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LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
I have seen several pieces (dutch ovens, muffin pans, etc.) marked with both the Griswold and Wagnerware trademarks: these have almost always been priced at some astronomically high amount. I did find and buy one popover pan with both markings at a reasonable price. However, it does not look as well made as similar items by Griswold or Wagner. Are these items real (i.e. not fake or repro)? If so, I would assume that they represent the brief period when Wagner was using Griswold patterns after acquiring the company. Have any other collectors seen similar pieces? I have found very few pieces marked LODGE (one #8 skillet, one waffle iron) I although I would think their current productivity must reflect a high past output. Are most Lodge items unmarked? If so, is there a way to ascribe such pieces to Lodge on style or pattern or identifying structures?
Travis Solomon, MO
In answering your questions let me begin with same information from The Housewares Story by Earl Litshay, 1973: "In 1955 the Griswold Mfg. Co. was acquired by McGraw Edison Inc. and two years later they sold it to the Randall Co. of Cin. O. which, four years earlier had acquired Wagner Mfg. Co. Eventually Griswold became part, of the General Housewares Corp." Also-- "in November, 1952, Wagner was purchased by the Randall Co., a manufacturer of automobile stampings and leather working machinery, which, in 1957, also bought the Griswold Mfg. Co. from McGraw Edison. In 1959 Randall sold both cookware companies to Textron. Ten years later they were acquired by the General Housewares Corp." If this information is correct it is clear that Wagner did not buy Griswold directly, but that both companies had gone through ownership changes before they came together under one owner. In any case, Griswold ceased production at their Erie, PA foundry in December, 1957. All subsequent production of "Griswold" and Wagner iron cookware has been at the Wagner foundry in Sidney,
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Ohio. Travis, the double marked pieces you ask about are probably a product of General Housewares Corp., cast in the Wagner foundry using, in some cases, old Griswold patterns. I remember the double marked pieces being sold in the local Macys store sometime during the 1970's and I would assume that they were made during this period unless they were old stock being sold. It is my opinion that these pieces, and any other pieces of "Griswold" that were not made in the Erie foundry, are not real Griswold: They were made in a different foundry, on different machinery, by different people and, often, using modified Wagner patterns. The quality is definitely inferior to the Erie-made pieces. For collectors appreciating the fine quality and design of the real Griswold, the later pieces like the double marked ones should be of little value. Perhaps the high asking prices are from collectors and dealers who don't know exactly what they have and cannot differentiate the fine quality/design of Erie-made Griswold and the later pieces. With few exceptions, all Erie-made Griswold is marked ERIE PA, and is never marked with an inch size (such as 10½ inch skillet) or "Made in USA".
Lodge, a family owned business since its founding in 1896, did mark many Of its earlier pieces. I cannot be certain when they were marked but will guess that it would be in the 1920's or before. I have seen skillets, dutch ovens, chicken fryers, waffle irons and possibly other pieces marked LODGE on the bottomn or on the top of covers. Their iron during this early period was of high quality with very smooth surface that seems to resist rusting better than other makes. I just dug up some information from Lodge indicating the company was founded by Joseph Lodge in 1896 under the name Blacklock Foundry. In 1910 the name was changed to Lodge Mfg. Co. This might indicate that the marked pieces would be after 1910. Also stated is "the name Lodge was never marked on our products due to private labling for Sears, etc." Of course this statement would be incorrect for the early years. I have never seen any muffin pans marked Lodge. One way to tell earlier Lodge pieces is to look on the bottom for a small (about ¼") raised, capital letter, seemingly randomly placed. Heat rings, on pieces that had them, will have a small (about 1/8") break. Lodge, in current production, is beginning to mark at least some of its pieces. I just saw two interesting muffin type pans: One had five fish and the other five Suguaro cactus. Both pans were marked on the bottom.
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MINNEAPOLIS. Looking
I always take a quick peek inside any "waffle irons" that I see just in case one might not be a waffle iron, but something else like this egg baker. Both Wagner and Griswold made irons that look exactly like their waffle irons but have no waffle grid on the inside. Wagner called theirs an Omelette and Cake Baker. Griswold's similar iron was made using their waffle iron pattern numbers 314 and 315 but with the waffle grid removed to give a smooth inside. The only one that I have seen was brought to me by a friend to see. I did not understand why he would bring me a common Griswold waffle iron until I opened it up and saw the smoothsurfaced insides of the iron. A photo of the pan is on page 134, bottom left, in the recent Griswold Cast Iron Price Guide book by L-W Book Sales. Such a rare piece that one might overlook as being common if a look at its insides wasn't taken. Other irons to look for with similar appearance to and construction of waffle irons are wafer irons, corn dog irons, sandwich grills and broilers.
No. 1 and 2 vienna roll bread pans are usually found without pattern numbers but probably marked No1 or No2 and VIENNA ROLL PAN. The No10 popover pans were made for Sears in the 1930's with p/n 1253 being marked BEST MADE (BM) and p/n 1512 marked PURITAN (P). No11 is an early french roll pan shown in the 1890-91 Griswold catalog. It will probably not be marked at all. A similar pan with cutouts and marked FRENCH ROLL No11 under the handles may be a Griswold pan. These pans both have cups arranged differently than the common Griswold No11 French Roll Pan. The No24 pan is identical to the No21 Griswold corn bread pan but with GRISWOLD and ERIE PA USA removed. Unnumbered cornorwheat pan, p/n 623 pictured above is a rarity. Who was it made for or sold by? The two No1270 wheat stick pans were made for Sears and marked BEST MADE (p/n 1270, c.1930) and PURITAN (c.1934) or MERIT (c.1937), both p/n 1513. Am I missing any other muffin type pans made by Griswold? Let me hear from anyone with more info.
above Cornorwheat type stick pan made by Griswold, p/n 623. Other than the unique handles, this pan is the same as Griswold No.272. -courtesy Joe Noto collection.
