Fostoria Bells

The Fostoria Glass Company, makers of those beautiful commemorative bells, much to everyones amazement, didn’t even begin to offer them until the mid seventies.

Although they made gorgeous wedding bells, bells that would coordinate with some of their main designs and major colors, if you take a walk through the catalogs tht Fostoria puts out, you’re going to find that there are no bells appearing in them until about 1976-1977, when the first bells showed up, that matched four of their current patterns, the Richmond, Navarre, Sheffield and serenity.

Fostoria made bells for Christmas, Mother’s Day, Valentine’s Day, weddings, and other special occasions. They also made bells to coordinate with some of their major designs. Serenity came in yellow, blue and crystal. Navarre bells were in pink, blue and crystal.

January 1979’s catalog also offers a Mother’s Day bell which was made of an especially beautiful and thin blown crystal, with a picture of a child being held by his mother etched in an oval area that was beautifully framed by flowers with the date and holiday etched above it.

Likewise, in 1979, the Wedding bells began to be available, which were quite unusual in their making, wtih the top part of the bell being the brides upper portion and the bell area the flaring of the skirt of the bridal gown.

The very soft mistlike finish covered the top and about half of the skirt of the bell, fading out reminiscent of a bridal veil.

1981 saw a ruby bell offered with a "Twas the Night Before Christmas," theme with a frosted handle that was of crystal, and was one of four tht was limited edition, however it was the only one, to our knowledge tht was made with the crystal prior to Fostorias factory ceasing production.

According to one expert, there is also another 1977 bell which I"ve not seen or found that was a winter scene, wtih a horse drawn sleigh and pine trees that is dated in 1977, but I can not seem to find pictures or listing of it.

Fostoria bells have become prized collectors items for many who love Fostoria in all its glory, and since the bells were made for so relatively few years, they are in great demand. If you have one, hang on to it and if you’re looking be prepared to pay a price that could range from 15-50 dollars if not more..