Coca-Cola contour bottles on display

Friday, April 26, 2019

TERRE HAUTE – The Root Family Public Art Project will unveil a second round of 10 completed six-foot-tall Coca-Cola bottle sculptures at a free preview party on Tuesday, April 30.

The public art project is part of a larger branding effort to make Terre Haute known as the birthplace of the iconic contour Coca-Cola bottle which was designed by the Root Glass Co. in 1915.

The distinctive Coke bottle owes its green hue to the Putnam County area known as Fern Cliff, west of Greencastle in Madison Township. Intent on using the sandstone of the local cliffs for glass making, the Root Glass Co. bought 160 acres in the Fern Cliff area in the early 1900s.

These latest sculptures, painted by local artists, bring the total number of bottles featured throughout Terre Haute to 37. An additional two “naked” Coca-Cola bottle sculptures are still available for sponsorship.

The preview party is set for 4-6 p.m. Tuesday, April 30 at Scott’s Custom Colors, 3140 N. 25th St., Terre Haute. Admission is free.

Scott’s Custom Colors is one of the original sponsors of the program and also has provided free protective clearcoating for all of the sculptures.

“We are so grateful for the many businesses and organizations who have supported this project,” said Sally Whitehurst, one of the volunteers leading the public art project. “We decided to do a second round because we had some groups who really wanted to participate after seeing the first round of bottles.”

Whitehurst added that no additional rounds are planned, and that the two remaining bottles available for sponsorship will be sold on a first-come, first-served basis.

Artists for this round are Becky Hochhalter, Jackie Tice, Jim Shepard, Bryan Bromstrup, Chelsea Moody, Ryan Wilkinson, Brandy Gum, Troy Fears, David Gill and Kari Rajkumar.

“The bottles have been a popular attraction for Terre Haute. Some families have made a scavenger hunt out of finding all of the bottles, and they are definitely a hit on social media,” Susan Tingley, director of development at the Vigo County Historical Society, said

A map Tingley created of the first 27 bottles was a popular giveaway at the inaugural Birthplace of the Coca-Cola Bottle Festival last fall. The map, which will be updated once the new sculptures are in place, is available at www.terrehaute.com/birthplace-of-the-coca-cola-bottle.

The festival is being planned again this year by Downtown Terre Haute, an affiliated group of the Terre Haute Chamber of Commerce. It will take place on Saturday, Sept. 21.

The new Vigo County History Center, slated to open in early summer, will feature a historic display on the original bottle which was designed by the Root Glass Co. in response to a national competition. The center will also have a historic soda fountain shop where visitors can order Coke floats and other items.

The overall Birthplace of the Coca-Cola Bottle initiative is a sponsored program of the Wabash Valley Community Foundation.

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