What kind of questions would you like to find answers for?  How many bears are there?  Do I have all the sitting cats (5165)? Which designs did my favorite designer create?  Answers to these and many more questions can be found in the database, with nearly 2000 entries so far and more being added almost daily.  All information contained in this Database is backed by our research of the documents available at the Fenton Factory, but we are human and we're sure someone will find errors.  Could we have missed a few?  We sure could have.  We’ve tried to be very thorough, but we're sure there are some missing pets and we are asking for your help in finding them.   So be kind if you’ve found a missing pet and send a gentle e-mail to Sharon Bragg (bbshop@woh.rr.com) or to John Gager (jgager@attbi.com). 

Sharon Bragg had the vision and passion to share this Fenton animal information with all collectors.  In Sharon’s own words…

“The genesis of this database began in 1996 when I visited the Fenton factory for a week of research on the animals produced in Fenton's regular catalog line. This was before I owned a laptop computer, so my tools were a legal pad and pencils. I had expected to do the research by looking at all the pretty photos in the Fenton catalogs.  Not so:  Frank Fenton handed me his own personal 3 ring binder that contains all of the Price Lists, and said  ‘If we made it, we had to sell it.’  He informed me that if I looked for the Ware #s beginning with 5, I would see most of the animals. There were a few exceptions such as the Covered Rooster Box (4680) and Covered Bunny Box (4683).” 

Sharon adds “Howard Seufer, Fenton's retired Quality Control Manager, dropped by my desk to inquire if I intended to do a book. I told him my intention was to contribute articles to the Fenton Flyer, as there was a heightened interest in the animals at that time.  I did comment to Howard that I could not understand why the retail price of 2 1/2" mouse was so expensive for such a small animal. He then told me to grab a pair of safety glasses and follow him. So began a tour that taught me many lessons.  Our first stop the mould shop where Bob Hill, Mould Shop Supervisor, pulled the moulds for both the 5148 mouse and the 5160 fawn. They showed me the fount (base) that is part of the production of each animal.  We then proceeded to the Finishing Department where they cut off the founts of the animals to produce the finished figurine. They happened to be working on the mouse figurines. Howard had me put the cut off fount in one hand and the finished mouse in the other to compare the weight. The answer to my question about the retail price of the mouse was now obvious.  As a special treat, we returned to the mould shop where they poured a wax mold of the mouse and presented it to me. That little fella sits proudly in my office and brings a smile every time I look at him. ” 

Since then, Sharon has made more research visits to Fenton.  They have been gracious to let her come into their factory. They also made all of their production records, price lists, etc. available to her because she indicated that this information would be used in a form that would not provide monetary gain to anyone.  The information is only for the free use and education of Fenton collectors at all stages of collecting levels - beginners, intermediate and advanced.  Sharon has expressed her appreciation for the support offered to her by the Fenton family and the extended family of employees.  Here's an example of the great assistance she received on her trip last October 2003; Frank Fenton once again spent time with Sharon and gave her access to all of the company records, with the only exceptions being for animals they made from moulds owned by others. Jennifer in the Fenton Museum was given full access to the administrative pages of the database and Sharon showed her how user friendly it is. Jennifer was so excited that she gave Sharon a big hug. Jennifer says it will help her answer questions she receives from museum visitors and those who send inquiries via e-mail and telephone.  Sharon was able to secure the information on Special Order animals made for the Collector's Clubs Fenton Art Glass Collectors of America, National Fenton Glass Society, Pacific Northwest Fenton Association, Fenton Finders of Puget Sound, and Special Orders for Levay, Mary Walrath, Joyce's Collectibles, Carolyn's Collectibles, J C Penney, Sears, and Showcase Dealers.

In March of 2001, John Gager lent a hand. As he recalls, "Sharon first contacted me about an Animal Database she had on her computer. She needed it converted from one database format to Microsoft's Excel so she could send it to others. At about the same time, Sharon asked me to create a database for Animal figurines on my site. I did so, but because of personal and business reasons, and problems with the Excel spreadsheet, Sharon wasn't able to pursue it and database shell was deleted when I changed hosting companies for the site."

