 1992

|quote=...they have the capital equipment necessary, and they have the talented workers.}}

{{multiple image

| align = right

| direction = horizontal

| header =

| header_align =

| header_background =

| footer = Blenko 384 Water Bottles

| footer_align = center

| footer_background =

| width =

| background color =

| image1 = Blenko384waterbottle.jpg

| width1 = 150

| alt1 = blue square-ish bottle with two spouts

| image2 = Blenko 384 water bottle planet mercury colors.jpg

| width2 = 150

| alt2 = gold with blue square-ish bottle with two spouts

}}

The Blenko 384 Water Bottle was first designed in 1938. The number "384" means that it was the fourth design during 1938. The bottle's narrow shape was designed to fit in the door of a somewhat new innovation: the "electric icebox" now known as a refrigerator. The bottle has two pouring spouts and an indentation in its center that makes it easy to hold.{{cite web

|title=The Blenko Water Bottle: A glass and West Virginia's handmade icon!

|website= Blenko Glass Company

|url=https://blenko.com/blogs/news/the-blenko-water-bottle-a-glass-and-west-virginias-handmade-icon?srsltid=AfmBOorIM0gkJILnJvrI7AcR-TYrCOxgpmDek4pWdqUOm00y0htapVuZ

|access-date=October 15, 2024}} Often called the "iconic" 384 Water Bottle, it is the company's biggest seller.{{cite news

|last=

|first=

|title=Blenko (from Page 1A)

|newspaper=Charleston Gazette Mail (NewspaperArchive)

|page = 7A

|date = October 17, 2022

|quote=...one example is the iconic 384 Water Bottle.}}

Most of the molds used by Blenko are made of wood. The molds used for the 384 Water Bottle are metal because the high quantity produced would cause the company to need to replace a wooden water bottle mold every two days. The 384S Water Bottle, which has straight optic lines on the glass, was featured in the Holiday Gift Guide section of the December 2013 edition of Martha Stewart Living magazine.{{multiref|{{cite news

|title=Blenko Waterbottle (Topaz 384-S) featured in Martha Stewart Living Magazine

|publisher=Hillary Homburg

|url=https://herald-dispatchblogs04.blogspot.com/2014/04/blenko-waterbottle-topaz-384-s-featured.html

|access-date=October 31, 2024

|newspaper=Herald-Dispatch (herald-dispatch.com Huntington, WV)

|date=April 19, 2014

|last=Homburg

|first=Hillary

|archive-date=November 23, 2023

|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231123065159/https://herald-dispatchblogs04.blogspot.com/2014/04/blenko-waterbottle-topaz-384-s-featured.html

|url-status=live

}};| {{harvnb|Blenko Glass Company|2015|p=4}}}}

File:BlenkoWAnderson.jpg

Blenko employed its first designer in 1947 when it hired ceramicist Winslow Anderson. Anderson helped the company establish a reputation with award–winning contemporary glassware. Anderson left Blenko for Lenox China around 1953.{{harvnb|Jackson|2000|p=32}}{{#tag:ref|Winslow Anderson was speaking on the history of Blenko Glass in April 1953.{{cite news

|last=

|first=

|title=Clubs To Hear Story of Blenko Glassware

|newspaper=Charleston Daily Mail (Newspaper Archive)

|page = 26

|date = April 5, 1953

|quote=Mr. Winslow Anderson, guest speaker, will discuss the history of Blenko glass.}} In February 1954 a retailer was advertising Lenox china designed by Anderson.{{cite news

|last=

|first=

|title=The Melroses

|newspaper=Summit Herald (Newspaper Archive)

|page = 7

|date = February 25, 1954

|quote=Lenox China's new contemporary fine china artware designed by Winslow Anderson.}}|group=Note}} The company's next designer was Wayne Husted, who further modernized the look of Blenko glassware. His decanters were colored flamboyantly, which set a trend for the company that continues.

