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Hi Everyone, and welcome back to another artifact corner. Today we will be looking at a fantastic cooking device, a lovely waffle iron. The iron has an ornate cross and fleur de lis pattern which would have been imprinted on the waffles. The plates themselves could be removed and replaced with different patterns. The front reads PHILAD’A along the bottom, and 89 along the top of it. This leads us to believe that the waffle iron was made in Philadelphia in 1889, but that’s not something we’ve been able to confirm. Let’s learn a bit more about the history of waffle and waffle irons.

The earliest known form of waffle comes from Ancient Greece. They were known as obleios, and it was a flat cake that was cooked between two metal plates over a fire. These were mostly a savory dish that would be flavored with herbs and cheese. The obleios transforms into the waffle in the 1200s, when a craftsman has the idea of forging some cooking plates or “irons” that reproduce the characteristic pattern of honeycombs. The word gaufre, from the Old French for waffle, first appears in print at this time. Wafla means “a piece of honeybee hive.” Other early waffle irons designs include landscapes, coats of arms and religious symbols. The batter is placed between hinged plates that are then pressed together with wooden handles, held over the hearth fire to bake and flipped manually. The waffles would be sold by street vendors and for religious celebrations or saints’ days, the vendors would be allowed to sell their waffles at church door exits.

Throughout the Renaissance, waffles became increasingly popular all across Europe. As Europeans traveled to America and begin to settle, they brought the waffle with them. At the start of the French Revolution, Thomas Jefferson returns to the U.S. from his position as Minister to France. Along with a pasta machine, he brought back a long-handled waffle iron that enclosed the batter and gave the waffles their crispness and shape. This began the trend of “waffle frolics” or waffle parties, where guests can enjoy their waffles sweet (with maple syrup or molasses) or savory (topped with kidney stew). In 1869, Cornelius Swarthout of Troy, New York, a Dutch-American, received a patent for the first waffle iron in the U.S., on August 24th. Described as a “device to bake waffles,” one would heat up the waffle iron over a coal stove, pour batter on the griddle, close the cover and after a few minutes, flip the griddle and cook the other side of the waffle. It became incredibly popular. With the advent of electricity, electric waffle irons were born.

Our waffle iron is in good shape with the exception of a broken hinge on the plates. We think this would not impair it’s ability to make waffles though, but I don’t think we’ll try to make waffles in it any time soon. This waffle iron is a lovely glimpse into food preparation in the late Victorian period, and we are so lucky to have it in our collections. Thanks so much for stopping by.

The following music was used for this media project:
Music: Sunny Morning by MusicLFiles
Free download: https://filmmusic.io/song/7813-sunny-morning
License (CC BY 4.0): https://filmmusic.io/standard-license
Artist website: https://cemmusicproject.wixsite.com/musiclibraryfiles

Hi everyone and welcome back to another artifact corner. Today we will be looking at a very special piece in our collections. This is a Rockaway carriage, and it’s origins and provenance are a bit murky. Henry Delord never mentions a carriage in any of his journals, letters, or business papers. He only ever mentions a wagon, which he and his family used, and he also rented said carriage out. So, this carriage seems like it came to the family after Henry Delord passed away. Did this carriage come into our family through the Webb Family through Frances Henrietta Delord & Henry Webb’s daughter Fannie Delord Webb Hall? We know that Frank Hall (Fannie’s husband) went down to deal with the Webb estate in 1864, was this part of the estate that came back to Plattsburgh? If so, we don’t have a written record of it. So, the origins of the carriage remain a mystery. Let’s learn a bit more about the history of carriages.

A carriage is a four wheeled horse drawn vehicle designed primarily for transporting people. A wagon is also a four wheeled vehicle, but a wagons primary use is for transporting goods or materials. Carriages can be light weight and designed for speed or quite heavy and designed for the comfort of the passengers. The predecessors of the carriage are the two wheel cart, and the first instances of carts are found all over the ancient world. Two wheeled carts and chariots are found in Ancient Mesopotamia, Egypt, Greek, Rome, India and China. The Roman’s also used four wheeled wagons, again for transporting goods. Two wheeled carts and chariots were used mainly for transporting people, and were built to be lightweight and speedy. Four-wheeled wagons were used in Bronze Age Europe, and their form, Which we know from excavations, suggests that the basic construction techniques of the wheels and undercarriage (that survived until the age of the motor car) were established then.

One of the great innovations in carriage history was the invention of the suspended carriage or the chariot branlant (though whether this was a Roman or medieval innovation remains uncertain). The “chariot branlant” of medieval illustrations was suspended by chains rather than leather straps as had been believed. Suspension, whether on chains or leather, might provide a smoother ride since the carriage body no longer rested on the axles, but could not prevent swinging (branlant) in all directions. By the 17th century, heavier vehicles had evolved, including the omnibus, to be pulled by teams of horses over long distances. At the same time, lighter vehicles designed for style and speed were also developed, and the suspension of all such vehicles was gradually enhanced by the addition of steel springs and leather braces. Some of these carriages were further improved by being enclosed with wood, glass, and cloth. In the 18th and 19th centuries a wide variety of carriage types were in common use. In the United States the stagecoach became familiar as a means of public transportation. Carriages and wagons and all other forms of animal drawn vehicles abruptly went out of use with the invention of the automobile. Carriage are still used today for formal and state events, and are often the center of the celebration.

Our carriage is in good condition, but we won’t be hooking it up to horses and taking it for a spin through Plattsburgh any time soon. We would love to find some documentation that would directly link the carriage to our family, but for the time being we are just glad to have the piece as a part of our collections. Thanks so much for stopping by.

The following music was used for this media project:
Music: Sunny Morning by MusicLFiles
Free download: https://filmmusic.io/song/7813-sunny-morning
License (CC BY 4.0): https://filmmusic.io/standard-license
Artist website: https://cemmusicproject.wixsite.com/musiclibraryfiles