[Newspaper]
Publication: The Kokomo Daily Gazette-Tribune
Kokomo, IN, United States
vol. 7, no. 31, p. 2, col. 3
KOKOMO SCOOPS THE WORLD.
The Art Glass Exhibit of C. Edward
Henry, Wins First Prize at the Paris
Exposition.
Orders Coming in From All Parts of the
World. The Factory to be Enlarged.
Mr. V. Belard, the silent and experienced partner of the C. Edward Henry opalescent glass works company, received official notice last Friday from Paris that their exhibit of art glass had captured the first prize and a gold medal for the best collection of cathedral and art glass on exhibition at the world’s exposition in that city. The diploma awarding first prize to “C. Edward Henry, Kokomo, Indiana, U. S. A.,” was signed by the committee of awards and other officials. This great triumph was practically assured from the start, but the proprietors preferred to say little about it until the official announcement was made and all doubts set at rest.
Mr. Henry is yet in Europe but expected home soon. After the word arrived announcing the result Mr. Belard gave the factory operatives a banquet, and Saturday afternoon was spent by them in rejoicing over the victory won by the products of their hands.
A Gazette Tribune reporter called at the factory Monday and as was to be anticipated, found all hands in a most agreeable frame of mind. Mr. Belard, the urbane and obliging manager of the works, showed us duplicates of the glass winning the distinguished honor. Thirty large sheets of glass of variegated colors were forwarded to the exhibition, but unfortunately, only fourteen of them were available for exhibition, the remaining sixteen being broken in transit. The display, though in a rough wooden frame made by the factory blacksmith, attracted wide attention from devotees of fine art and was a big card for the Kokomo product, aside from the grand prize award. Orders came pouring into the factory for similar goods until now the foreign demand is so great that the company is unable to supply it. Several large shipments have been made. Three cars are now on their side track being loaded, one for New York, one for San Francisco and one for Paris. The cathedral glass is packed in boxes of 100 pounds each. They cast every day, beginning at 8 o’clock in the morning. The molten glass in the bottom of the pots is used in making electric insulators, for which they have a contract for all they can manufacture.
The capacity of the plant will be doubled before next season, owing to the large and growing demand for their products. The proprietors are to be congratulated on the great success of their industry.