Joel Philip Myers succeeded Husted as Blenko's director of design in 1963. By now the company had a reputation as one of the world's top art glass companies. Myers was unique in the United States because he was believed to be the only designer that blew his own glass. He designed about 40 items per year, and 2,000 to 3,000 copies of each design were produced.{{cite news

|last=Christian

|first=Darrell

|title=Of a Man and Glass

|newspaper=Charleston Gazette Mail (Newspaper Archive)

|page = 1B (25)

|date = August 18, 1968

|quote=Myers is director of design for Blenko Glass Co., one of the world's top art glass companies.}}{{#tag:ref|Lesley Jackson writes that Myers succeeded Husted as design director in 1964.{{harvnb|Jackson|2000|p=33}}|group=Note}} One collector considers Myers to be "Blenko's most famous and accomplished designer" and "one of the most exhibited and recognized glass artists in the world". In the early 1970s Meyers left the company to join the faculty at Illinois State University.{{#tag:ref|Jackson writes that Meyers left Blenko in 1972. Crain wrote that Meyers worked for Blenko from 1964 to 1970 and part of 1971. A newspaper says that Joel Meyers joined the Illinois State University College of Fine Art faculty in September 1970 after leaving Blenko Glass Company.{{cite news

|last=

|first=

|title=Illinois Art Faculty Men Exhibit Here

|newspaper=Stevens Point Daily Journal (Newspaper Archive dated Oct 30, 1971)

|page = 6 (9)

|date = November 1, 1971

|quote=He joined ISU from a position as director of design at Blenko Glass....}}|group=Note}}

Other designers for Blenko were John Nickerson from 1972 to 1975, and Don Shepherd from 1975 to 1988.{{#tag:ref|Crain wrote that Nickerson was hired in 1971.|group=Note}} Hank Murta Adams was designer from 1988 to 1994, and Matthew Carter from 1994 to 2002.{{multiref|{{harvnb|Jackson|2000|p=33}};| {{harvnb|Crain|2004}}}} Former designer Wayne Husted re-established a relationship with Blenko in 2001.{{cite news

|last=

|first=

|title=Designer returns to Blenko

|newspaper=Cumberland Times News (Newspaper Archive)

|page = 2B (12)

|date = May 17, 2004

|quote=Four decades later, Wayne Husted's expertise is still in high demand at Blenko Glass.}} One of his designs for 2002 was called Patriot, which was inspired after the events of September 11, 2001. The glassware pieces were hand-blown with red and blue glass.{{multiref|{{cite news

|last=

|first=

|title=Designer returns to Blenko

|newspaper=Cumberland Times News (Newspaper Archive)

|page = 2B (12)

|date = May 17, 2004

|quote=...including Patriot, inspired by the Sept 11 terrorist attacks.}};| {{harvnb|Blenko Glass Company|2002|p=3}}}} Another designer was Arlon Bayliss, who worked for nearly ten years for Blenko while also working as a professor of art and design at Anderson University. By 2016 he was in his tenth year of designing Blenko glassware that commemorates West Virginia Day.{{cite news

|last=Hessler

|first=Courtney

|title=Blenko vase pays tribute to WVa. fishing

|newspaper=Winchester Star (Newspaper Archive)

|page = B3 (15)

|date = June 7, 2016

|quote=Blenko Glass Co. has started making its 2016 West Virginia Day piece....}} A team of two designers that began working with Blenko in late 2017 were Emma Walters and Andrew Shaffer, and they continued the relationship until March 2020. Designer and illustrator Liz Pavlovic partnered with the company in 2020 to create the limited edition Flatwoods monster glass piece.{{cite news

|last=Born

|first=Molly

|title=How a mythical backwoods monster saved a struggling West Virginia glass company

|newspaper=Winchester Star (Newspaper Archive)

|page = B4 (16)

|date = May 7, 2021

|quote=Blenko Glass Company would partner with a West Virginia artist on immortalizing the mythical Flatwoods Monster, Big Foot's Appalachian cousin....}} In 2024, Blenko worked with guest artist Don Pendleton, a graphic artist and West Virginia native.{{cite news

