Myles Standish Hotel (Standish Spring) Glass Bottle
Molded Glass Bottle, late 19th century
Glass
Gift of John and Pauline Geishecker, 2003.004.003
A glass bottle from the Standish Spring in South Duxbury. The Myles Standish Hotel capitalized on the Standish name by bottling local spring water and selling it nationwide, later introducing lines of ginger ale and lemon soda. In an 1898 publication by Ezra Perry, A Trip Around Cape Cod, the Spring is mentioned in conjunction with local historical Plymouth hotspots. Perry noted that the water is “second to none, if not superior to any waters in the world, and is endorsed by the MEDICAL FACULTY AND THE PUBLIC as an absolutely pure and perfect water, and remarkable for its solvent properties.”
In 1871, a group of Boston entrepreneurs formed the Standish Shore Company and built a hotel known as the Standish House, later known as the Myles Standish Hotel. They also laid out plans for a large development of cottages around the hotel, only a portion of which came to fruition. The hotel, however, was tremendously popular, attracting visitors from Boston, New York and beyond. The hotel featured a golf course, daily concerts, weekly balls, and hosted regattas. The hotel suffered a fire in 1908 and ultimately closed its doors in 1912.
Related Objects: Standish Spring Soda Labels, circa 1900, Ink on paper, Gift of Tony Kelso, DAL.MSS.066.
The Myles Standish Spring Water was so popular that in the late 19th century, proprietors of the hotel, L. Boyer & Sons, began selling different types of sodas. Included in this exhibit are two labels promoting a ginger ale and a lemon soda. Both images feature a trademark drawing of Myles Standish and proudly boast that they are “made with the celebrated Myles Standish Spring Water.”
Digging Duxbury
The quest for archaeological evidence of the Pilgrim past began with an 1833 dig, one of the earliest in U.S. history.
Coming to a Pilgrim Town
Coming to a Pilgrim Town
Duxbury’s Pilgrim history, combined with the town’s natural beauty, initiated a tourist boom.
Collecting in a Pilgrim Town
Collecting in a Pilgrim Town
The tourism boom brought another enterprise, the creation and sale of Pilgrim-themed souvenirs.
Lasting Legacy
Duxbury's Lasting Legacy
Duxbury never forgot its Pilgrim origins. How could it? The names continue to generate interest today.
Return to Exhibition Main Page.