Birmingham Stove and Range (BSR) History Question

C

C St. John

New member
The BSR page on this site says that BSR was established in 1902 to produce hollow ware (and stoves).

It also says that the Red Mountain series started in the 1930s. I'm assuming that this information is from the same source (Griswold Society) as this quote from here:

Birmingham was and is a very large iron ore producing and manufacturing area, which is why a lot of foundries located there close to the raw material produced from the Red Mountain iron ore belt area. This was the origin of the name used for the hollowware line produced, Red Mountain, continuing through the 30s into the 1940s, when another line of hollowware was created, “Centurary” [sic].
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I think that the wording of this statement is peculiar, and it's hard to tell whether it means that the Red Mountain series started in the 30s, or if it started earlier and continued through the 30s. If interpreted literally, I'd have to say that it means that the Red Mountain series started earlier, and one could be excused for believing that the entire quote is an explanation for why the hollow ware produced by BSR was named Red Mountain, and that perhaps that series began production when the plant opened in 1902.

This is what I think.

These two pans of mine, and the broad range of casting precision and iron quality present in the Red Mountain line of pans are what make me think that this line ran for a long time--longer than just the 30s and 40s.

What do you folks think of my ruminations?
 

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Oh, and as a follow-up: if not Red Mountain series, does anyone know what hollow ware the Birmingham plant produced when it first came online?
 
An old BSR catalog shows hollow ware, the illustrations of which make me think it's from very early 20th century (the "stove spiders" don't look like any BSR skillet I've seen). All the cookware offerings are aimed at woodstove and open fire usage. The verbiage boasts of quality in both plain and ground finishes, and the lack of bottom gate marks. There is no mention of "Red Mountain" as pertaining to the cookware line (the closest being a "Redmont" model range). I tend to think Red Mountain was an effort to increase brand recognition and cookware sales at some point, and may have not occurred until ~ the 1930s, perhaps coinciding with a "modernizing" of patterns.
 
Thank you for the response, Doug. It sounds like I may be off base.

Do you know where I would go to look at old catalogs such as the one you mentioned?
 
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