Country Living 2019-11-01

FIELD GUIDE

HUNT

COUNTRYLIVING.COM / NOVEMBER 2019 ƀƂ

Appraisals

What Is It? What Is It Worth?

Our team of antiques experts weighs in on your passed-down,

found-in-the-attic, buried-in-a-box family treasures.

did you know...

You can spot Jacob

Bromwell’s iconic

flour sifters in the

kitchen sets of period

fi lms such as The

Help, The Green Mile,

and Lincoln.

OBJECT LESSON:

Jacob Bromwell

Flour Sifter

WHAT TO KNOW: In 1819, young

Baltimore entrepreneur Jacob

Bromwell gathered his wire looms

and headed west. Once settled in

the growing city of Cincinnati, he

launched The Bromwell Brush and

Wire Goods Co., the country’s fi rst

known manufacturer of tin and

stainless steel goods, including the

world’s fi rst fl our sifter—identifi ed

by its wood-knobbed crank and

four-wire agitator. Two hundred

years later, while the decorative

details of the sifter have varied

(from its colorful knobs in the early

1900 s, pictured here, to kitschy

painted varieties in the 1970 s and

’80s), its basic design and manu-

facturing processes have remained

virtually unchanged. After several

splits and sales, the now-Indiana-

based company relaunched in

2010 as Jacob Bromwell.

WHAT IT’S WORTH:

$5 to $40

Copper Flask

Handcrafted of solid

copper with an American

Birch stopper, this is

touted as the “world’s

original fl ask.”

Popcorn Popper

The classic long-handled

tool has been popping

kernels above open fl ames

and stovetops for two

centuries.

Tin Cup

Throughout the Civil

War, the company

supplied both Armies

with their stamped,

handcrafted tin cups.

Pie Plate

Legend has it these

aluminum pie plates—or

pans—were used to pan

for gold during the 1848

California Gold Rush.

FIELD NOTES

American

Heirlooms

All introduced in 1819,

these American-made

Jacob Bromwell classics

have remained in

continuous production.

READER DISCOUNT!
ENTER CODE “COUNTRY
LIVING20” FOR 20%
OFF SITEWIDE AT
JACOBBROMWELL.COM.
ILL

US

TR

AT

IO

NS

BY

M

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IN

DA

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produced by JENNIFER KOPF photograph by BRIAN WOODCOCK