|last=

|first=

|title=Blenko, renowned Ravenswood artist create owl glass

|newspaper=Charleston Gazette Mail (Newspaper Archive)

|page = 1

|date = April 30, 2024

|quote=Blenko Glass Co. has announced its new guest artist....}} The company's creative director, James Arnett, designed the 2024 West Virginia Day art glass piece.{{cite news

|last=Parsons

|first=Baylee

|title=Blenko's 2024 West Virginia Day glass piece honors Green Bank Telescope

|newspaper=Charleston Gazette-Mail (Newspaper Archive)

|page = 1

|date = June 6, 2024

|quote=...in the design of Blenko Glass Co.'s 2024 West Virginia Day Piece.}}

File:BlenkoLimitedEdition.jpg pieces]]

Each year, Blenko Glass produces a limited-edition piece of glassware that becomes available around West Virginia Day. Production is limited to one for each year the state of West Virginia has existed. The tradition began in 1980. For 1980, West Virginia celebrated its 117th birthday, so Blenko produced 117 copies of a commemorative bowl.{{cite news

|last=

|first=

|title=Blenko Glass honors W.Va. with 'Autumn Flame' piece

|newspaper=Beckley Register Herald (Newspaper Archive)

|page = 3E (31)

|date = May 31, 2015

|quote=Blenko Glass Co. honors West Virginia's birthday by issuing a limited-edition glass piece....}} As an example, Blenko's 1995 design was a cobalt blue vase with clear handles, and it was sold at a Charleston department store. Customers lined up to make their purchase about 90 minutes before the store opened at 10:00 am. Because it was honoring the state's 132nd birthday, 132 pieces were produced.

Another example of the Blenko West Virginia Day piece is the 2016 version, which was called "Patience's Prize". It was a pale green vase that looked like a fish jumping into water. The vase honored West Virginia's outdoors and fishing. It was 14 inches tall and designed by Arlon Bayliss. Because West Virginia became 153 years old on June 20, 2016, only 153 copies of "Patience's Prize" were made. They were made available to the public on June 18, and could only be purchased at the company's visitor center. Purchases were limited to one per customer.

• List of museums in Huntington, West Virginia

{{Reflist|group=Note|colwidth=30em}}

{{Reflist|colwidth=30em}}

{{Refbegin|colwidth=30em}}

• {{cite book

| last = Blenko Glass Company

| title = Blenko 2002 (catalog for 2002)

| publisher = Blenko Glass Company

| year = 2002

| location = Milton, West Virginia

| pages =

| oclc =

| isbn =

| url = https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0401/6341/0075/files/Blenko_Glass_Catalog_2002.pdf?v=1708431199

| access-date = October 25, 2024

}}

• {{cite book

| last = Blenko Glass Company

| title = Blenko 2014-2015 (catalog for 2014 & 2015)

| publisher = Blenko Glass Company

| year = 2015

| location = Milton, West Virginia

| pages =

| oclc =

| isbn =

| url = https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0401/6341/0075/files/Blenko-Glass-Catalog-2014-2015.pdf?v=1708442228

| access-date = October 31, 2024

}}

• {{cite journal

| last =Byrd

| first =Robert C.

| date =June 25, 1963

| title =Extension of remarks of Hon. Robert C. Byrd of West Virginia in the Senate of the United States - Tuesday, June 25, 1963

| url =https://books.google.com/books?id=0ivlO6xr7MwC&dq=Blenko+williamsburg&pg=SL1-PA4043

| location =Washington, District of Columbia

| publisher =Government Printing Office

| journal =Congressional Record: Proceedings and Debates of the ... Congress

| volume =

| issue =

| pages =A4043

| oclc =5058415

| doi =

| access-date =November 2, 2024

}}

• {{cite journal

| last =Casto

| first =James E.

