After Belle's mother died last month, some of the family was at her house, cleaning and trying to figure out what to do with a lifetime of living. Jane took an old skillet that she remembered from her youth. It is a heavy stainless steel pan. It did not have a handle oh it, but we could see where the handle once attached.
I remember from my youth, a traveling salesman going door-to-door selling this cookware. He would sell them individually or as a set. It was good quality, stainless cookware, and lots of the ladies in our neighborhood bout a set. We're talking early 1960s. Belle wanted to have the pan rehab'd, so she asked a buddy of ours if he could put a handle on it. This particular friend owns a machine shop, and he told Belle he would see what he could do.
Belle thinks he did a smash-up job, and now the pan is ready tor another generation of service. The handle is knurled aluminum, threaded into the original boss, and covered with some sort of heavy shrink-wrap. It is ready for another generation of service.
5 comments:
Several of our pans were bought when the wife hosted one of those sales-demo-in-your-house things. We were in on-base housing on our first of two instructor tours at Chanute AFB, IL. That was 1971.
Lifetime pans . Everyone in my family has a complete set with lids . Actually better than a lifetime they are multi-generational . Best heavy stainless cookware ever made .
Very nicely done!!!
Very cool project and a good way to retain good memories from an essential object (cooking vessel). I'm sure you will do her proud - we've seen your cooking here on your blog.
When my Grandma passed in 1985, we were given the opportunity to pick two items for memories. I chose a Wagner deep dish skillet, about 14" in diameter and a stovetop legless Dutch oven. Now when I use them, I can reminiscence on Grandma's cooking.
She used those same implements, cooking for a family of 12 over wood fires in the camps where they stayed while family picked crops for a living. At least six months out of the year was 'camping' like this done. The majority of the family picked crops - she was left to tend the infants and household chores. A lot of work, but when you love your family, its a labor of love.
Well played sir.
As the son of thrifty Scot immigrants I salute you.
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