Pictured here: Charles Barrett at the Granville Whiskey Decanter Museum. Charles is holding on the left a Rexall Drug Decanter of which there were only three made and a rare 1957 Chevrolet White Convertible.
Historic Granville- Tennessee's Mayberry Town has a history going back to the early 1900’s of famous whiskey makers. This history has been taken to another level with the recent donation of approximately 2,000 Jim Beam Whiskey Decanters by Charles Barrett of Watertown. Charles and his late wife, Betty, began collecting bottles in 1979, and the decanters created by Regal China became a passion for both of them.
Jim Beam Distillery began bottling their whiskey into ornamental bottles in 1955 with the creation of a bowling pin and a porcelain ash tray. Because of the popularity throughout the years, the decanters were produced in fifteen categories: Wheels, Clubs and Conventions, Casino, Centennial, Organizations Customer, Executive, Foreign, People, Opera, Political, Regal China, Sports, States, Trophy, Glass and the Collectors’ Edition. The company later purchased Regal China Company and manufactured the decanters till the 1990s.
Randall Clemons, President of Historic Granville-Granville Museum, Inc. stated that "we are very fortunate to have a museum of this quality in our small town that has decanters of all aspects of life. Regardless of your interest there are decanters that will interest you. We are extremely excited about having over 150 automobiles that will further enhance our two antique car museums. Our volunteers and staff have worked so hard for the last five months to make this possible. It is one of the most professional exhibits you will visit anywhere and
further enhances our Mayberry Lucy Museum next door, as well as our Whistle Stop Saloon Museum.
We are very thankful to Charles Barrett and his late wife, Betty, that had the passion to create this collection and the desire for it to be shared with the public for years to come. Charles has been a tremendous help with the moving of this collection and sharing of his knowledge of decanters.