Harold Henry of Hamilton Missouri is a serious collector of vintage and antique cast iron cookware. His main focus is Lodge cast iron, though he also has many pieces by other manufacturers.
Griswold Cookware
Collectors and Collections,
History and Stories
Griswold, Lodge, Wagner, Favorite, Wapak, and More!
The “Griswold” Silver Pup Scandal
How a small silver pup caused an uproar in the Griswold cast iron collecting community.
The Griswold Bolo Oven
The Griswold BOLO oven was made by the Griswold Manufacturing Company in Erie, PA in the early 1900s. Griswold held at least 3 different patents related to the BOLO oven – granted in 1915, 1916, and 1920. In the grand scheme of antique cast iron cookware collecting the ovens are not particularly uncommon, though I…
Top Prices at Dinky’s December 2-3, 2022 Vintage Cast Iron Cookware Auction
I enjoyed following Dinky’s December 2-3, 2022 auction of vintage and antique cast iron cookware. The auction took place in Montgomery Indiana. Bidding was live in-person, and live online. I followed day two of the auction online. I know people are always hungry to check out selling prices, so here’s a sampling of some of…
Two Quirky Filley Stories
I couldn’t figure out where to put these two odd stories that both involve antique G.F. Filley cast iron pieces, so…here they are! THE SUNKEN STEAMBOAT BERTRAND AND ITS TREASURES The steamboat Bertrand sank in the Missouri River on April 1, 1865 after hitting a submerged log about 25 miles north of Omaha, Nebraska. Bound…
Ask Mary: How “Rare” is this Cast Aluminum Griswold Slant Logo ERIE Skillet?
Jody M. of Whittier, North Carolina wrote to me and asked: Can you tell me how rare a Griswold 2011 Cast Aluminum Skillet Slant Erie with wooden handle is? I responded to Jody and asked her to please send me photos of the pan. Here are the two she sent (lightened and converted to black…
Griswold Cast Iron Quaker Ware Dealer Ads
One handy way to learn about the pieces in a particular line of vintage or antique cast iron cookware is to get your hands on an old catalog or old advertisements for the product. Larry and Marg O’Neil have a tremendous amount of cast iron and aluminum ephemera, which I have had the opportunity to…
An Example of Resourcefulness during the Great Depression
A Twitter follower of mine – @therealjoedick – shared an amazing story with me about his grandparents. Here is what he said: Here’s a bit of history for your readers. In the Depression my grandparents made ends meet by using the family Wagner Ware as patterns to make and sell aluminum cookware. They built that…