Wagner Ware Sidney -O- No. 7 Cast Iron Skillet
SSC MUSEUM COLLECTION
Catalog No. SSC-WGNR-SKL-007
Cast Iron Skillet | No. 7 | Arc/Straight/Straight Logo | Heat Ring | Sidney, Ohio
c. 1920–1924 • Wagner Manufacturing Company • Sidney, Shelby County, Ohio
Interior cooking surface of the Wagner Ware Sidney -O- No. 7 skillet, showing the full 8¼-inch cooking floor, scalloped pour spouts on the rim, and the classic Wagner teardrop hanging loop. The deep even seasoning reflects the quality of the restoration. This piece predates the iconic stylized W logo that would define Wagner Ware from approximately 1922 onward.
The Wagner Ware Sidney -O- No. 7 in the Steve’s Seasoned Classics collection is the oldest-marked piece in the complete skillet set — and its age is written plainly on its base. The logo is not the stylized looped W that most collectors associate with the Wagner Ware name. It is an earlier mark: WAGNER in an arc above straight-lettered WARE, SIDNEY, and -O-, with a size number below and no catalog number anywhere on the piece. This is the Wagner Ware Sidney O. Arc/Straight/Straight logo, documented by the Cast Iron Collector as a transitional trademark of the 1920s — produced after Wagner began marketing its products as ‘Wagner Ware’ around 1914, and before the iconic stylized W was introduced around 1922.
The absence of a catalog number is the second key dating indicator. Wagner adopted its four-digit catalog numbering system in 1924. No. 7 skillets in that system carry the number 1057. This piece has no four-digit number. The marking below the logo reads 7c — the size number with a pre-catalog-number pattern designation, exactly as documented for pieces from the pre-1924 era. Everything on this base tells the same story: this skillet was cast in the early 1920s, after ‘Ware’ was added to the Wagner brand but before the numbering system and the stylized W were introduced.
The piece presents in excellent restored condition with deep even seasoning throughout, a clean cooking surface, and all markings fully legible. The heat ring is present and intact — correct for this era and this size. No cracks or repairs are present.
The Arc/Straight/Straight Logo: Reading the Transition
Base of the No. 7 skillet showing the Arc/Straight/Straight Wagner Ware logo: 'WAGNER' in an arc above straight-lettered 'WARE,' 'SIDNEY,' and '-O-.' The size marking '7c' appears below the logo. No catalog number is present anywhere on the base. The heat ring is visible as the raised concentric ring at the base perimeter. This marking configuration dates to c. 1920–1924.
To understand what the logo on this No. 7 means, it helps to trace the full sequence of Wagner’s marking history. For the first thirty years of its history — from 1891 through approximately 1914 — Wagner marked its hollow ware with the word WAGNER in either straight block letters or an arc, sometimes accompanied by SIDNEY and O. below. Multiple variants existed: block only, arc only, arc/arc (both WAGNER and SIDNEY in arcs), straight/straight centered, arc/straight in various positions.
Around 1914, Wagner began marketing its products under the combined ‘Wagner Ware’ brand name. The transition was not accomplished by creating entirely new patterns — it was accomplished by modifying existing ones. As the Cast Iron Collector documents: pieces previously lettered with an arched WAGNER above a straight SIDNEY with an O. below were seen having their patterns modified to insert the word WARE between Wagner and Sidney. The result was a ‘cobbled together’ trademark — WAGNER arching over newly-inserted straight WARE, with SIDNEY and -O- below in straight lettering. This is the Arc/Straight/Straight configuration visible on this No. 7.
That transitional logo had a narrow window of documented production. The Cast Iron Collector’s trademark reference places the Arc/Straight/Straight configuration in the 1920s, overlapping with the final years before the iconic stylized W was introduced around 1922. By the time Wagner adopted its catalog numbering system in 1924, the stylized W was becoming the standard. Pieces with the Arc/Straight/Straight logo and no catalog number represent the brief period between the introduction of ‘Ware’ branding and the introduction of the stylized W and the numbering system — approximately 1920 to 1924.
