Fire-King Glass
from the
Glass Encyclopedia

Anchor Hocking Glass Corporation was created in 1937 from the merger of Hocking Glass with the Anchor Cap and Closure Corporation. A few years later, in 1942, they introduced their hugely popular "Fire-King" glassware, which continued in production until the late 1970s. Even as late as 1992 Anchor Hocking were making some Fire-King items, to celebrate the 50 year anniversary of its introduction.

Fire-King was pressed glass dinnerware and kitchenware made from oven-proof glass, usually opaque apart from a few items like the clear "crystal" line in ovenware which was included as Fire-King. Two special colors in Fire-King have become very popular and easily recognised - the pale green "Jade-ite" and the iridized peach color with a mirror finish called "Peach Lustre" which is illustrated on the left.

All kinds of dinnerware patterns were produced in Fire-King, in plain colors or with transfer printed floral or natural or geometric designs. The shapes were very practical and there was a huge range of items to choose from. Fire-King even carried a two year guarantee on the label.

Most Fire-King glass is marked but there are several different identifications. The most common Anchor Hocking trademark is an anchor with an H straddling the stem. The mug above on the left says on the bottom: Anchor Hocking Fire-King OVEN PROOF Made in the USA, and there is also an anchor supporting an H and the number 33.

There was a thicker version of Fire-King glassware produced for the restaurant industry, and this was probably the most popular of all. In the first six years they sold 25 million pieces!

One word of advice to collectors. After all these years, some pieces of Fire-King are not as oven-proof as their makers claimed. Be cautious about using your precious collection in the microwave.