Antique plate warmer

[miamiheat]

My mother has a old plate warmer with area for hot water to underneath plate which is conected and it also has a stainless steel domed cover with steam plug (cover has crusaders stainless L & G Mfg. Co.). Just curious if anyone knows anything about this item. Thanks for your help.

[talesofthesevenseas]

Can you post some photos please of both the item and any manufacturers markings?

[KC]

Warmer plates are very collectible!  still very usable!  Is the cavity that you put the hot water in under the plate made of ceramics or metal?  (Ceramics are more valuable.)  Cant believe there aren't any markings!  Please take a pic of the underside!

They even make warmers for tea pots (same principle - putting hot water in a ceramic cradle that hold the pot).

Any markings at all on the warmer itself?

Here is an example of a Chinese one - you can readily see the spout to accept the hot water.

http://cgi.ebay.ie/ANTIQUE-VICTORIAN-BLUE-AND-WHITE-WARMING-PLATE-2HANDLED-/290403263826
http://www.tias.com/12139/PictPage/1922458575.html

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Antique-Plate-Warmer-depicting-Struwwelpeter-/300406614113

[miamiheat]

If you look real close you can see the spout were the water goes in and it also has a stainless steel screw on top, the whole underneith is stainless steel, with talking to my mother who is 89 she said it was been around for about 80 years, maybe that is why there are no markings on the bottom, possibly worn off if that is possible. The only markings found were on the cover which could have been from another item and just used to keep the food warmer my mother was not sure on that.  Thank you for any input you can give me, it is greatly appreciated.

[KC]

What I could find on L & G Mfg Company

Two French immigrants, Charles Lalance and Florian Grosjean started producing agate ware between 1863 and 1870. Lalance and Grosjean opened their doors in Woodhaven New York, located in south west Queens. The two helped to turn a farm community into a manufacturing town employing over 2,100 people. Agate ware was only one of the products the company produced. They were well known for improving the process of tin stamping. Of other notoriety L & G Manufacturing made mess kits for the Spanish-American War.

Grosjean managed the factory and had several company houses built to accommodate French workers who immigrated to work in his company. Houses were built in all of the communities hosting an L & G factory. Chicago, Boston, Harrisburg, and New York were all sites for L & G Manufacturing. In New York, the company had 2,100 workers on an eleven acre plot. Harrisburg was the feder steel mill for all of the other L & G Manufacturing sights.

As times and business changed L & G Manufacturing became the world's leader in tin stamping for almost a century. After World War II sales began to drop and the factory closed in 1955. In 1984 most of the plant portion of the property was demolished and turned into a mall with the factory clock tower remaining as the mall centerpiece.

[ironlord1963]

    Would the fact that it is stainless steel, date the item to the post war years, late 40's and on.  I'm not exactly sure when stainless was first made and used but it is what killed the silverplate after the war.  The style of plate looks to be 30's or 40's but that would just be a guess on that.

[KC]

I don't believe that I would put the pair together myself.

The top is typically made for hotels, room service, etc.  Not typically an item that you would find in one's home.

Possibly from the Crusader Hotel!? 
http://www.moma.org/collection/browse_results.php?artistFilterInitial=X&criteria=O%3ACL%3AI%3A3&page_number=166&template_id=1&sort_order=1