Clarksburg, West Virginia

For my presentation I chose Clarksburg, West Virginia. What drew me to Clarksburg was that it contained at least 39 different named glass manufacturing companies between 1899 and 1987 (when I say named glass manufacturers, I am referring to the fact that some of the companies changed names throughout their existence). Harrison County, which Clarksburg is located, had at least 68 named glass manufacturers, the most of any county in the state according to Dean Six. While I haven't found any evidence of currently operating facilities in Clarksburg, something drew those companies to Clarksburg. This led me to question why Clarksburg and Harrison County were a major glass manufacturing area.

As I have discussed in previous posts, the three things needed for glass or any industry are natural resources, transportation and human resources. Clarksburg is located within a reasonable proximity of the Oriskany glass sand deposit. Glass sand is obviously a necessary component to make glass. Secondly, the Clarksburg area had vast amounts of natural gas available at cheap prices. In the early 1900's natural gas cost .10 cents per ten-thousand cubic feet. It, like the rest of West Virginia would also have its most famous natural resource, coal in abundance. Add to this the available natural resource of cheap land and Clarksburg was appealing to glass manufacturers.

Clarskburg also had the advantage of being located on a major Appalachian Mountain thruway, the Northwest Turnpike (today US 50). The turnpike was chartered by Virginia in 1827 and reached Clarksburg in 1836. The B&O Railroad would reach Clarksburg twenty years later in 1856, further making this location attractive. Add to this available water transportation on the Westfork River and Elk Creek and Clarksburg had more than ample transportation opportunities for this time period. Today, Interstate 79 also provides a north-south route through Clarksburg.



The third necessity is a willing and able workforce. During the 1910s and 1920s, Clarksburg was characterized as a boom town, increasing in population from 4,050 in 1900 to 28,866 by 1930. The population peaked at 32,014 in 1950, decreasing to 16,578 today. So where did those people come from? The answer is from neighboring states, especially Pennsylvania and Ohio, which had an abundance of skilled craftsmen willing to come to West Virginia to work in the glass industry. Artisans and craftsmen from Europe would also follow from countries like Spain, France and Belgium.

Three companies that stood out in Clarksburg were the Hazel-Atlas Glass Company, Akro Agates and Lafayette Cooperative Glass Company. As I have discussed those three companies in previous blog posts, please refer to them for more information. Among the products made by the 39 Clarksburg glass manufacturers were window glass, tumblers, product containers, colored flat glass, milk bottles, flat glass, marbles, beer and other bottles, children's dishes, floral ware, lamps, chimneys, lighting goods, table ware, ovenware and various other novelties.

The end of glass manufacturing in Clarksburg seems to be fairly universal story. Changes in consumer habits such as switching from glass bottles to cheaper plastic bottles, fewer people canning their own fruits and vegetables leading to the need for fewer canning jars. Foreign competition also led to less expensive products from outside the United States. Finally, within the United States there was plenty of competition in the glass industry and frequently other states' businesses won the price wars. Today we live in a world where automation has led to fewer workers being needed to produce more products more cheaply and quickly.