You see vintage wooden crates everywhere at flea markets. Many vendors don’t sell them, but use them to carry their wares from the car to the booth, and back to the car. They don’t consider a crate as a nostalgic thing, imbued with some hidden beauty. It’s just a convenient way to schlep things around. From these people you can get the best deals on crates. Although, sometimes, they don’t want to give them up because they know it’s hard to find another box that sturdy.
Golden Glow Beer Crate
I think you still see so many wooden crates today because once they were used for everything. Every product imaginable (as long as it fit inside) was packed and transported in a wooden crate. The difference between a crate and a box is that latter gets usually destroyed (or taken apart) when removing the product. A crate can be re-used as is.
Together with woven baskets, vases and amphoras, wooden crates are believed to be the oldest form of packaging. Corrugated cardboard boxes were only invented in the 1870s, and plastic crates weren’t used before the late 1940s. When companies started switching from wood to plastic, a lot of wooden crates probably ended up in a fireplace. I wonder how many old and broken plastic crates ended up with a romantic evening in the fire?
I’m always surprised by the weight of wooden crates. When I hold my empty Golden Glow crate, and imagine the additional weight of twenty four bottles made out of thick soda-lime glass, plus the beer, I can’t help but think what a wimp I am. Were people so much tougher sixty years ago?
Many crates have metals bands wrapped around the edges to make them more durable.
Below is an ammunition crate from the Second World War.
Ammunition Crate from Dupont/Remington Express
Small Arms Ammunition / Extra Long Range
I’m not a fan of war memorabilia (I grew up in Germany), but I couldn’t resist those box joints (somewhat similar to dovetails). Today, you will have a hard time finding this kind of dedication on an expensive piece of furniture.
Seven Up Bottling Co. of Los Angeles
The paint has been completely washed off, but the outlines of the letters are still readable. The ink must have been applied under substantial pressure.
7 Comments
Equally fascinating to me is the printing on these crates, both the typography but also the actual printing process. While some of the markings appear to be simply screened (like the Pepsi?), the debossing on many of these- Golden Glow, Remington, Roast Beef- suggests that some sort of plate printing was used, ie. an engraved plate was made, inked, and then under pressure transferred to the wood. So much effort, care and craftsmanship for such a utilitarian object! Could this be the roots of why today we sometimes see “made with care by XXXX and team” (or some such) printed on the bottom of corrugated boxes? Thanks KM!
The straight-fingered joints used in the ammo boxes are “Box Joints”. Dove tails are joints interlock by shaping the fingers in the form of a dove’s tail, as your wikipedia link shows. Thanks for the walk down memory lane.
Steven, Thanks for your comment. I agree, the printing on these boxes is remarkable. I actually have a picture that shows how deep the wood is pushed in. I will upload it when I have more time later today. I also found this great book from 1921 called “Wooden Box and Crate Construction” by the Forest Products Laboratory – here is a link: http://tiny.cc/CrateConstruction. It will tell you everything that you ever wanted to know on the production of crates, but unfortunately doesn’t mention anything about the printing. S.
Michael, Thanks for your comment and your note about the joints. It’s already fixed. S.
I am sending boxes to florida and i wanted to find out about putting the boxes into one large crate.
I just found a stash of colorful soda crates and bought the whole lot. There are over 100 and am asking $20 each. Interested? call me at (808) 870-1268 and ask for Brian
Does anyone know the print process or machinery that was used to press the lettering into the wood?. Its use was widespread but I can find no reference to the process in books on printing and I guess its been rendered obsolete by inkjet printers.