1890: Future destination of Bellarine shell grit opens in Melbourne

In 1890, the glass-making company Australian Glass Manufacturers (AGM) opened a factory at Spotswood, moving from the South Melbourne site that it had occupied since 1873.

Westgate Bridge & AGM, Spotswood

 

AGM's move is (just!) part of the glass-related history of the Bellarine Peninsula because in 1959, AGM started to take delivery of up to 1,000 tons of shell grit a week from the Laker's processing plant near Point Lonsdale.

The Melbourne Glass Bottle Works
AGM's new Spotswood factory was known as the Melbourne Glass Bottle Works. In its first decade, the Bottle Works grew rapidly, until it employed five hundred staff and occupied five acres.

AGM worker & milk bottles, 1958.

The site was serviced by a railway line that led from the Spotswood railway station to the Spotswood Pumping Station. From there it curved to the east, running directly into the AGM site via a purpose-built railway siding. It was at this siding that, between 1959 and 1973, trains carrying shell grit from the Bellarine would terminate their journey. (See "1959: Shell grit for Melbourne glass works re-opens Bellarine rail line". 27 November 2014 on this blog.)

In 1973,  the Spotswood siding ceased to receive shipments of shell grit from the Bellarine, as AGM changed its suppliers for a company in New South wales. In 1998, the Spotswood siding fell into disuse altogether, as railway shipments of sand from Nyora, South Gippsland (via the Koala siding) ceased.

The Spotswood siding was decommissioned in August 2001, but parts of it remain in place, buried under concrete driveways and hardstand on what is now private land.

AGM in Sydney

By the late 19th century, glass production had become one of South Sydney’s main industries. Glassworks were established at Redfern and Alexandria and the Australian Glass Manufacturers opened a glass works on South Dowling Street, Waterloo.

AGM's Waterloo plant manufactured bottles for the pharmacy, brewing, distilling and winemaking industries; and jars for domestic preserving and pickling fruit and vegetables. By the 1920s, AGM had a monopoly on glassmaking in Sydney.

AGM display vehicle, Sydney, 1930s

In 1926, AGM launched a subsidiary company - Crown Crystal Glass Pty. Ltd. - to produce crystal, cut, pressed and blown glassware (including pyrex) for industrial and domestic use. By the late 1930s, the company was producing 9,634 different types of glass bottles and containers.

In 1968 Crown Crystal Glass became partners with American company Corning Ltd., becoming Crown Corning Ltd. The partnership ended in 1988.

Sources

http://www.railgeelong.com/location/agm-glassworks

http://www.sydneybarani.com.au/sites/australian-glass-manufacturers/