C. 1875 Red Seal Ale

C. 1875 Wickes' Celebrated Red Seal Sparkling Ale.

I really had a devil of a time trying to put a date on this bottle. At first I couldn't find info on the company, so I went by the label manufacturer. But, two modern online sources and two 1800s directories each had conflicting information.
The first modern source detailing the company had fine grammar, but the author's placement of one particular word ('subsequently') was poorly executed so that it could have meant two totally different things (putting the Crump Label Co. on either side of 1878. So that wasn't of much use.
Thus, I did more detailed research using documents scanned to be online and found that, in general, all that could be said of their conflicting information is that the Crump Label Press (manufacturer name on label) was around in 1874 and 1888 where it changed names before being bought out in 1890 and again in 1891, but it may have properly went to Crump Label Co. in 1879 till 1881 or 1882 (sources differ).
The factory in New York burned down on 4 July 1877 by 'spontaneous combustion', according to one period source.
After a head-ache in trying to figure out the Crump Label Press, settling with the Library of Congress being correct (1874), I decided to investigate the address under various searches in Google Books and found a garbled transcription of an 1875 New York directory where Wickes' & Co. was present as a bottler at 426 Atlantic Avenue, Brooklyn (as shown on label).
The bottle is likely imported from England. It may have been ale there, too, or it may have been a wine bottle. The company on the label got a hold of it and bottled their own product in it. Bottle features an applied double collar and kick-up with raised 'dot' from an 'orientation device' (according to a fellow collector). Dot is not a pontil.
As one final note of interest, this bottle is mentioned in the 1981 book, Behind the Seawall: Historical Archaeology along the San Francisco Waterfront.
I saw it on eBay before, liked it, but hated the price. After no one bought it, the seller put it in a bidding auction, and you know the rest. MUCH better price!