ID Help for Family Pass Downs

Keegan D.

New member
Received two pieces, and after cleaning them and reseasoning them, realized there were no markings to identify with. Just looking to see if I can find some info on them as it would be interesting to see how long we've had them in the family for (grandparents remember being given them by their parents, but that's as far back as I can get along that line).


Being unmarked, I'm going with pre-1960, and given the lack of heat ring and the side gating probably post-1920. A cousin floated the idea that they may be unmarked Griswold/Wagner pieces made for low end stores such as Sears/Roebuck, around 1930-40's.

They're lightweight, the larger piece is more lightweight, both are side gated, and the only distinctive feature I can really notice is the thicker banded lip and the notch on top of the handle's throat.

Any help ID'ing would be appreciated. Regardless, they cleaned up well, seasoned wonderfully, and though I had to run to work before getting a second initial seasoning coat on, they cooked sirloin rounds and eggs just great once I got home, so they work just great.
 
They actually look like Asian imports, probably 1960s-ish. It wasn't required that imports be physically inscribed with country of origin as long as packaging or labeling disclosed that info.

Unmarked Griswold, of which few exist, will always have a pattern number. Most unmarked Wagner skillets will have inscriptions like "6-1/2 INCH SKILLET" or, if not, will be recognizable from Wagner characteristics that match their marked pieces. Products made for Sears and other national chains were typically "store brands" like Merit and Puritan. Unmarked pieces were designed for market channels like hardware stores.
 
Thanks! there was one image I cam across on google images that had the same handle, but there was no information connected to it so I couldn't follow that further. Just for future reference if I come across similar pieces, what makes it look like an Asian import? Just the newer manufacturing/no origin stamping, or are there other physical characteristics that I should learn about?

And thanks for the info on the unmarked Griswold/Wagners - I'm trying to learn as much as I can, because I didn't know that there was a whole world behind cast iron beyond just that we used it all the time growing up.
 
Just for future reference if I come across similar pieces, what makes it look like an Asian import? Just the newer manufacturing/no origin stamping, or are there other physical characteristics that I should learn about?
My guess was also Asian import mostly based on the handle (shape, length, hanging hole, the lip and (thumb rest?) where it meets the pan). The lack of markings is less telling on its own, but reinforces the assumption.
 
Yeah, the thumb rest is pretty much the only "defining" feature of the pieces. They cook amazingly, which is the reason I've been looking into collecting - I dislike the rough finishes and pre-seasoning that goes onto newer pieces and prefer to get something that has more or less proven it's worth by not being trash binned over the years. Did steak and eggs two nights in a row with the double coat initial seasoning and it's slick enough to slide the food around in like it was teflon or something.
 
Back
Top