Fresh fall produce abounds at outdoor farm stands and markets beginning in early September and lasting well past Thanksgiving.

"Gardens are such a magical place and at the end of the season my tomatoes, beans, bread and butter pickles, berries and apples are put in old-fashioned canning jars, bringing such a cheer sitting side-by-side on someone's pantry  shelves," says Mary Speltz of Altura. "I have been canning since I was first able to join 4-H as a child and I have been a regular at the Winona area farmer's market since 1987, providing canning jars of ingredients and at Sugar Loaf Antiques & Crafts (in Winona).

"I first came to market with a card table of goods and have now grown to four banquet tables," Speltz says. "I can about 40 to 50 kinds of jams, jellies, butters, chutneys, vegetables, pickles of various kinds along with pickled eggs."

There are various types of canning jars available. Some have a glass lid, a rubber ring, zinc tops and metal clamps to hold the lid in place, while others have a lid in two parts -- a flat metal disc and a screw lid.

"I use lids and metal discs, the USDA approved methods of canning and also follow the farmer's market guidelines," Speltz says. "I encourage people to recycle the jars back to me, but mainly I use new purchased Ball and Kerr jars because of the quantity I use. I don't have a collection because I have used and sold all of my older jars at the market."

Speltz says there are many things we take for granted that were at one time of great importance to our grandparents, one of them being home canning. Very few people today do home canning.

"I am in my 70s and the oldest of a family of 11, so needless to say, I've been canning and jelling a long time," Speltz says. "I am very proud of my blues, grand and reserve champions in canning and the years that I won purple (ribbons) at the Minnesota State Fair."

So, what about those jars?

The name 'fruit jar' comes from the fruits that were put in open-mouth jars and bottles and sealed with combinations of corks and wax, and lids of glass and flat metal clamps with spring closures.

"There are also canning jars used to preserve food," says Evelyn Minnaert, an antique dealer at Old Rooster Antique Mall in Rochester.

History tells us that Napoleon Bonaparte was offering a reward to anyone who could come up with an edible way of preserving food for him and his army during wartime. The money was claimed by a man named Appert in 1812, whose ideas have been altered or copied more than 4,000 times since in a variety of colors, types of closures, sizes and embossing.

Thomas W. Dyott was one of Philadelphia's earliest glassmakers who started promoting his glass jars in 1829, but on Nov. 30, 1858, John Landis Mason patented his screw-type canning jar. (This date refers to the patent date, not the age of the jar.) Mason's jar wasn't perfect, but with many improvements, Mason sold the rights to a company who let them expire. This is when the Ball Brothers picked up the rights and began to market more than 41 million canning jars produced by the Ball Glass Manufacturing Company.

Starting a collection

Some basic Ball canning jar varieties manufactured over the years include Perfect Mason, Ideal and Sure Seal. During the 19th century, canning was a very difficult chore, and getting the jars shut with a sealing wax was a challenge. It was also unreliable, as crudely cut tin lids were used. In 1915, the Kerr jar, as we know them today, was introduced, featuring a metal lid under a threaded lid, allowing less moisture to escape.

"Ball and Kerr are the most common fruit jars in the stores today," Minnaert says. "Most old jars date to the 20th century, not to 1858, which is simply the patent date, and if they are not made of an uncommon color, they are worth very little.

"Most of my jars in my collection are clear or aqua blue at present, and sell starting at $6 on up," Minnaert says. "I did have emerald green and amber which I sold at a high dollar amount. Cobalt, milk glass or black are very unusual. The value is based on condition, age, rarity, color and special features. Some collectors also look for the different clamp-type glass closures and the embossing style on the jars. One unique jar at the shop which can be used or added to a collection is an approximate three-gallon Mason jar with the patent date, an eagle and stars, selling around $89.

"Some collectors start to collect when they start canning, as I did and now at 81, I am still collecting because of the memories and just the fun," Minnaert says. "The fun is you can still find these fruit jars to add to your collections."

Sandy Erdman is a Winona freelance writer. If you are a collector or an antique dealer, send e-mail to Sandy at life@postbulletin.com

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