J.H. Day & Co. Patented Safety Kettle with Fire Shield

J.H. Day & Co. Patented Safety Kettle with Fire Shield

MADE ONLY BY. Four words cast into a hinged iron door mounted on the front of a Cincinnati hearth kettle, backed by two patents filed three years apart — 1874 and 1877. J.H. Day & Co. was not a stove works. They were an industrial machinery manufacturer who also invented a new way to manage fire around a kettle, protected it twice, and put their exclusivity claim in iron on every piece. This is the most complete example known: fire shield intact, hinged, latched, and operational after 150 years.

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Dayton Malleable Iron Co. Patented Smelting Ladle

Dayton Malleable Iron Co. Patented Smelting Ladle

A brass brush brought it back: DAYTON MALLEABLE IRON CO. / PAT AUG 15 / 1871. Not just the year — the month and the day. August 15, 1871. The same day M. Hose & Lyon, across town in Dayton, patented their own competing ladle design. The dried slag in the diamond-form cup is still there. The thermal patina is still there. SSC will not remove either one. This is what a working foundry tool looks like after 155 years when you choose preservation over restoration.

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Marion Stove Co. Cast Iron Stove Lid Lifter

Marion Stove Co. Cast Iron Stove Lid Lifter

Marion Stove Co. was born in Sidney, Ohio in 1855 — and when it left for Indiana, a Marion man stayed behind to help build Wagner Ware. This lid lifter retains its original nickel plating, a surface that must never be disturbed.

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