The first US waffle iron was patented in 1869. Since then various companies have manufactured waffle irons.
In the Universal Electric Housewares catalog from 1950, Landers, Frary & Clark advertised the Universal Sandwich Grill and Waffle Maker as an appliance which makes “quickie suppers or a ‘hurry up’ breakfast.” Besides making waffles and toasting sandwiches, it also fries or grills eggs, bacon, hamburgers, and fish cakes. It comes with two “quick-and-easy-to-change grids” which transform it from a waffle maker to a surface grill or vice versa. And the expansion hinge allows both small and large sandwiches, even “3-deckers,” to be toasted.
Universal Electric Housewares and other catalogs from Landers, Frary & Clark of New Britain, Connecticut can be found in the Trade Literature Collection at the National Museum of American History Library.
—Alexia MacClain
9 Comments
Makes me hungry for waffles!
An impressive share! I’ve just forwarded this onto a co-worker who has been doing a little research on this. And he actually bought me breakfast simply because I found it for him… lol. So allow me to reword this…. Thank YOU for the meal!! But yeah, thanks for spending the time to talk about this issue here on your web site.
Hi! I could have sworn I’ve been to this blog before but
after going through a few of the articles I realized it’s new to me.
Anyhow, I’m certainly delighted I found it and I’ll be
bookmarking it and checking back frequently!
What are they worth?
I have the waffle maker that’s in your 1950 catalog and it still works.
Does the Smithsonian want it?
Hi Dorothy,
Thank you for your note! The Libraries don’t collect objects, but you can check with the National Museum of American History: http://americanhistory.si.edu/giving/object-donation
Best,
Erin Rushing
Outreach Librarian
I have what I believe is an older version of this waffle iron. It was a wedding present to my mother. It is still in use, but I do not have a manual for it. Do you have a copy of the user’s manual?
Hi Marta,
Thanks for your comment. If you’d like, you are welcome to send more information about your question to AskaLibrarian@si.edu
Best,
Alexia MacClain
Library Technician