Skip to main content

Search

My Visit
Donate
Home Smithsonian Institution

Site Navigation

  • Visit
    • Museums and Zoo
    • Entry and Guidelines
    • Maps and Brochures
    • Dine and Shop
    • Accessibility
    • Visiting with Kids
    • Group Visits
      • Group Sales
  • What's On
    • Exhibitions
      • Current
      • Upcoming
      • Past
    • Online Events
    • All Events
    • IMAX & Planetarium
  • Explore
    • - Art & Design
    • - History & Culture
    • - Science & Nature
    • - Innovation & Tech
    • Collections
      • Open Access
      • Snapshot
    • Research Resources
      • Libraries
      • Archives
        • Smithsonian Institution Archives
        • Air and Space Museum
        • Anacostia Community Museum
        • American Art Museum
        • Archives of American Art
        • Archives of American Gardens
        • American History Museum
        • American Indian Museum
        • Asian Art Museum Archives
        • Eliot Elisofon Photographic Archives, African Art
        • Hirshhorn Archive
        • National Anthropological Archives
        • National Portrait Gallery
        • Ralph Rinzler Archives, Folklife
        • Libraries' Special Collections
    • Podcasts
    • Stories
  • Learn
    • For Caregivers
    • For Educators
      • Art & Design Resources
      • Science & Nature Resources
      • Social Studies & Civics Resources
      • STEAM Learning Resources
      • Professional Development
      • Events for Educators
      • Field Trips
    • For Students
    • For Academics
    • For Lifelong Learners
  • Support Us
    • Become a Member
    • Renew Membership
    • Make a Gift
    • Volunteer
      • Smithsonian Call Center
      • Ambassador Program
      • Museum Information Desk
      • Docent Programs
      • Behind-the-Scenes
      • Digital Volunteers
      • Participatory Science
  • About
    • Our Organization
      • Board of Regents
        • Members
        • Committees
        • Reading Room
        • Bylaws, Policies and Procedures
        • Schedules and Agendas
        • Meeting Minutes
        • Actions
        • Webcasts
        • Contact
      • Museums and Zoo
      • Research Centers
      • Cultural Centers
      • Education Centers
      • General Counsel
        • Legal History
        • Internships
        • Records Requests
          • Reading Room
        • Tort Claim
        • Subpoenas & Testimonies
        • Events
      • Office of Human Resources
        • Employee Benefits
        • How to Apply
        • Job Opportunities
        • Job Seekers with Disabilities
        • Frequently Asked Questions
        • SI Civil Program
        • Contact Us
      • Office of Equal Opportunity
        • EEO Complaint Process
        • Individuals with Disabilities
        • Small Business Program
          • Doing Business with Us
          • Contracting Opportunities
          • Additional Resources
        • Special Emphasis Programs
      • Sponsored Projects
        • Policies
          • Combating Trafficking in Persons
          • Animal Care and Use
          • Human Research
        • Reports
        • Internships
    • Our Leadership
    • Reports and Plans
      • Annual Reports
      • Metrics Dashboard
        • Dashboard Home
        • Virtual Smithsonian
        • Public Engagement
        • National Collections
        • Research
        • People & Operations
      • Strategic Plan
    • Newsdesk
      • News Releases
      • Media Contacts
      • Photos and Video
      • Media Kits
      • Fact Sheets
      • Visitor Stats
      • Secretary and Admin Bios
      • Filming Requests

"Universal" Coffee Maker

National Museum of American History

Object Details

Landers, Frary & Clark
Description
Art deco style vacuum coffee maker. Glass body (B & C), double-bulb-shaped. Lower pot (B) has out-turned handle, molded plastic, cream-colored, with thumb rest at top, attached with screws to metal gasket that encircles top lip of pitcher. Lower pot has out-turned lip and spout (opposite handle) at top, molded glass, three decorative silver bands around bottom of pitcher body, which has a detachable metal base (A), chrome-plated, circular, semi-sphere with flattened circular base, three triangular cream-colored feet. Base is streamlined. Two arched pieces of metal with molded plastic (cream-colored) handles on either side of base, architectural detail molded into plastic handles. Interior of half-sphere has white molded ceramic heating element with metal coils, attached to two-pronged plug on exterior. Metal, chrome-plated lid (D), circular, concave top, molded plastic knob, cream-colored, with ribbed flange edge to sit over lip of upper “brew pot” (C), which has same silver line decoration as lower pot (B). Upper pot has molded glass rod that is inserted into hole in center, bottom, marked: “CORNING ROD/U.S. PAT. 1927287/U.S. PAT. 1931076”, and is cracked at top. Upper pot is held on top of lower pot with white rubber gasket attached to long hollow glass pike at bottom, which is inserted into the lower pot. Bottom of base has attached circular metal plate, printed: “PATENTS PENDING/D-106778/PAT. NO. 2067470/UNIVERSAL/WATTS 550 VOLTS 110/120/ NO. 228/LANDERS,FRARY, & CLARK/NEW BRITAIN, CONN./U.S.A.”
May be missing a metal wire strainer, based on a marked patent (2067470).
Patents:
1927287, Sep 19, 1933, Raymond W Kell and Charles D Barth, for “Coffee maker”
1931076, Oct 17, 1933, Raymond W. Kell and Charles D. Barth, assignors to Macbeth-Evans Glass Company, Charleroi, Pennsylvania, for “Coffee maker”
D-106778, Nov 2, 1937, Oscar M. Anderson, assignor to Landers, Frary & Clark, New Britain, Connecticut, for “Design for a coffee maker”
2067470, Jan 12, 1937, Oscar M. Anderson, assignor to Landers, Frary & Clark, New Britain, Connecticut, for “Strainer for percolators”
Maker is Landers, Frary & Clark, New Britain, Connecticut (circa 1862). In the 1890s, took on the name “Universal”, in 1965 General Electric acquired the company.
Location
Currently not on view
ca 1937
ID Number
1988.0113.2
accession number
1988.0113
catalog number
1988.0113.2
Object Name
maker, coffee
Physical Description
metal (overall material)
plastic (base material)
Measurements
overall: 14 5/8 in x 9 1/4 in x 6 in; 37.1475 cm x 23.495 cm x 15.24 cm
place made
United States
United States: Connecticut, New Britain
See more items in
Home and Community Life: Domestic Life
National Museum of American History
Subject
Household Tools and Equipment
Beverages
Coffee Drinking
Patented
Record ID
nmah_324293
Metadata Usage (text)
CC0
GUID (Link to Original Record)
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ng49ca746b2-6173-704b-e053-15f76fa0b4fa

Related Content

  • Coffee

There are restrictions for re-using this image. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page .
International media Interoperability Framework
IIIF provides researchers rich metadata and media viewing options for comparison of works across cultural heritage collections. Visit the IIIF page to learn more.
View manifest View in Mirador Viewer

Footer logo

Link to homepage

Footer navigation

  • Contact Us
  • Job Opportunities
  • Get Involved
  • Inspector General
  • Records Requests
  • Accessibility
  • EEO & Small Business
  • Shop Online
  • Host Your Event
  • Press Room
  • Privacy
  • Terms of Use

Social media links

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • YouTube
  • LinkedIn

Get the latest news from the Smithsonian

Sign up for Smithsonian e-news

Get the latest news from the Smithsonian

Email powered by BlackBaud (Privacy Policy, Terms of Use)
CAPTCHA
This question is for testing whether or not you are a human visitor and to prevent automated spam submissions.
Back to Top