Carnival Glass 101

Carnival glass was first produced on a large scale by Fenton Art Glass Company of Willamstown, West Virginia in 1908. They called it “Iridill” glass. Over the years Fenton produced over 150 patterns and a wide variety of colors of carnival glass.

The majority of carnival glass was produced between 1908 and 1925. However, companies continued to successfully sell carnival glass into the 1940’s. Other companies that produced it include: Imperial, Cambridge, Westmoreland, Dugan, Millersbug, and Northwood. At the height of carnival glass popularity competition was fierce and companies were constantly coming up with new patterns, hence the over 2,000 patterns available today.

Carnival glass has been known by many other names throughout the years such as: aurura glass, dope glass, taffeta glass, and rainbow glass. It acquired its current and most common name because in the 1950’s it was sometimes given as prizes at fairs and carnivals.

The array of carnival glass pieces produced is extraordinary. They range from basic utilitarian items such as butter dishes to purely decorative statuettes. Carnival glass identification can be extremely challenging, even for the experienced collector. Most pieces are not marked and many manufacturers closely copied their competitors pieces.