Local historian and HSDC docent, Richard Hartman will be giving a lecture and book signing for his newly published book “Antique Bottles of Harrisburg, PA: A Window on the Past.”

This book talk will speak to a time when Harrisburg had its first local breweries and beer bottlers, a time when Harrisburg had its own soft drink manufacturers and bottlers, milk dealers and dairies, privately run liquor store and bottlers, along with local medicine manufactures, and neighborhood pharmacists who produced, compounded, and labeled their own medicines.

This is a free event open to the public, held on Sunday, November 9th at 1:00pm. Copies of the book will be available for sale and autographing. If you have an old Harrisburg (or immediate area) bottle you have questions about, you can bring it to the program. All proceeds from books sold this day will go directly to HSDC.

Richard Hartman received his Bachelor of Science Degree in Education with a major in American History from Bloomsburg State University. His career path took him into the field of rehabilitation services for person with disabilities. While working for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, he received a Master of Science in Rehabilitation Counseling from the University of Scranton.

Beginning in the 1970s, the author began collecting antique bottles because of their visual appeal and historical significance. After he retired from working for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, his interest in American and local history, and his substantial Harrisburg bottle collection, led to the concept for this book.