NDGA Annual Convention 2008

The 34^th Annual National Depression Glass Association Convention will be held on July 19-20, 2008, in the St. Louis suburb of St. Charles, Missouri. St Charles Center The dates are a little later in the month than most past Conventions, but we had to accept the weekend where the facility had an opening. The last time the National Depression Glass Association held a convention in St. Charles was 1983.

The site is the St. Charles Convention Center (photo at right), a facility which opened in 2005. It is adjacent to the Embassy Suites St. Louis-St. Charles. It is about 20 minutes from downtown St. Louis, and only 10 minutes from Lambert-St. Louis International Airport.

Our Convention Chairperson for this year is Betty Buersmeyer. She and her helpers are committed to producing a world-class Convention, one that will be remembered by all attendees. You can contact her via email at: Convention@NDGA.net.

Special Pre-Convention Event

This year there will be a special side-trip available for attendees and dealers at the 34^th Annual Convention. On Friday morning, July 18, the day before the Convention opens, at about 10:30am, we leave for the Cupples Museum, located at Saint Louis University. Cupples House It's a short drive, and plans are for us to return to the Convention site at around 1:00 or so. The Museum needs to know how many folks will be coming, so it is important to sign up for this side-trip ahead of time. Send an email to: djglass@centurytel.net if you plan to attend, so we can have an accurate count.

The Cupples House (shown at right) was built in 1890 by Samuel Cupples, who made his fortune in the warehouse business (he had a virtual monopoly on warehouses in the St. Louis area). Saint Louis University acquired the house and in 1973 it was saved from demolition and restored. It is on the National Historic Register. The Eleanor Turshin Glass Collection is the focus of our interest. This is a magnificent collection of Art Glass, from American companies such as Steuben and Tiffany to Daum, Lalique and others from Europe. Prepare to be dazzled, and don't forget to sign up ahead of time.

Schedule of Events

The show and sale will open with Early Bird admissions at 8:00am Saturday morning. Early Bird admission is $15 each for NDGA members and $25 each for non-members. Non-members can pre-register for the Early Bird admission and send payment ahead of time, reducing the admission charge to $20, while the charge to members remains at $15. Simply fill out the Early Bird Pre-Registration Form and mail it with your check to the address provided.

General admission to the Convention, Show and Sale begins at 10:00am, and is $8 per person. Here is the complete Convention Schedule in PDF® format.

Seminars and Speakers

Our featured authors this year will be Danny Cornelius and Don Jones, authors of the book American Pattern Glass Table Settings. They will be presenting a seminar on Early American Pattern Glass (EAPG) and will display some fabulous pieces from their private collection.

A second seminar speaker will be author John Walk, speaking on the topic of Fenton Rarities, Whimseys and Samples. John wrote the book Fenton Rarities 1940-1985 which was released in 2002, and he is a well-known dealer in Fenton and other elegant glass.

The third seminar will be presented by Jim and Nancy Finley, collectors from Sedalia, MO. They have been collecting Cambridge glass for over 40 years. They began with Rosepoint. As their massive collection grew they began to branch out. They stayed with Cambridge glass and began to acquire swans, nude stems, the Marjorie etched pattern, Japonica, decorated opaques, bar and smoking items, rare and unusual pieces, and turkeys. As part of their seminar they will display their collections of turkeys, give a brief history of the turkey's manufacture, and explain how to distinguish a Cambridge turkey from other glass turkeys.

National Glass Organizations

We encourage all of the National Glass Organizations to participate in the NDGA Convention, and will provide space (conditions permitting) for any of the National Glass Organizations who wish to attend and staff a table to promote their group. Contact the Convention Chairman (Convention@NDGA.net) if your group is interested in participating. Last year we had the Morgantown Collectors, Indiana Glass Society, Fostoria Glass Collectors and the Historical Glass Museum of Redlands, CA. Each organization was able to distribute membership information and sell literature and souvenir items at the Show.

NDGA Annual Meeting

The Annual General Membership Meeting will be held in conjunction with the Convention. It is scheduled to begin at 5:30pm on Saturday. All NDGA members are invited to attend, and time will be given to any member who wishes to speak at the meeting. Expect it to last for about two hours. Members are encouraged to attend and participate.

