There's some controversy in the cast iron community about identifying Birmingham Stove & Range pans from their Red Mountain series. A gray area exists between "late Red Mountain" era cast iron pans and "early Century Cookware" pans, and it can be difficult to tell which of your BS&R pans are from either of these periods. Of course, this matters the most to historians, perfectionists, and folks who are obsesed with cast iron -- like myself. Nonetheless, I hope this video provides some useful information to folks who own these great cast iron pans, which date anywhere from the 1940s to the 1960s.

This video is the result of research into a question that shows often on the cast iron groups: "Is this pan a 'late Red Mountain' or an 'early Century'?" This is my answer to that question, and what this video says can be considered a theory -- not absolute and verified truth. This is based on the 1954 "Century Cookware" catalog, which reveals some interesting information: namely, that catalog does not include a listing fora size #12 skillet. I don't know the reason why that particular pan is not included in the catalog. However, it's possible to make a reasonable guess (or I hope it's reasonable), and the result is this theory:

Why did BS&R rename their entire line from Red Mountain to Century Cookware? Obnviously it was a marketing move, done with the intention of increasing revenue. At that time they consolidated their catalog, and listed only the cast iron pieces they were producing at the time. This meant certain pieces had been discontinued, including the #12 skillet...and the #10 dutch oven, as well. Why were these pieces discontinued? The most likely reason would be those pieces didn't sell well enough. They were definitely producing the #14 skillet, and also the #12 dutch oven, and both of these pieces were listed in the catalog. But apparently they were not producing the #10 dutch oven and the #12 skillet.

However, in 1966 the company greatly expanded and began DISA automated production. This vastly increased their output and the number of pans they were producing increased exponentially. So, in order to fulfil their new increased production quota, the #12 skillet and #10 dutch oven were put back into production.

What does all of this means? I think it means the majority of #12 skillets and #10 dutch ovens being sold as "Red Mountain" are in fact Century pans, produced after automated production began in 1966. I'm not saying there are no pans of those sizes from the Red Mountain series out ther. Based on this theory, it leads to the conclusion that genuine Red Mountain #12 skillets and #10 dutch ovens were very rare.

Information about Birmingham Stove & Range cast iron: http://www.modemac.com/bsr

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