can I get some help

I was just wondering if anyone has seen a pan like this one and can give me some info on its age and who made it..looks like a gatemark on the bottom and has a J on the bottom as well...top looks like a milled or crude lathe cooking surface along with the no. 7 on the handle...I would like to thank u all in advance for any help u can provide

I don't know much about iron that old. Fancy handles, gate marks, etc...

There's a new guy here that seems to collect them. You can see his introduction post here: http://www.castironcollector.com/forum/showthread.php?p=6112#post6112

Maybe send him a message, or wait for others to maybe get you an answer. However, I'm going to guess that your answer will be, "Pieces that old are very hard to identify."

You have a very nice old skillet that probably dates to before 1900. If you look closely at the bottom you'll see that the bottom inside of the heat ring is corroded much more than the area outsude of the heat ring. That shows you that your skillet was used for a long time on a coal cook stove. The heat rings are sized to fit the eyes on the wood and coal stoves. If the coal used is a mrdium or high sulpher coal , the combustion process produces a mild form of sulpheric acid. That's why your skillet is corroded the way it it. It would be interesting to meet the people that handeled your old skillet. David

I have that same griddle except it's a #8 and the molders mark is an A rather than a J. Thanks for asking the questions I have been too lazy post.

Thank u all so much for Ur help..I really do appreciate all the info ...