The cradle of early American glassmaking was right here in South Jersey. The abundance of silicate sand, access to navigable waterways, and forests for wood led to a colonial glass industry here that boasted upwards of 225 glass factories well into the 19th century. One of the foremost of these was the Wheaton Glass Co. (my brother-in-law's name, but no direct relation to the glass moguls).
Today there is a restored historic village, Wheaton Village, in Millville, NJ, where you can watch and study the art of Early American glassmaking. And it also houses the Museum of American Glass, with over 6,500 pieces of vintage glass for your delicate perusal! Here are the URLs for the full story. The museum link also has photos of some beautiful pieces. The other link describes the village, it's purpose, and gives a capsule history of Colonial glassmaking (no wonder you Brits didn't want to give up New Jersey!
...like I always say,
"Get Off the Turnpike!"®)
:
http://www.wheatonvillage.org/museum/http://www.loc.gov/bicentennial/propage/NJ/nj_s_lautenberg1.html
