Dominion Glass Company Ltd.

Dominion Glass was a major Canadian glassmaker with product lines ranging from bottles & jars to pressed tableware and art glass.  In the early years, it was a corporation which grew through multiple takeovers of smaller firms, and the original company was the Foster Brothers Glass Works in Quebec established in 1855.

Renamed in 1890 to the Diamond Glass Company Ltd., more acquisitions meant that the company operated plants in Nova Scotia, Quebec and Ontario.  New ownership was the reason for a name change to the Diamond Flint Glass Company Ltd. in 1903.  Previously in 1897, Diamond Glass had acquired a small Montreal company called Dominion Glass, which had been in operation since about 1885.  This name was adopted eventually by Diamond, and 1913 finally saw the establishment of the new Dominion Glass Company Ltd. 

Flat-top shakers and slanted-top shakers in 'Blue Cornflower'.

Throughout its subsequent history, factories would be located also in Manitoba, Alberta and British Columbia.  Another name change to Domglas Ltd. was made in 1976, and a takeover occurred in 1978 by CB Pak, a subsidiary of Consolidated-Bathurst (a pulp & paper conglomerate).  A long-time rival of Dominion Glass, Consumers Packaging, the former Consumers Glass Company, acquired Domglas Inc. in 1989.  It appears the division was sold yet again, this time to Libbey Inc. and was renamed Libbey - St. Clair and then Libbey Canada.

'Blue Cornflower': Sugar Shaker (side flap), Cruet (plastic lid), Juice Jug (lid not shown), Sugar Shaker (top flap), Creamer.

Dominion Glass produced practical kitchen and table accessories in white opal glass, and three notable decorations were look-alikes of Corning Ware patterns: Blue Cornflower, Spice O’ Life and Wildflower.  The product line was relatively slim and can be summed up as:  Salt & Pepper Shakers, Creamers, Sugar Shakers and Cruets.  These items were available in all three patterns.  The cruets appear to have been sold singly, presumably just for vinegar, rather than in pairs as an oil & vinegar set. 

There are additional pieces which have been seen only in ‘Blue Cornflower’.  The Juice Jug holds a bit more than 1 Quart, and originally it came with a white plastic lid with a snap-top spout; lid not shown in photo above.  There is also a set of Nesting Bowls, with capacities of 1½ cups, 2½ cups, 1 Quart.  Only a three piece set has been seen, it is unknown whether other sizes exist.

Nesting bowls with Blue Cornflower look-alike decoration.

The lids on the other items generally are chromed plastic, but some do have a white plastic top.  Black plastic tops also exist, but there is a chance that these had been chromed originally, and the finish has washed off or been removed. 

The majority of salt & pepper shakers have slanted tops, but there are some older ones with flat tops also.  Older cruets have stainless steel lids, while the tops on newer ones are chromed plastic.  Sugar shakers come with two types of flip-open lid: one type has a large flap on a slanted top, the other has a small flap on the side of a flat top.  Creamers have open tops with no cover at all, unlike those of Gemco and Dispensers Inc.
 

Backstamps can be faint sometimes and difficult to spot.  There are three known markings on these products:  a large capital ‘D’, a smaller capital ‘D’ inside a diamond, and newer items can be marked ‘Van Pak Canada’.  Van Pak Ltd. is a Canadian housewares wholesaler; its connection to Dominion Glass is not yet clear, but it was evidently a close association.

The original label on the back of a 'Blue Cornflower' cruet suggests that Dominion's own pattern name was 'Coronado'.  The Van Pak logo is also depicted here.  Official names for the other two patterns are not yet known.

'Spice O' Life': Salt & Pepper, Sugar Shaker, Cruet (stainless steel top), Creamer.

Dominion's design for Spice O' Life also can be found on Federal Glass mugs and McCoy Pottery.  The McCoy pieces are named 'Spice Delight'.  The connection between these other manufacturers and Dominion Glass is not yet understood.

'Wildflower': Sugar Shaker, Salt/Pepper and two Creamers.  There is a cruet in this pattern as well.

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