| date =March 2017

| title =Blenko Changing How Its Colorful Glass is Sold

| url =https://www.proquest.com/docview/1882368134

| location =Charleston, West Virginia

| journal =The State Journal

| volume =33

| issue =11

| pages =12

| doi =

| access-date =November 14, 2024

| id ={{ProQuest|1882368134}}

}}

• {{cite journal

| last =Crain

| first =Damon

| date =April 2004

| title =Blenko – Uniquely American Modernist Glass

| url =https://journalofantiques.com/features/blenko-uniquely-american-modernist-glass/

| location =Sturbridge, Massachusetts

| journal =Journal of Antiques & Collectibles

| volume =V

| issue =2

| pages =

| doi =

| access-date =September 30, 2024

| archive-date =November 12, 2024

| archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20241112223238/https://journalofantiques.com/features/blenko-uniquely-american-modernist-glass/

| url-status =live

}}

• {{cite journal

| last =Crain

| first =Damon

| date =Fall 2007

| title =Blenko Glass: For Museums and the Masses

| url =https://www.cultureobject.com/press/2007-modernism.htm

| location =Lambertville, New Jersey

| journal =Modernism Magazine

| volume =10

| issue =3

| pages =

| doi =

| access-date =November 19, 2024

| archive-date =December 2, 2023

| archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20231202120421/http://cultureobject.com/press/2007-modernism.htm

| url-status =live

}}

• {{cite book

| editor-last = Daugherty

| editor-first = G.F.

| title = Seventeenth Biennial Report of the Bureau of Labor of West Virginia 1923-1924

| publisher = State of West Virginia

| year = 1924

| location = Charleston, West Virginia

| pages =

| oclc = 13484972

| isbn =

| url = https://books.google.com/books?id=eRu32XZKep0C&dq=%22Eureka+Art+Glass%22&pg=RA8-PA62

}}

• {{cite journal

| editor-last =Flanagan

| editor-first =Joseph E.

| date =July 1917

| title =(Untitled)

| url =https://books.google.com/books?id=2fKbiUr8BBQC&dq=Opalescent+Glass+Company+Blenko&pg=RA17-PA1

| location =Chicago, Illinois

| publisher =National Ornamental Glass Manufacturers' Association of United States and Canada

| journal =The Ornamental Glass Bulletin of United States and Canada

| volume =11

| issue =6

| pages =1

| oclc =

| doi =

| access-date =October 5, 2024

| archive-date =October 7, 2024

| archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20241007114027/https://books.google.com/books?id=2fKbiUr8BBQC&pg=RA17-PA1&dq=Opalescent+Glass+Company+Blenko&hl=en&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwj38dDsxveIAxXFFVkFHRUSPUcQ6AF6BAgKEAI#v=onepage&q=Opalescent%20Glass%20Company%20Blenko&f=false

| url-status =live

}}

• {{cite journal

| editor-last =Flanagan

| editor-first =Joseph E.

| date =January 1928

| title =Eureka's Antique Glass

| url =https://books.google.com/books?id=_mNGjhQYenkC&dq=Blenko&pg=RA23-PA8

| location =Chicago, Illinois

| publisher =Stained Glass Association of America

| journal =The Bulletin of the Stained Glass Association of America

| volume =22

| issue =12

| pages =8–9

| oclc =

| doi =

| access-date =October 11, 2024

}}

• {{cite book

| last = Fones-Wolf

| first = Ken

| title = Glass Towns: Industry, Labor and Political Economy in Appalachia, 1890-1930s

| publisher = University of Illinois Press

| year = 2007

| location = Urbana, Illinois

| url =

| oclc = 69792081

| isbn = 978-0-25203-131-1

}}

• {{cite journal

| editor-last =Hammer

| editor-first =J.M.

