Superior Foundry Inc. Cast Iron Melting Scoop
SSC MUSEUM COLLECTION
Catalog No. SSC-SUPERIOR-SCP-1930-001
Smelting Scoop | Foundry Tool | Original Patina | Cleveland, Ohio
Circa 1920–1960 • Superior Foundry Inc. • Ohio Foundry Corridor
Bottom view showing the circular trademark: “SUPERIOR FDRY. INC. / CLEVELAND OHIO” cast in raised letters around the perimeter of the base. This is the same mark found on the Superior Foundry Inc. miniature melting bowl (SSC-SUPERIOR-BWL-1930-001)—the second piece from this Cleveland foundry in the SSC collection. The original patina has been preserved with no restoration applied.
When the SSC collection acquired its first Superior Foundry piece—the miniature melting bowl (SSC-SUPERIOR-BWL-1930-001)—we noted that Superior Foundry Inc. products were “very difficult to find.” Finding a second piece from the same foundry, in a different form, with the same circular trademark, confirms both the rarity and the range of what this Cleveland foundry produced. The melting bowl was a stationary vessel. This melting scoop is a handled tool—a pour vessel designed to be held in one hand while directing molten material into a mold or form with the other. Same foundry, same city, different function.
The scoop is a purpose-built smelting tool: a small, deep, round-bowled vessel with a flat handle extending from the rim. It holds approximately 7 ounces and measures 5.5 inches long including the handle. The bowl is sized for melting small quantities of lead, tin, babbitt metal, or other low-melting-point alloys—the kind of work done by plumbers, tinsmiths, electricians, jewelers, and hobbyists throughout the early and mid-twentieth century. The flat handle keeps the user’s hand away from the heat of the molten contents while providing enough control to pour accurately into small molds or joints.
This piece preserves its original patina. Unlike the Wagner saucepan and other pieces that SSC has restored using the Archival Black™ protocol, this melting scoop has received no intervention. The surface you see in these photographs—the dark, rough-textured iron with its characteristic foundry finish—is the same surface that left the Superior Foundry in Cleveland decades ago. The interior shows the expected discoloration and residue of a tool that was used for its intended purpose: melting metal. This is not damage. This is evidence of use, and it stays.
The Working Surface
Top view showing the bowl interior with original patina and use-related discoloration consistent with melting low-temperature metals. The deep, round bowl and flat handle are clearly visible. No restoration has been applied—the surface is presented exactly as acquired, with the working history of the tool preserved intact.
The interior of this scoop tells its own story. The discoloration and surface texture are consistent with repeated heating to temperatures sufficient to melt soft metals—lead melts at 621°F, tin at 449°F, babbitt metal at around 450°F. These are temperatures well within the range of a cast iron vessel heated over a gas flame or small forge. The residue on the surface is the accumulated evidence of dozens or hundreds of melting sessions: small amounts of oxidized metal, carbon deposits from the heat source, and the thermal discoloration that develops when iron is cycled between ambient and working temperatures repeatedly over time.
The SSC Archival Black™ protocol evaluates each piece individually, and this melting scoop’s original patina falls into the same category as the Pre-1905 kettles: the surface is the artifact. Cleaning this scoop would remove the physical evidence of its working life—the very thing that makes it interesting as a museum document. A clean, re-seasoned melting scoop looks like a miniature skillet. A melting scoop with its original working patina looks like what it is: a tool that melted metal in a Cleveland workshop.
Piece Details
Manufacturer
Superior Foundry Inc.
Piece Type
Cast Iron Melting Scoop / Smelting Ladle
Capacity
Approximately 7 ounces
Overall Length
Approximately 5.5 inches
Material
Cast Iron
Marking
“SUPERIOR FDRY. INC. / CLEVELAND OHIO” circular mark on bottom
Handle
Flat cast handle extending from bowl rim
Intended Use
Melting and pouring small quantities of low-melting-point metals (lead, tin, babbitt, solder)
Date of Manufacture
Circa 1920–1960
Place of Manufacture
Cleveland, Cuyahoga County, Ohio
Preservation Status
Original patina preserved; no restoration applied; Archival Black™ protocol
Condition
Good — original working patina; legible circular mark; intact handle; interior discoloration consistent with intended use
Acquisition Date
March 3, 2026
Acquisition Source
Etsy — Seller: Funkystuff13
Etsy Order Number
3989888832
Transaction Number
4987766225
Purchase Price
$29.99 item + $10.00 shipping + $3.39 tax − $5.41 refund = $37.97 net paid
SSC Catalog Number
SSC-SUPERIOR-SCP-1930-001
Collection Designation
Ohio Foundry Corridor
Two Pieces from Superior Foundry: Bowl and Scoop
The SSC collection now holds two pieces from Superior Foundry Inc. of Cleveland—a miniature melting bowl (SSC-SUPERIOR-BWL-1930-001) and this melting scoop. Together, they document two different forms from a single foundry’s product line, both designed for the same general category of work: small-scale metal melting. The bowl is a stationary vessel—you set it on a heat source and melt material in it. The scoop is a handled tool—you hold it over a flame, melt your material, and pour it where you need it. One stays put. The other goes where you point it.
Both carry the same circular “SUPERIOR FDRY. INC. / CLEVELAND OHIO” trademark, confirming their shared origin. Both are described in collector literature as “very difficult to find.” Finding two pieces from the same obscure Cleveland foundry—in different forms, from different sellers, months apart—is the kind of coincidence that rewards persistent searching. Or it is not a coincidence at all: it is what happens when a collector knows what to look for and checks every listing that mentions Cleveland and cast iron.
Superior Foundry Inc. produced a range of small cast iron items including boot jacks, candlestick holders, turtle trivets, skillets, and these melting vessels. Walter L. Seelbach (1951–52) and Albert L. Hunt (1961–62) of Superior Foundry served as presidents of the American Foundrymen’s Society—a level of industry leadership that speaks to the foundry’s reputation within the trade even if its name is largely unknown to the general public today.
Why This Piece Matters
The Superior Foundry Inc. melting scoop matters because it is the second piece from one of Cleveland’s most elusive foundries—a company whose leaders served as presidents of the American Foundrymen’s Society but whose products are almost impossible to find in the collector market. Documenting two different forms from the same foundry strengthens the SSC record: where one piece is an anecdote, two pieces begin to define a product line. The bowl and the scoop together show that Superior Foundry was not a single-product operation but a working foundry that produced a range of small cast iron items for both industrial and domestic use.
The original patina on this scoop—the working surface of a tool that actually melted metal in a Cleveland workshop—adds a dimension that a restored piece cannot provide. This is not a display object. This is a tool that did its job, and the marks of that job are still on it. The SSC collection preserves those marks because they are the story. Clean iron is beautiful. Worked iron is true.
The iron endures. The markings tell the truth. The story deserves to be told.
Sources & Further Reading
SSC Internal Collection Records — Superior Foundry Inc. miniature melting bowl (SSC-SUPERIOR-BWL-1930-001): same circular mark, Cleveland Ohio; AFS presidential connections (Seelbach 1951–52, Hunt 1961–62); product range documentation.
American Foundrymen’s Society historical records — Walter L. Seelbach and Albert L. Hunt presidential tenures, confirming Superior Foundry Inc.’s prominence within the trade organization.
About Steve’s Seasoned Classics
Steve’s Seasoned Classics is an online museum dedicated to preserving and documenting the heritage of American cast iron, with a focus on Ohio foundry pieces from the 19th and early 20th centuries. The SSC collection features over 130 pieces with detailed provenance, historical research, and photography for each item.
