The Century Machine Co. Cast Iron Maker’s Plaque
SSC MUSEUM COLLECTION
Catalog No. SSC-CENTURY-PLQ-1900-001
Equipment Nameplate | Cast Iron | Ornate Victorian Lettering | Cincinnati, Ohio
Circa 1900–1929 • The Century Machine Co. • Ohio Foundry Corridor
The face of the Century Machine Co. maker’s plaque. The cast iron nameplate reads “THE / Century / MACHINE CO. / CINCINNATI, OHIO.” in a combination of ornate Victorian script and block capital lettering. The word “Century” is rendered in elaborate raised cursive with flowing serifs and decorative flourishes, while the surrounding text is in sharp block capitals. The plaque is shaped with scalloped edges in an elongated octagonal form, with mounting holes at the top and bottom for bolting onto machinery. This is not a household item—it is an industrial nameplate, designed to be permanently affixed to a piece of Century Machine Company equipment to identify the manufacturer.
Not every piece in the SSC collection is something you would find in a kitchen or a laundry room. Some are tools from the farm. Some are implements from the shop floor. And some—like this one—are the cast iron calling cards that manufacturers bolted onto their equipment to tell the world who built it. This is a maker’s plaque from The Century Machine Company of Cincinnati, Ohio: a cast iron nameplate designed to be mounted on industrial bakery equipment, identifying the machine and its manufacturer to every baker, factory manager, and maintenance worker who stood in front of it.
The Century Machine Company was a Cincinnati-based manufacturer of commercial bakery equipment—ovens, bread make-up machines, and related production-line hardware for the wholesale baking industry. The company operated from Cincinnati through at least the first three decades of the twentieth century before being acquired by Baker Perkins Co. Inc. in 1929. During World War II, Century developed portable field bakeries—wheeled ovens and bread-making equipment—that were deployed to every theater of war where American troops served. The company received the Army-Navy “E” Award for excellence in wartime production, one of the highest honors given to civilian manufacturers during the conflict. Century Machine was eventually liquidated by Baker Perkins in 1955 as the American bakery industry consolidated into large-volume and small-retail segments, squeezing the mid-sized wholesale market that Century had served.
This plaque is what survives. A single piece of ornamental cast iron, designed to be bolted onto a machine that is almost certainly long gone, carrying the name of a company that no longer exists. It is cast iron industrial ephemera—the kind of artifact that gets tossed in a scrap bin when the machine it was attached to gets cut up for salvage. That this one survived is itself a small act of preservation. That it carries the name “Cincinnati, Ohio” in raised letters makes it an SSC piece.
The Maker’s Plaque: Cast Iron Identity
In the era before adhesive labels, laser etching, and stamped aluminum tags, the cast iron maker’s plaque was the standard method by which industrial equipment manufacturers identified their products. The plaque was cast from a dedicated pattern, just like any other foundry product, and was designed to be permanently mounted on the machine it accompanied. It served the same function as a modern manufacturer’s badge on an automobile or a logo plate on a piece of commercial kitchen equipment: it told you who built the machine, where it was built, and—implicitly—that the manufacturer stood behind the product enough to put its name on it permanently.
The Century Machine plaque is a particularly fine example of the form. The Victorian-era typography combines an elaborate script rendering of the word “Century”—with flowing serifs, decorative swashes, and dimensional depth—with clean block capitals for “THE,” “MACHINE CO.,” and “CINCINNATI, OHIO.” The scalloped border gives the plaque an ornamental quality that elevates it beyond a simple identification tag. This was a plaque designed to be seen and admired, not merely functional. It reflects an era when even industrial equipment was expected to carry a degree of aesthetic refinement—when manufacturers understood that the appearance of the nameplate said something about the quality of the machine behind it.
Reverse of the Century Machine Co. plaque, showing the flat mounting surface with faint raised characters visible—likely a pattern number or mold identifier used in the foundry. The two mounting holes are clearly visible at the top and bottom. The back surface retains the rough casting texture typical of sand-molded cast iron. The edges show where the plaque was broken away from the sprue or gate during the casting process.