Silent Auction

We will again be having a "silent auction", to raise money for the National Glass Collection. We will continue this fund-raising project this year. Donations of good quality glass items for the auction will be accepted during set-up on Thursday and Friday until Noon. The proceeds from this auction will all be used for acquisitions for the National Glass Collection.

Glass Displays

Each year at the Convention, collectors share their personal collections of glass and pottery with the rest of us. It is often the only opportunity that we have to see some of the rare and unusual items that are in private collections. Also on display will be the additions to the National Glass Collection acquired since the last convention. The list below consists of the confirmed displays as of April 10:

Exhibitor(s)	Items To Be Displayed
Kent Washburn	Orange Glass
Dovie Fields	Blue Fostoria Baroque
Scott Smith	Colored Nautical
Kathleen Booth	Multi Colored Jamestown
Richard Ladd	Indiana Glass Cream & Sugars
Dwayne Kuhnert	Swanky Swigs
Sylvia Bien	Delphite Ware
Ken Sloan	Hazel Atlas Kitchenware
Willis Brand	Green Parrot
Len & Enid Waska	Wave Crest
Marilyn Kreutz	Cobalt Glass
Shirley Wagoner	Rare Cherry Blossom
Sarah Van Dalsem	Fire King Jadite Shell
John Braum & Wayne Alexander	Wildflower w/gold band

Lodging in or near St. Charles

We have compiled a list of Motels in the St. Charles area. There are also two area maps showing the locations of these properties relative to the St. Charles Convention Center. The NDGA does not specifically endorse any of the listed properties.

We recommend that you make your room reservations early, as the St. Louis Cardinals baseball team will be in town over the weekend, and rooms tend to fill up.

Local Attractions

Our Show Chairman writes:

For those of you new to or unfamiliar with St. Louis, let me give you some ideas. The St. Louis Cardinals baseball team will be in town during the Convention. They play San Diego on Thursday and Friday nights and have day games on Saturday and Sunday. Milwaukee comes to town on Monday. You night consider a trip to the Gateway Arch and the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial Museum at the base of the Arch. This is a wonderful Museum, telling the Story of the westward expansion of the United States, and in particular the Louis and Clark expedition.

The tram to the top of the arch offers a panoramic view of downtown and the Mississippi River. Across from the Arch is the Old Court House where the Dred Scott trial was held. Riverboat cruises are available on the riverfront below the arch. The Art Museum in Forest Park is one of the best in the country. Less than five minutes from the show site is historic downtown St. Charles with Missouri's first State Capitol, and great antique and specialty shopping. Also less than five minutes away are three casinos.

Our vice president, Bert Kennedy, found this brochure showing Antique Shops in the St. Charles area while visiting the area. He reports that the shopping was great. Enjoy!

There are many attractions in and around St. Charles and the St. Louis area, if you're looking for entertainment besides the NDGA Convention. Here's a link to the St. Charles Convention and Visitors Bureau which provides accurate information about the entire area.

List of Participating Dealers

Here is the current list of confirmed dealers who have accepted contracts and will be exhibiting at the St. Charles Convention. Before the Convention begins, this list may change, due to health issues, etc.

Linda & David Adams	Las Vegas NV	Helen & Gene Allen	Overland Park, KS
Rick Bakkum	Buffalo MO	Dale & Betty Buersmeyer	Pacific MO
Penny Reed	Des Moines IA	Rose & James Curnutt	Western Spring IL
Esther Mitchell	Little Rock AR	Pam Franscella	Gurnee IL
Pat & Sharon Ervin	Sycamore IL	Dovie & John Fields	Independence MO
Jim Davis	Springfield IL	Willis Brand	Waterloo IL
Arlene Goldberg	Greenwood Village CO	Rosemary Trietsch	Albertson NY
Helen Jones	Berkley Springs WV	Donna & Bert Kennedy	Balch Springs TX
Carol McEwen	Wichita KS	Fred & Pam Meyer	McKinney TX
Max Miller	Houston TX	Jack Peacock	Winston-Salem NC
Jane & John Schleinzer	Aurora IL	Penny Renner	Elkhart, IN
Cecil & Sharyn Taylor	Irving TX	Carolyn & Glen Robinson	York, SC
Kent Washburn	San Antonio TX	Leegh & Michael Wyse	Corvallis OR

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