The size marking on this piece reads 7c. The letter c in this context is a pre-catalog-number pattern designation — the third pattern cut for the No. 7 in the pre-1924 era. It is the equivalent of what would later be systematized as a pattern letter under the catalog number system, appearing here in the older, less formalized marking convention of the pre-1924 foundry.
The No. 7 Skillet: An Uncommonly Encountered Size
Profile view of the No. 7 showing the 2-inch sidewalls, the broad cooking floor, and the overall form of the piece. The heat ring is visible as the slight ledge at the base perimeter. The deep even seasoning is consistent throughout the piece.
At 9⅞ inches across the top rim and 8¼ inches at the cooking floor, the No. 7 sits between the workhorse No. 6 and the flagship No. 8 — and like the No. 9, it is a size that appears in the market less frequently than its immediate neighbors. It was produced in both heat-ring and smooth-bottom configurations, and in multiple logo eras across the full span of Sidney production. In the pre-catalog-number era to which this piece belongs, the No. 7 would have been a standard domestic skillet sold through hardware stores and general merchants.
The No. 7 was also used as a base size for Wagner’s dual-logo National / Wagner Ware center-logo pans of the 1920s, where the same casting received the National brand marking for sale through budget retail channels. The existence of the dual-logo National No. 7 (catalog number 1357) documents active production of the No. 7 pattern through the mid-1920s and into the 1930s. The present SSC No. 7, with its Arc/Straight/Straight logo and no catalog number, predates that dual-logo era.
Wagner Manufacturing Company: The Branding Transition
The Wagner Manufacturing Company was founded in June 1891 by brothers Milton M. and Bernard P. Wagner in Sidney, Shelby County, Ohio. For its first two decades, Wagner’s hollow ware carried only the WAGNER name — in block or arc lettering, sometimes with SIDNEY and O. below. The company was building its reputation on the quality of the iron, not the elaborateness of its branding.
Around 1914, that changed. Wagner began using the combined ‘Wagner Ware’ trademark on its cast metal cookware products. The transition was incremental rather than immediate — existing patterns were modified to accommodate the new word, producing the transitional Arc/Straight/Straight logo visible on this No. 7. The ‘cobbled together’ nature of the early Wagner Ware mark is literally visible in its letterforms: WAGNER arcs in the older style while WARE, SIDNEY, and -O- sit in straight lines below, having been added to an existing arced pattern.
Around 1922, the iconic stylized W — the large looped letterform serving double duty as the first letter of both Wagner and Ware — was introduced, and it became the dominant mark of the brand’s peak era. The Arc/Straight/Straight logo of the present No. 7 belongs to the window between these two: after the arc-only Wagner mark, after the introduction of Ware branding, and before the stylized W settled into its permanent form. In the complete SSC Wagner Ware Sidney -O- skillet set, this No. 7 is the oldest-marked piece — a piece from the years when the brand was still finding its visual identity.
The original Wagner family divested between 1946 and 1952. In 1957 the Randall Wagner division acquired Griswold Manufacturing. Textron acquired Randall in 1959, marking the accepted end of the collector era with the removal of SIDNEY -O- from the logo. The Sidney foundry closed permanently in July 1999. The factory building was demolished in June 2023.
Markings Analysis
Bottom profile of the No. 7 showing the heat ring and 2-inch sidewall depth. The heat ring is present and intact, consistent with the pre-1935 era of this piece. The deep even seasoning covers the exterior sidewall throughout.
The logo on this piece is the Wagner Ware Sidney O. Arc/Straight/Straight configuration: WAGNER in an arc at the top, followed by straight WARE, straight SIDNEY, and straight -O- below. This is not a defect or an unusual casting — it is a documented transitional trademark of the 1920s, produced during the brief period between the introduction of Ware branding around 1914 and the introduction of the stylized W around 1922.
No catalog number is present. The only numbering on the base is 7c — size 7, pattern letter c under the pre-1924 designation system. The absence of a four-digit catalog number is a firm pre-1924 indicator. No MADE IN USA marking is present, confirming pre-1959 manufacture. The heat ring is present and intact, consistent with the heat-ring era that predated the smooth-bottom transition of approximately 1930–1935.
