An Incomplete History of the Nonik Glass

Ice cream soda in a nonik glass being served by a soda jerk in New York City, 1936. Source: Wikipedia.

Author Martyn Cornell et. al. trace the introduction of the nonik glass in England to 1948 when Alexander Hardie Williamson designed one for Ravenhead Glass. And while many associate this glass with English ales, it was created in the United States decades earlier where it was often used to serve a growing soda market.

In addition to the increasing popularity of soda, and the soda fountains that served them, the Temperance Movement was also on the rise in the US in the early 20th century. Soda fountains could be found as a stand-alone business, but were often in department stores and pharmacies. They began to occupy some bars as well, once the Eighteenth Amendment was ratified and Prohibition began in 1920.

Hugo Pick, of Albert Pick & Company, created the nonik, receiving its first patent in 1913 (some advertisements around the time also indicate a 1912 patent). Pick & Co. was a well-established service industry company based out of Chicago. They also owned and operated a chain of hotels.

The Nonik Glassware Corporation was a licensee, and, according to the Crockery and Glass Journal, sole distributor of nonik glasses to the “jobbing trade”. They advertised widely, emphasizing a glass design that was 38-percent stronger than other glasses, and eliminated breakage and nicking by 40-percent, or 50-percent, depending on which ad you read. Another ad in House & Garden noted the nonik will “almost totally eliminate broken and chipped glassware.” Almost totally! They also created a carton to store the glassware, and a blurb in an issue of The Soda Fountain notes “we are told that breakage during the period of storage is impossible.”

All of this was due to the patented bulge, which helped protect the glass from breaking and the rim from chipping when the glass was knocked over or in storage. Improved grip was another advertised benefit.

Early 20th century ads for the Nonik in The Hotel World, The Pottery and Glass Salesman and The Soda Fountain.

Pick & Co. filed a suit against the Ferd Messmer Manufacturing Corporation when it was found that the latter was selling a glass similar to the nonik. In 1918, the court in Ferd Messmer Mfg. Co. v. Albert Pick & Co. et al., found that the Pick patent from 1914 was valid. This patent was “for an improvement in drinking glasses consisting of a shallow bulge below the rim, etc.”, and the Ferd Messmer Manufacturing Corporation had infringed upon it, according to the court.

However, the court invalidated the design patent from 1913 noting “there is nothing in the bulge of the patented glass which would appeal to the esthetic emotions or to our idea of the beautiful. While the bulge may be new and useful, we cannot say that it has added anything to decorative art.” Ouch. Essentially, they said as an ornamental design, this was not new or unique, but its creation as a means to avoid breakage was.

A great opportunity for growth arose when Pick & Co. partnered with the Libbey Glass Company. The glassware giant had its own line of products seeking to avoid nicks along the rim, which it referred to as “Safedge”. Pick sold their 1914 patent to Libbey in 1925, and they entered into a contract where, among other things, Libbey would produce nonik glasses for Pick at a favorable price compared to other customers. This agreement would last to 1931 when the patent expired. Ads for the Nonik then appeared using the Safedge branding.

A change in ownership at Pick & Co. occurred in 1926. This may explain some changes in their business. The same year, Pick began selling a new glass called “Dur-Nok”. This glass was similar to the nonik, except the bulge was inward as opposed to out.

On the left, an ad reflecting the partnership with Libbey and Pick. On the right, the Dur-Nok glass, created by Albert Pick Co.

The Dur-Nok caused the relationship to sour with Libbey, who decided to take Pick to court. The court in 1933 heard Libbey Glass Mfg. Co. v. Albert Pick Co. In this case, Libbey charged that with the Dur-Nok, Pick had infringed upon the 1914 patent, but the court disagreed.

Though it seems that Pick was once again victorious, there is little evidence of them selling nonik or Dur-Nok glasses in the 1930s and beyond.

An example of many variations on the nonik created for Coca-Cola. Source: fanpop.com

While the patent had expired, opening up opportunities for other manufacturers, the rise of the nonik seems to taper off in the United States after this point. Coca-cola and others have used glasses that mimic the form, but these have been an exception for US glassware. Currently, they are more of a novelty for kitschy, retro burger joints.

Further, the glassware business changed as retail and packaging changed. By mid-century it became easier to get drinks into the hands of customers in other places. Vending machines, home refrigeration, and bottles and cans rendered soda fountains obsolete and unnecessary places to have a soda. Plus, bars were (legally) back open.

Pick & Co. simply moved on, thriving for a couple more decades, but ultimately folding as they fell behind changes in the hotel industry.

The nonik moved on as well. It appears in a 1934 catalog from a German company called August Walther & Sohne AG. It does not seem to have been a big hit with the Germans, as I cannot find any other historic trace of their existence in Germany.

The nonik (on the right) as depicted in a 1934 catalog for the German glass company August Walther & Sohne AG (found online here). The glass is identified as “Wulstrandbecher”, which translates to bulb edge cup.

Things were different in England, where Cornell suggests the nonik is likely the “most ubiquitous glass”. As mentioned above, Ravenhead began producing the glass in 1948, and other manufacturers followed suit shortly after.

Unlike its origins in the United States, the nonik has been sold in England as a glass for beer. However, the noted benefits are the same as advertised by Pick & Co. Up to 2007, these had to include a crown stamp, ensuring the glass could hold the volume of liquid as indicated (half-pint, pint, quart).

Along with the English dimple mug, the nonik is certainly not embraced by all (see Cornell’s post for further comment on the disdain for the dimple mug). Cornell calls the nonik “irredeemably ugly”. Fellow author Melissa Cole has a similar sentiment for the nonik and the dimple, "they are both unattractive - butt ugly."

Despite the fact that the craft beer movement in England is making use of better glassware for beer, similar to the shaker pint in the United States, the nonik is probably not going away anytime soon.

Soda fountains, Albert Pick & Co. and Ravenshead are all gone now, but Libbey is still around, and still selling noniks. In the past, the sight of a nonik excited me because it made me think of beer styles I enjoy like mild, bitter and porter. This likely kept me from thinking much about its aesthetics or function as a vessel for beer. Perhaps I need to reconsider this, but I kinda like my noniks.