The Century Machine Company: Cincinnati’s Baker
The Century Machine Company operated from Cincinnati, Hamilton County, Ohio, manufacturing commercial bakery equipment for the wholesale baking trade. The company’s product line was aimed at the smaller wholesale baker—the regional bakery that produced bread and baked goods for local distribution, as opposed to the large national-scale operations that would later dominate the industry. Century’s machines were the tools that turned flour into loaves in bakeries across America during the early twentieth century.
In 1929, at the peak of the American economic boom and just before the crash that would trigger the Great Depression, Baker Perkins Co. Inc.—a major Anglo-American manufacturer of food processing and printing equipment—purchased the entire assets of the Century Machine Company. Under Baker Perkins ownership, Century continued to operate from Cincinnati as a subsidiary. The acquisition gave Baker Perkins a foothold in the mid-sized bakery equipment market and access to Century’s established customer base and manufacturing capabilities.
The company’s most significant contribution came during World War II, when Century developed a portable field bakery for the United States military. The system consisted of wheeled ovens and bread make-up equipment that could be deployed to forward positions and base camps, providing fresh-baked bread to American soldiers in every theater of the war—from North Africa and Italy to the Pacific islands and the European front. Century manufactured thousands of these portable bakeries, and the effort earned the company the Army-Navy “E” Award for excellence in wartime production—a recognition given to fewer than five percent of American war production plants.
After the war, the American bakery industry began to consolidate. Two distinct market segments emerged: small retail bakeries selling directly to consumers, and large-volume wholesale operations producing hundreds of loaves per minute on automated lines. The mid-sized wholesale baker—Century’s core customer—was being squeezed out of existence between these two poles. By 1955, Baker Perkins determined that the Century Machine Company’s product line no longer had a viable market and liquidated the company. The Century name, the Cincinnati factory, and the equipment lines all disappeared.
Piece Details
Manufacturer
The Century Machine Co., Cincinnati, Ohio
Piece Type
Cast Iron Maker’s Plaque (Equipment Nameplate)
Form
Ornamental cast iron nameplate with scalloped border, two mounting holes, raised lettering in Victorian script and block capitals
Material
Cast Iron
Marking
“THE / Century / MACHINE CO. / CINCINNATI, OHIO.” on face; faint pattern number on reverse
Purpose
Equipment identification plaque, designed to be bolted onto Century Machine bakery equipment
Date of Manufacture
Circa 1900–1929
Place of Manufacture
Cincinnati, Hamilton County, Ohio
Condition
Good — all lettering crisp and fully legible; scalloped border intact; both mounting holes present; surface shows age-appropriate patina and light oxidation; no cracks, breaks, or repairs
Acquisition Date
March 13, 2026
Acquisition Source
eBay — Seller: gerardg55
eBay Item Number
127731244128
Order Number
01-14374-40631
Purchase Price
$40.00 item + $8.68 shipping + $4.13 tax = $52.81 total
SSC Catalog Number
SSC-CENTURY-PLQ-1900-001
Collection Designation
Ohio Foundry Corridor
Corporate Timeline: The Century Machine Company
c. 1900–?
The Century Machine Company established in Cincinnati, Hamilton County, Ohio. Manufactures commercial bakery equipment—ovens, bread make-up machines, and production-line hardware—for the mid-sized wholesale baking industry.
1929
Baker Perkins Co. Inc., an Anglo-American manufacturer of food processing and printing equipment, purchases the entire assets of the Century Machine Company at the peak of the pre-Depression economic boom.
1929–1941
Century continues to operate from Cincinnati as a Baker Perkins subsidiary, serving the wholesale bakery equipment market.
1941–1945
During World War II, Century Machine develops portable field bakeries—wheeled ovens and bread make-up equipment—for the U.S. military. Thousands manufactured for all theaters of war. Company receives the Army-Navy “E” Award for excellence in wartime production.
