Welcome to my milk bottle Web site!

Ralph and Bonnie Kipp 836 Lehman Drive Chester, IL 62233 Phone (618) 826-2534 kippsfam@egyptian.net Members of The National Association of Milk Bottle Collectors

Click here to see Dairy Milk Bottles for Sale and Trade! New Additions - January 2008

Styrofoam bead bottle fill is back! This is a great way to show off pyro milk bottles. The fill comes packaged in a plastic bag and shipped inside a corrugated box for easy handling. The styrofoam beads can also be used for making FLOAM or other CRAFT projects. Click here for more information.

• 104 quarts for $32.00 plus shipping by U.S. Parcel Post. Total cost including shipping will range from $46.00 to $53.50 in the 48 contiguous states. Click here for details.
• 32 quarts for $24.00 including shipping by U.S. Parcel Post. Click here for details.

On April 1, 1929, my parents (Gottfried and Hermine Kipp) began bottling milk on a dairy farm near Chester, IL. The production of milk was primarily from Jersey cows. Customers were pleased to purchase milk with a deep cream line. Milk was bottled on the farm until 1951. At that time the operation changed, and the Kipps distributed New Era Dairy products. Later New Era Dairy was acquired by Prairie Farms Dairy which is presently serving a large area with quality products. A few years ago Bonnie and I became more actively interested in collecting milk bottles.

See my collection! Click here for a list of bottles, many of which are available for sale or trade. Here are some photos of my embossed Illinois bottles. Message Board Archives October 2007 - Due to an increase in abusive messages, I have stopped allowing any new postings. Old messages are still available for viewing. I hope to come up with a solution to allow new messages again soon. Here are links to my older messages: Messages since Jan. 2007 Messages during 2006 (and their replies) Messages during 2005 (and their replies) Messages during 2004 (and their replies) Messages during 2003 (and their replies) Messages during 2002 (and their replies) Messages posted 12/19/2000 through 2001 (and their replies) June-October 1999 March - May 1999 December 1998-February 1999 August-November 1998 You can also email me at kippsfam@egyptian.net. Other Links: Click on the Lori Kipp original artwork to visit other milk bottle Web sites.

Milk Bottle Capper Click to see a larger photo

You can use milk bottles in your decorating schemes. Click to see a Kipp bottle with a floral arrangement or to see a corner of the Kipp dining room. As a hobby, collecting antique bottles will be educational, fun, and enjoyable. Since I collect bottles, some bottles are available only for trade. I have bottles for sale, with the condition accurately described and offered at a fair price. The Kipp bottles are embossed and include an original cap as was used. The quart or pint bottles are $15.50 each, plus shipping and handling. (Floral arrangements are not included.) The quart bottles are in mint condition, and the pint bottles are mint or near mint. Shipping and handling is $7.50 for the first quart or pint bottle and $2.50 for each additional bottle in the same shipment with the 48 contiguous states. Shipping and handling for a 1/2 pint or 1/3 quart bottle is $4.50. Price for shipping elsewhere, larger quantities, or creamers will be determined. If you are not satisfied with any bottle purchased, you may return it for a full refund any time within 20 days of the purchase exclusive of shipping and handling.

Color-applied lettering, or pyro glaze lettering, became available in the early 1930’s. All bottles with pyro lettering are filled with white styrofoam beads and are ready for you to display and enjoy. The bottle will have a cap or cover, but not a cap original to the dairy named on the bottle. Check this page often for information about milk bottles offered for sale. You will find bottles attractive to you for reasons such as the messages or scenes on the bottles. In earlier years of milk bottle collecting, collectors sought only embossed bottles for their collection. As collectors and decorators used the styrofoam beads to insert into the bottles the beauty of pyro bottles the interest to collect them grew. It is fair to say that the round bottles are more collectible than the square bottles. Square bottles are becoming collectible.

At the present time we would like to trade for a round quart milk bottle with pyro lettering from the following states: AL AR AZ IN KY LA MN SC TN TX UT VT WA DC. The tall round bottles are preferred. We want to have the bottle include the name of the city and state. We also hope the reverse side of the bottle includes attractive information. We may be interested in a pyro bottle from these states in a size smaller than a quart.

In the future more pictures will appear and more bottles will be offered for sale. Please check our page and we hope to hear from you.

Click here for a list of my bottle collection.