The Griswold & Cast Iron Cookware Association
The Griswold & Cast Iron Cookware Association (GCICA) is a vibrant community of vintage cast iron collectors and enthusiasts united by a shared passion for collectible cast iron cookware. Its membership includes those just starting their journey and seasoned collectors with huge collections. The members love vintage cast iron and are committed to preserving its rich history.
GCICA was founded in 1992 in Erie at a meeting organized by three couples who shared a common interest in collecting Griswold cast iron cookware. The couples placed advertisements in local newspapers and Antique Trader, calling for Griswold collectors to join them at a swap meet and member meetup on April 4, 1992. One hundred-five people from across the country attended that meeting, and GCICA was born.
Today, GCICA has more than 700 dues-paying members. It has a website and a very active Facebook group for members and friends, with over 20,000 members. In addition to informative quarterly newsletters, the group has an annual spring convention 1 for dues-paying members, and its four chapters (Heartland, West Coast, Dixie, and East Coast) have annual fall chapter meetings. The convention location generally changes yearly, though Erie is a repeat favorite.
If you’re interested in vintage cast iron cookware, you should consider joining the club!
2024 GCICA Convention Highlights
The 2024 GCICA annual convention was held in Erie, Pennsylvania, on March 14 – 16. Erie, of course, is the home of the Griswold Manufacturing Company. As an ardent fan of Griswold products, I have wanted to visit Erie for years. I was also excited to meet up with my cast iron friends from the club. Linda gave me a push, and off we went.
Here are some of the highlights from the weekend.
Room Sales
Linda and I checked out room sales on Wednesday and Thursday evenings. Members so inclined bring goods to sell or trade with other members (bring cash!)2 A note is posted at the entrance to the convention telling members the room numbers and names of members with items to sell in their room. Room sales take place during unscheduled times.
The room sales are always a fun and exciting event during the convention. Many intense discussions take place, and cash and iron exchange hands.
Watson-Curtze Mansion
I didn’t expect to buy anything (a familiar refrain). Still, I bought a sweet UB (United Brethren) pup ($18) from Joe Zawadowski and a gorgeous orange crackled and crimped vintage Blenko glass bowl ($55) from Michael Kowaliw. I don’t know how or why the glass got included in the grouping of things for sale, but I am a sucker for vintage art glass.
The group was invited to Erie’s Watson-Curtze Mansion one afternoon. Refreshments were provided, and we were permitted to roam through the museum and see all of the displays, including a lovely collection of Griswold that is rotated through a GCICA-sponsored kitchen area.
Show and Tell, Table Topics, Host Presentation
Friday’s agenda included “Show and Tell,” where members brought unusual pieces to share and discuss with the group, “Table Topics,” and convention host Gary Baran’s presentation.
For table topics, seven GCICA members brought interesting, unique pieces from their collections and displayed them on tables for members to see and discuss.
Sonny McCarter and Clayton Mitchell both brought rare Griswold, Blake Williams brought some of his favorite pieces, Dave Lange brought his collection of porcelain ashtrays, Scott McCarter brought applied handle ERIE and Griswold pieces, Art Chatfield brought Favorite Piqua Ware wood-handled skillets in sizes 5 through 12, and Joe Zawadowski brought toy aluminum pieces. Everyone enjoyed examining all of the cool and unusual pieces!
Cast Iron Auction
The auction is always a highlight of the convention. A 115-piece cast iron auction took place on Friday evening.
I told myself I wouldn’t buy or bid on anything.
I bid on and bought a gorgeous Griswold no. 6 large block logo skillet with heat ring ($125).
I can never resist a cast iron auction.
Swap Meet
The annual swap meet is always exciting. Members who wish to do so reserve and pay for a selling table in advance, then display the prices they want to sell. Other members walk through and buy. You need to move fast!
I didn’t need a thing.
I bought a darling Hubley Fido cast iron bank ($125) and a Griswold no. 5 oval roaster trivet ($155). Are you noticing a theme yet?
Erie Cemetery and Griswold Plant
Linda and I spent a lot of time exploring Erie over the weekend. During our visit, we paid our respects at the gravesites of Matthew Griswold, John C. and Samuel Selden, and their respective families. We also visited the site of the old Griswold plant, located at 12th and Raspberry.
We visited the old Griswold building twice, the second time spending a few hours there. While Linda walked along the train tracks, I contemplated and took many photos while walking around the entirety of the building site.
Our experience at the site was both enlightening and informative, and I feel grateful to have had the opportunity to learn more about the history of Griswold and Erie. The building’s history and the stories it could tell fascinated me. I took a few chips from the bricks on the ground as a memento of our visit.
Chats, Photos, History and Research
Aside from old and new friendships, learning from the other collectors is most valuable part of the convention for me.
I enjoyed talking to everyone and taking a million photos of beautiful iron, some unique and rare. I also enjoyed interviewing Joannie Baldini, Doris Mosier, and Dave Lange about their collections and connections to the club. I wrote some small articles for the GCICA newsletter and for the blog about the interviews; blog posts are forthcoming.
Collector Eric McAllister was also kind enough to let me take photos of some of the fabulous ephemera he acquired during the convention. I love the old documentation and the information it carries.
The Banquet
The banquet is always the crowning event of the convention. We have a delicious meal and fellowship, followed by award presentations. This year, President Art Chatfield presented the group’s treasurer, Brenda Bernstein, with the President’s award, and past president Scott McCarter presented awards to many of the group’s volunteers. It was lovely.
’Til next time!
- I wrote a separate post about the 2018 Baton Rouge convention. Southern Cast Iron also featured the 2017 25th Anniversary convention in an article, “Iron Pride.”
- Member and auction chair Sonny McCarter chided me at a convention some years back for trying to pay with a check instead of cash. As he pointed out, if a person pays by check, the seller can’t turn around and use it as currency to purchase a different piece.
