Waffle Iron

Below are various tidbits regarding waffle irons. Rather than copy lists of Essential Kitchen Utensils let me just say I saw the waffle iron mentioned in most lists. I also found they were sometimes listed under the heading of tin-ware for the kitchen, again a list of what most kitchens need. I've searched for an image of the waffle iron but haven't been able to find one from a 19th Century publication. My mom has one that is in much better shape than the picture I found on the internet but check this one out. It is made with cast iron and wooden handles. Here's the link to the photo.

A new waffle-iron is made of aluminum, and it appears to be one of the successes of that light and valuable metal, many of the possibilities of which are still a problem which the future must solve. This waffle-iron is upon the same principle as the fritter-mold, from whose products multitudes were fed at the German village in the World's Fair. The waffle-iron requires for accessories a pan of boiling lard on the stove, and a dish of batter conveniently close to it. The iron is dipped into the lard first, then plunged quickly halfway down into the batter, and immediately into the lard again. In less than a minute, with a slight tap on the back of the iron, the golden-brown, crisp and appetizing pastry is dropped on a plate.
Source: Home Furnishings Review ©1896

The wholesale price of waffle irons in 1884 was, No. 8, $7.20 per dozen; in 1890, $6.40; today they are sold at $5.60. Other goods have been reduced in the same ratio, and this reduction is not being checked by the McKinley bill being in force, which we expected would check the lower tendency. \Ve mean others thought so, not us, for it is as we expected.
Source: Bulletin-United States Congress ©1894