I, the author, got involved with the project in September of 2002.  Sharon's online animal database idea was reawakened when I was trying to teach myself how to make on-line databases.  Sharon knew my weakness for Fenton cats and she was gracious to share her database information with me as a learning incentive.  As my learning progressed, Sharon mentioned I could reference the Animal database that John created for ideas.  John was nice enough to allow us access to his on-line version.  But after trying for a few weeks, I was not able to get my infant database skills to create a database that would do what John’s database could do.  By then, I had caught some of Sharon’s passion for sharing this great information with collectors.   Sharon preferred her animal database be hosted on John's web site since it was established mainly for education on Fenton glass.

 After we reworked the database fields a little and uploaded the data from the Excel spreadsheet, it was off and going.  Pictures and enhanced descriptions were added along the way, plus the QVC data was transferred from the QVC Database to the Animals Database.  Boy, Fenton has made a lot of animals!!!  John then challenged us to set a date for completion of this project and the pace of the activity stepped up.  In May of 2003, I had to step out of the picture, but a host of volunteers came to Sharon’s aid. The volunteers assisted with tasks such as contributing photos, editing and proofreading the information and much more. As you can imagine, the amount of time contributed to making the animal database a reality is massive.

John's response was humorous when asked if Sharon had a nickname in the Fenton collecting arena, "...I've often heard others refer to her as ‘The Animal Lady’. Although it sounds like something from an old "B" Science Fiction movie, it fit's her perfectly”. 

Sharon’s own fancy for Fenton animals started when she inherited a deer (fawn) from her grandmother's estate in 1980.  She recalls, “I have always had a tender spot for Bambie so collecting the Fenton Fawn (5160) was a natural progression. My family and friends contributed to my collection on Special Occasions.  In 1983, we made a trip to the Fenton Gift Shop and found a Blue Burmese Mouse (5148), and suddenly a new collection was born.”  She even wrote an article in the Fenton Flyer about how this little mouse had captured her heart.  She adds, “As a collector, I have often purchased an animal at a flea market, antique show, or even at Fenton Convention only to return home to find that I already have 2 or 3 of that same animal. I wanted to create a checklist so that I and other collectors could avoid these duplicate purchases and instead go with a shopping list of items we would love to add to our collection.”

Over the years, Sharon has observed that animal collectors tend to pick a particular figurine to collect and stay loyal to it.  Cats are Fenton's number one selling animal, which accounts for the expansion of the feline family for 2004.  In preparation for this article, we asked Nancy Fenton to list the three best selling animal figurines.  Nancy replied, “Over time I am not sure which is number one, the bear or the cat.  Right now all the cats outsell the other figures.  We have never gone back through the records to tally sales on the figures.”

Sharon also notes that animal collectors staying loyal to one type of animal is also in contrast to those Fenton collectors that tend to collect by color, artist, or designer.

Donna Hatch has contributed many hours as a volunteer and has served as a member of the test team.  Donna thinks the animal database can be used as a two-fold educational tool.  First to help identify what items you are missing from your collection and second to identify unknown pieces you’ve found. Donna started her Fenton animal collection about 6 years ago with the topaz opalescent ones.  Then just sort of went crazy from there!  Donna says, “What I like most is the almost endless combination of shapes and colors and designs. Now with the new moulds and colors, things are only getting better.  I probably have well over 1500 animals and I don't ever seem to get tired of arranging and rearranging them.  Now the challenge is to find some of the ones I'm missing.”   While Donna has noticed that most people tend to specialize in a particular animal or treatment, she admits to being the unusual animal collector with some of almost everything.  “I can't seem to pick a favorite.”

So now that the database is ready for everyone to use…jump right in and search for your special find.  You may run across a few animals that we still need pictures for.  Then you to can join in the fun and contribute a picture or a bit of information that will make the Fenton animal database better for all collectors.

Someone remarked to Sharon that the Animal Database was her baby. She responded, "I might have given birth to the idea, but without the help of many volunteers, I could not have raised this child."  Our heartfelt thanks to those of you who lent a hand to make this a reality

Special Note: The database photos can be printed for your own collection files, but are not to be used for any Internet auction listings, websites, or any other commercial purposes.  The database is intended for educational purposes only.

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