Combined, these three elements — the Arc/Straight/Straight logo, the absence of a catalog number, and the heat ring — converge on a manufacture date of c. 1920–1924. This is the oldest datable marking configuration in the SSC Wagner Ware Sidney -O- complete skillet set.
Handle
Handle detail of the No. 7, showing the classic Wagner teardrop hanging loop. The loop is intact and well-formed. The deep consistent seasoning of the restored piece is visible throughout the handle. No size mark is incised on the handle — consistent with the pre-catalog-number era marking convention that placed the size number on the base rather than the handle.
The main handle terminates in Wagner’s classic teardrop hanging loop — the open-eye form used across the Sidney skillet line from the foundry’s earliest years. The handle is intact with no cracks or losses and shows the consistent deep seasoning present throughout the piece.
The absence of a size mark on the handle itself is consistent with the pre-1924 marking era. In the catalog-number era, Wagner incised the size number on the handle top or junction as a convenient identification mark. On pre-catalog-number pieces, the identification information — size number and any pattern designation — appeared on the base along with the trademark, not separately on the handle.
Piece Details
Manufacturer
Wagner Manufacturing Company, Sidney, Ohio
Piece Type
Cast Iron Skillet
Form
Standard skillet with main handle, heat ring base, scalloped pour spouts. No assist handle — correct for No. 7.
Material
Cast Iron
Markings
Wagner Ware Sidney -O- Arc/Straight/Straight logo: 'WAGNER' in arc above straight 'WARE' / straight 'SIDNEY' / straight '-O-'; size number '7c' below logo; no catalog number
Logo Type
Wagner Ware Sidney O. — Arc/Straight/Straight (transitional early Wagner Ware logo, c. 1920s). The word 'WARE' was inserted into the pre-existing arc 'WAGNER' pattern, with WARE, SIDNEY, and -O- in straight lettering below.
Catalog Number
None — absent. Wagner adopted catalog numbers in 1924. This piece predates that system. Size number 7c present — the letter c is a pre-catalog-number pattern designation.
Size
No. 7 — Top diameter: 9 7/8 in. | Bottom diameter: 8 1/4 in. | Depth: 2 in.
Heat Ring
Yes — present; correct for this pre-catalog-number era
Made in USA Mark
Absent — confirms pre-1959 production
Logo Era
Wagner Ware Sidney O. Arc/Straight/Straight — c. 1920s; transitional logo between the arc-only era and the stylized W; no catalog number = pre-1924
Date of Manufacture
c. 1920–1924 — the early Wagner Ware branding period before the stylized logo
Place of Manufacture
Sidney, Shelby County, Ohio
Condition
Excellent — professionally restored; deep even seasoning; clean cooking surface; no cracks, no repairs; all markings legible; heat ring intact
Acquisition Date
October 21, 2025
Acquisition Source
Etsy — Seller: CastIronTreasures
Etsy Transaction No.
4787591707
Etsy Order No.
3835708051
SSC Catalog Number
SSC-WGNR-SKL-007
Collection Designation
Wagner Ware Sidney -O- Complete Skillet Set — No. 0 through No. 14
Corporate Timeline: Wagner Manufacturing Company
1891
Wagner Manufacturing Company founded in Sidney, Shelby County, Ohio. For its first years, the only marking is 'WAGNER' in block or arc lettering, sometimes with 'SIDNEY, O.' below.
c. 1895–1915
Wagner Sidney O. Arc/Arc logo documented — both WAGNER and SIDNEY in slight arcs. Predecessor to the Wagner Ware branding era.
c. 1897–1903
Wagner acquires Sidney Hollow Ware Company; Sidney Arc Logo pieces produced during this period.
c. 1910–1915
Wagner Sidney O. Straight/Straight and Arc/Straight variants documented as transitional forms.
c. 1914
Wagner begins marketing products as 'Wagner Ware.' Existing patterns are modified to insert 'WARE' between WAGNER and SIDNEY. The Arc/Straight/Straight logo on this No. 7 is a direct product of this modification.
c. 1920s
Wagner Ware Sidney O. Arc/Straight/Straight logo documented. WAGNER arcs above straight WARE / SIDNEY / -O-. Size numbers used without catalog numbers. This No. 7 belongs to this era.
c. 1922
Stylized 'W' logo introduced — the iconic looped letterform that would define the brand for the next four decades. The Arc/Straight/Straight logo of the present No. 7 immediately precedes this transition.
