Cast Iron Kettle, Dutch Oven/Pot No. 3, 8 quart with the Star makers mark. Won July 05, 2013 on ebay for $29.80 plus shipping $19.52 from Jerome, Idaho. The seller is a retired Army veteran miasoldstuff. He and I believe it is a un-marked Griswold Erie. Note the bails ears as they are exactly like marked Eries.
He advertised it as: On lid the outside edge of the lip is 10″ diameter & the inside is 9 1/2″. It weights 3 lbs 8 oz. The kettle is 6 3/4″ with inside of 9 5/8″ & outside of 10 1/8″. It weights 8 lbs 3 oz. A total of almost 12 lbs.
Seller said: “I bought the pot from the estate of a cast iron collector. I cannot not recall the name. He lived in Jerome, Idaho & had hundreds of cast iron cookware pieces & many other cast irons collectables.”
From Ramblings on Cast Iron:
“Maslin pans originated in Britain, as “grain pots” for brewing purposes (mashing malt or boiling wort). They were also used for making porridge, marmalade, jam, preserves, and candy. The pan slopes outward, to allow for faster evaporation while still fitting on the burner.”
A forum member who has the same pot found clues that it might be an early Lodge when the foundary was known as the Blacklock Foundary. Lodges web site’s Our History page begins with; “Nestled alongside the Cumberland Plateau of the Appalachian Mountains is the town of South Pittsburg, Tennessee (population 3,300). It was here that Joseph Lodge and his wife settled and, in 1896 opened his first foundry. Originally named The Blacklock Foundry after Joseph Lodge’s friend and minister, the company gained success until May of 1910 when it burned down. Just three months later and a few blocks south, the company was reborn as Lodge Manufacturing Company.”
From GCICA’s web site – “In 1896 Joseph Lodge founded a company named Blacklock Foundry in South Pittsburg, Tennessee for the manufacture of cast iron hollow ware. After a fire in 1910, the foundry was moved and rebuilt. The business was renamed and incorporated as Lodge Manufacturing Company. [This information was corrected by Carolyn Kellermann Millhiser great grand daughter of Joseph Lodge.]”