| date =July 1920

| title =Classified Advertisements - Situations Wanted

| url =https://books.google.com/books?id=8nVO0nMm8voC&q=Blenko&pg=RA30-PA28

| location =Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

| publisher =Commoner Publishing Company

| journal =The Glassworker

| volume =39

| issue =42

| pages =30

| oclc =

| doi =

| access-date =October 5, 2024

| archive-date =October 7, 2024

| archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20241007112343/https://books.google.com/books?id=8nVO0nMm8voC&pg=RA30-PA28&dq=Opalescent+Glass+Company+Blenko&hl=en&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwj38dDsxveIAxXFFVkFHRUSPUcQ6AF6BAgFEAI#v=onepage&q=Blenko&f=false

| url-status =live

}}

• {{cite book

| last = Jackson

| first = Lesley

| title = 20th Century Factory Glass

| publisher = Rizzoli

| year = 2000

| location = New York City

| pages =

| oclc = 1369742032

| isbn = 978-0-84782-253-9

| url =

| access-date=

}}

• {{cite journal

| editor-last =Krak

| editor-first =J.B.

| date =January 1922

| title =News of the Trade

| url =https://books.google.com/books?id=8eIkAQAAMAAJ&dq=Opalescent+Glass+Company+Blenko&pg=PA23

| location =New York, New York

| publisher =Glass Industry Publishing Company

| journal =The Glass Industry

| volume =3

| issue =1

| pages =23–24

| oclc =1751261

| doi =

| access-date =October 5, 2024

| archive-date =October 7, 2024

| archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20241007112258/https://books.google.com/books?id=8eIkAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA23&dq=Opalescent+Glass+Company+Blenko&hl=en&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwj38dDsxveIAxXFFVkFHRUSPUcQ6AF6BAgHEAI#v=onepage&q=Opalescent%20Glass%20Company%20Blenko&f=false

| url-status =live

}}

• {{cite book

| editor-last = Peelle Jr

| editor-first = William A.

| title = State of Indiana - Fifth Biennial Report (Eleventh Volume) of the Department of Statistics for 1893-1894

| publisher = William B. Burford

| year = 1894

| location = Indianapolis, Indiana

| pages =

| oclc =

| isbn = 978-1-33290-560-7

| url = https://books.google.com/books?id=C3MKAAAAIAAJ&q=gas&pg=PA725

}}

• {{cite book

| last = Shotwell

| first = David J.

| title = Glass A to Z

| publisher = Krause Publications

| year = 2002

| location = Iola, Wisconsin

| pages =

| oclc = 440702171

| isbn = 978-0-87349-385-7

| url-access = registration

| url = https://archive.org/details/glasstoz00davi/page/43

}}

• {{cite journal

| last =Unknown

| date =Fall 1989

| title =In Memoriam - Marion Hunt Blenko

| url =

| publisher =The Stained Glass Association of America

| journal =Stained Glass Quarterly

| volume =84

| issue =3

| pages =180

| oclc =

| doi =

| access-date =

}}

• {{cite book

|last1=Venable

|first1=Charles L.

|last2=Denker

|first2=Ellen P.

|last3=Grier

|first3=Katherine C.

|last4=Harrison

|first4=Stephen G.

|title=China and Glass in America, 1880-1980: from Tabletop to TV Tray

|publisher=Dallas Museum of Art

|location=Dallas, Texas

|year=2000

|isbn=978-0-81096-692-5

|oclc=42960630

}}

{{refend}}

• {{cite book

| last1 = Eige

| first1 = Eason

| last2 = Wilson

| first2 = Rick

| title = Blenko Glass, 1930-1953

| publisher = Antique Publications

| year = 1987

| location =

| url =

| oclc = 17006037

| isbn = 978-0-91541-035-4

}}

{{Commons category|Blenko Glass Company}}

• [https://glasscollection.cmog.org/objects/39865 Blenko/Kenova vase from Carbone & Son] - Corning Museum of Glass
• [https://journalofantiques.com/features/cracklin-good/ Crackle Glass & Blenko] - Journal of Antiques & Collectibles

{{Glass makers and brands}}

{{authority control}}

Category:1922 establishments in West Virginia

Category:Glassmaking companies of the United States

Category:Glass museums and galleries in the United States

Category:Manufacturing companies based in West Virginia

Category:Art museums and galleries in West Virginia

Category:Industry museums in West Virginia

Category:Museums in Cabell County, West Virginia

Category:American stained glass artists and manufacturers