The Miscellaneous RI Bottle Blog: Rhode Island Deco Soda Bottles

Deco soda bottles are bottles that have a design that is often patented. They range from universally recognizable like the iconic Coca-Cola bottle to very obscure small town brands. They have always been a personal favorite of mine, so I wanted to create a blog to put them all together in one place.

Rarity ratings are as follows:

Very common

Common

Semicommon

Uncommon

Scarce

Rare

Please note that just because a bottle is listed as rare, it does not automatically mean it is a valuable bottle. Most deco RI soda bottles (even the rare ones) are valued in the $5-30 range, with the early 1915 patent Cokes being the only exception I am aware of.

Bare Rock Spring Soda Works- Centerdale, RI

This is a very elusive bottle and one of my favorite designs as well! It comes in clear and aqua. I was lucky enough to find four at a flea market last year.

Bell Bottling Co.- Providence, RI

A more common but appealing and likely unique design.

Black Rock Beverages- Westerly, RI

This was a very scarce bottle, but a few examples have turned up more recently. Another favorite of mine as it encourages the holder to “Drink Black Rock Beverages”. Uncommon

Blue Bird- West Barrington, RI

This is a national brand that was bottled by selected companies across the US. The RI one is pretty elusive and until a few years ago would have been considered rare. A great design with a bird worked into the shoulder area. Scarce.

Bridge Club Beverage Co.- Providence, RI

Another common but fairly appealing design. It can be described as an “ear of corn” style. Common in clear, scarce in green.

Coca-Cola- Providence, Peace Dale, Newport, Woonsocket, and Westerly, RI

No surprise here! See more info on my Coca-Cola blog. Providence examples are very common, Peace Dale and Newport common, Woonsocket rare, and Westerly x-rare.

Woonsocket Coke

Cotton Club Beverages- Cranston, RI

A rare one! For a while it was only known to exist with the “leaf vein” pattern, and then a second style was discovered! The vertically ribbed example is x-rare.

Crystal Beverages- Providence, RI

A scarce bottle with a rather neat design. Most Crystal bottles are plain and quite common, this one is the exception!

Dexter Bottling Co.- Central Falls, RI

This is what I call a “borderline” deco, as the design is minimal and probably did not require a patent. Still, it's a good looking bottle! Rare

Drink-Me- Providence, RI

A rare soda that I was very excited to find! There are also convincing indicators that this was likely a Cranston bottle despite being embossed Providence.

E.J. Dybala Bottling Works- Cranston, RI

A very common soda in a fairly generic deco style.

Dybalas Spring Bottling Works- Woonsocket, RI

Another very common soda related to the example above. Green examples are scarce.

Eagle Bottling Co.- Bristol, RI

One of my all-time favorite RI deco sodas! I didn't know it existed until I dug one. Rare, two examples known to exist.

Empire Bottling Works- Bristol, RI

A common but very unusual bottle with a Greek/Roman scene embossed. Uncommon in green.

Esmond Spring Soda Works- Esmond, RI

A fairly plain small town soda. Semicommon.

Five (5)-O Wickford, RI

A very busy and interesting national chocolate soda brand. Uncommon

Geneva Springs Bottling Co.- North Providence, RI

The 8 ounce style is common and fairly standard, but the shorter 6 ounce size is a highly appealing design. Scarce in clear and aqua, rare in green.

Havens- Westerly, RI

A deco style that was used nationwide, but locally a very tough bottle. Rare

Hebe Beverages- Providence, RI

A neat starburst pattern that was considered semicommon until I dug literally hundreds of them. Very common.

Hope Club Beverages- Providence, RI

A rather unusual style! It was rare but now I have three different minor variants. Scarce

Hope Club Beverages- Maine Bottling Co. Providence, RI

An earlier style that was unknown until a few years ago. Scarce

Kerona Beverages- Central Falls, RI

A Rhode Island classic. Very common in clear, uncommon in green.

King- Westerly, RI

The most common deco soda from Westerly. Common in clear, rare in green.

Kist- West Barrington, RI

Another famous nationally sold brand. Scarce

Liberty Club Beverages- Providence, RI

A classically designed deco. Very common in clear, scarce in green.

Manhattan Club Beverages- Esmond, RI

The same style as the earlier Esmond Spring bottles. Semicommon in clear, rare in green.

Martins Soda Works- Woonsocket, RI

A somewhat basic deco design. Uncommon in clear, scarce in green.

Mineral Spring Bottling Co.- North Providence, RI

A common soda in clear, rare in green.

Moose Head Beverages- Providence, RI

Another likely unique and highly appealing RI design. Scarce

Nu-Grape- Westerly, RI

Another national brand that never took off locally. Uncommon

Orange-Cream Bottling Co.- Providence, RI

A great deco design that was used nationally by a couple bottling companies. 7.5 ounce size is uncommon. Quart is scarce.

Orange Crush- Providence, Newport, and Westerly, RI

Another national brand with a great design. Providence is uncommon, Newport and Westerly rare.

Westerly

Providence

Red Fox Ginger Ale Co.- Providence, RI

One of the most common deco sodas from RI. Very common in clear, common in green.

Royal Club Beverages- Providence, RI

Another fairly recent discovery. Scarce

Shiloh Club- Providence, RI

A nationally used design but certainly an appealing one. Semicommon in clear, scarce in green. Green style is same as clear except that it has a large label space.