1955
Baker Perkins liquidates the Century Machine Company. The mid-sized wholesale bakery market that Century served has been squeezed out by consolidation into large-volume wholesale operations and small retail bakeries.
Status
Defunct. Liquidated 1955. No successor company. Factory and equipment lines dissolved.
Cincinnati’s Industrial Cast Iron: Beyond the Kitchen
The Century Machine plaque is a reminder that Ohio’s cast iron heritage extends far beyond the kitchen. The SSC collection’s mandate covers all marked cast iron from obscure, defunct Ohio manufacturers—not just cookware. Hardware, implements, industrial pieces, and patented devices all qualify, as long as they carry a maker’s mark with confirmed Ohio provenance. The Century Machine plaque meets that standard definitively: it is cast iron, it carries the company name and “CINCINNATI, OHIO” in raised letters, and the manufacturer is defunct.
This piece joins the SSC collection’s growing roster of Cincinnati cast iron alongside W. Resor & Co. (waffle iron), Adams & Britt (stove kettle griddle), John D. Browne (patented broom head), and H.S. Pease (charcoal sad iron). Each piece comes from a different Cincinnati manufacturer, each serving a different market. Century Machine adds the commercial food equipment sector to that record—a company that cast iron into ovens and bakery machinery rather than skillets and kettles, but that operated from the same city, drew from the same foundry traditions, and left behind the same kind of evidence: a name in iron.
The plaque also represents a category of cast iron artifact that is inherently rare. Maker’s plaques were mounted on machines. When the machines were scrapped, the plaques usually went with them into the scrap bin. A surviving nameplate from a defunct manufacturer is often the only physical evidence that the company existed beyond a name in a city directory or a line in a corporate acquisition record. For the Century Machine Company—a firm that left behind no factory photographs, no product catalogs in public archives, and only a brief mention in the records of its acquirer—this plaque may be among the last tangible artifacts of its existence.
Why This Piece Matters
The Century Machine Co. plaque matters because it preserves the name and origin of a Cincinnati manufacturer that would otherwise be almost completely invisible to history. The Century Machine Company does not appear in any cast iron collector’s database. It does not appear in standard industrial histories of Cincinnati. Its entire documented legacy consists of a brief entry in the corporate records of Baker Perkins, its wartime Army-Navy Award, and the physical artifacts—like this plaque—that carry its name.
It also matters as a piece of World War II industrial history. The portable field bakeries that Century Machine manufactured fed American soldiers on every front of the war. Fresh bread in a forward position was not a luxury—it was a morale-critical logistic. Century’s wheeled ovens brought hot bread to base camps in North Africa, Sicily, France, and the Pacific. The company earned one of the war’s most prestigious civilian production awards for that work. And then, ten years later, it was liquidated and its name disappeared.
This plaque—forty dollars on eBay, a few ounces of ornamental cast iron—is a permanent record that the Century Machine Company of Cincinnati, Ohio existed, manufactured equipment, and put its name on its work in raised letters that have survived for more than a century. That’s what the SSC collection is for.
The iron endures. The markings tell the truth. The story deserves to be told.
Sources & Further Reading
Physical examination of piece: “THE / Century / MACHINE CO. / CINCINNATI, OHIO.” cast in raised letters on face. Ornamental cast iron plaque with scalloped border and two mounting holes. Faint pattern marks on reverse.
Baker Perkins Historical Society (bphs.net) — “History of the Century Machine Company, Cincinnati, USA.” Confirms acquisition by Baker Perkins Co. Inc. in 1929; WWII portable field bakery development and Army-Navy Award; liquidation in 1955.
Baker Perkins Inc., 1955 Group Annual Report — Referenced in BPHS narrative. Notes Century Machine Company exhibit at 1955 Atlantic City Convention and subsequent liquidation decision.
SSC Internal Collection Records — Century Machine Co. first appeared on the Ohio Foundry Checklist after being identified from inventory but not found in any known foundry database. This plaque is the first dedicated Century Machine acquisition.
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.
