“Hotpoint” Electric Toaster
date: label: date made
content: 1923-1929
name: label: maker
content: Edison General Electric Appliance Co., Inc.
notes: label: Description
content: A. Side-opening electric two-slice toaster, nickel-plated sheet metal. Trapezoid-shaped body with overhanging top, curved corners, bent rim, pierced with geometric pattern. Doors on either side that open downward to allow bread to be placed into toaster. Each door is pierced with geometric and floral design, has wooden “mushroom” shaped knobs, faceted, on either side to open door. Each end is pierced with a similar design. Hollow base with lobed bottom edge, arched legs with hidden oval Masonite feet at corners. Two-pronged cord attachment at one end. “Hotpoint” debossed in cursive on one side of base. Underside is stamped within cartouche: “CAT. NO. 115T17 W. 550 V. 110/PAT’D FEB. 22 1910 JULY 23 14/EDISON ELECTRIC APPLIANCE CO. INC./CHICAGO MADE IN USA ONTARIO CAL”
label: Description
content: B. Power cord, grayish-yellow woven cloth with silver metal coil on one end, molded plastic two-pronged plug, one end is embossed in cursive: “Hotpoint”
label: Description
content: Patents:
label: Description
content: US 950058 A, Feb 22, 1910, Frank E. Shailor, assignor to General Electric Corporation, for “Electric heater”
label: Description
content: (Possibly) US 1257106 A, Filed July 23, 1914, Published Feb. 19, 1918, Leon F. Parkhurst, assignor to General Electric Corporation, for “Electric heating device”
label: Description
content: Maker is Edison Electric Appliance Company, founded in 1904 as the Pacific Electric Heating Company by Earl Richardson in order to manufacture a lightweight electric iron he had designed. Richardson registered the “Hotpoint” trademark in 1914, and changed the company’s name to Hotpoint Electric Heating Company. Shortly after, Richardson purchased the rights to the Edison name—which Edison sold to numerous companies over the years—and changed the company’s name to the Edison Electric Appliance Company. In 1918 the company merged with Hughes Electric Heating Company (the heating device section of General Electric), and in 1931 the name of the company changed once again—to the Edison General Electric Company. Three years later the “Edison” name was dropped and it became the Hotpoint Division of General Electric.
label: Location
content: Currently not on view
place: label: place made
content: United States: Illinois, Chicago
topic: label: Subject
content: appliances
label: Subject
content: Food Culture
label: Subject
content: Household Tools and Equipment
setName: label: See more items in
content: Home and Community Life: Domestic Life
label: See more items in
content: Food
label: See more items in
content: Domestic Furnishings
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Gift of Joyce Barth & Florence E. Scuderi
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of American History
identifier: label: ID Number
content: 1992.0338.06
label: catalog number
content: 1992.0338.06
label: accession number
content: 1992.0338
objectType: label: Object Name
content: toaster
label: Object Name
content: toaster,
label: Object Name
content: toaster, electric
label: Other Terms
content: Toaster; Electric
physicalDescription: label: Physical Description
content: metal (overall material)
label: Physical Description
content: wood (overall material)
label: Physical Description
content: mica (overall material)
label: Physical Description
content: cloth (cord material)
label: Physical Description
content: plastic (cord material)
label: Measurements
content: overall-toaster: 7 7/8 in x 7 3/8 in x 5 3/8 in; 20.0025 cm x 18.7325 cm x 13.6525 cm
label: Measurements
content: overall-cord folded: 1 1/2 in x 8 1/4 in x 3 1/4 in; 3.81 cm x 20.955 cm x 8.255 cm