1924
Four-digit catalog numbering system adopted. Pieces without catalog numbers predate this system.
c. 1930–35
Smooth-bottom construction introduced for sizes 4–12.
1946–52
Wagner family divests. Company sold to Randall Company of Cincinnati, Ohio.
1959
Textron acquires Randall. SIDNEY -O- removed from logo. Last year of collector-era production.
1999
Sidney foundry closes permanently after 108 years of production.
2022–23
Wagner Cast Iron relaunches with Wagner family guidance. Former Sidney foundry building demolished June 2023.
Why This Piece Matters
The Wagner Ware Sidney -O- No. 7 with Arc/Straight/Straight logo matters because it is the oldest-dated marking configuration in the SSC complete skillet set. The No. 12 with its center logo documents 1922–1924 — the opening years of the stylized W. This No. 7 documents what came before: the transitional branding period when Wagner was in the process of inserting ‘Ware’ into its existing marks, before the designers at Sidney arrived at the looped W that would become the brand’s identity. The two pieces together — the No. 7 and the No. 12 — bracket the exact moment of that visual transformation.
It matters as documentation of how brands are actually built — not through a single designed moment, but through incremental modification of what already exists. The Arc/Straight/Straight logo on this No. 7 is the literal result of a foundry patternmaker inserting the word WARE into an arc that had previously read only WAGNER. The old arc stayed. The new word went in straight. The result is a hybrid mark that tells the story of a company in transition, and that story is legible in cast iron a century later.
It matters because the No. 7 is an uncommon size in any logo era, and an Arc/Straight/Straight No. 7 with no catalog number is a specific find. In the SSC complete set, it provides the early-era anchor — the piece that shows where the Wagner Ware mark came from before the stylized W made it famous.
The iron endures. The markings tell the truth. The story deserves to be told.
Sources & Further Reading
Physical examination of piece: Arc/Straight/Straight Wagner Ware Sidney O. logo (WAGNER in arc above straight WARE / SIDNEY / -O-); size number '7c' below logo; no catalog number present; heat ring present; no MADE IN USA marking. Five seller photographs examined prior to acquisition.
The Cast Iron Collector (castironcollector.com) — Evolution of the Wagner Trademark; Cast Iron Cookware Trademarks & Logos. Primary reference for Arc/Straight/Straight logo dating: 'Wagner Ware Sidney O. Arc/Straight/Straight (1920s)' documented; described as patterns modified to insert 'WARE' between WAGNER and SIDNEY.
The Cast Iron Collector — Trademarks & Logos page. Specific reference for the pre-catalog-number era and the documentation of the 1920s transitional logos preceding the stylized W introduction c. 1922.
Wagner Cast Iron (wagnercastiron.com/pages/story) — Official Wagner family history. Foundry founding, branding introduction, corporate ownership chain, foundry demolition 2023.
Panman.com — Cast Iron Size and Capacity Charts (David G. Smith). No. 7 standard dimensions: top diameter 9 7/8 in., bottom 8 1/4 in., depth 2 in.
Cast Iron Collector Forums (castironcollector.com/forum) — Wagner Ware collecting thread. Dual-logo National No. 7 (catalog no. 1357) documented.
The Book of Griswold & Wagner (Wallaces-Homestead / Krause Publications) — Standard collector reference volume.
Etsy acquisition record — Order No. 3835708051, transaction no. 4787591707, seller: CastIronTreasures, October 21, 2025. Item: Early 'WAGNER' SIDNEY #7 Cast Iron Skillet with Heat Ring Rare Arc Arc Logo.
SSC Internal Collection Records — Wagner Ware Sidney -O- Complete Skillet Set documentation. SSC-WGNR-SKL-007 carries the oldest-dated marking configuration of any piece in the full-run No. 0 through No. 14 display set.
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.
www.stevesseasonedclassics.com
