Waffle Iron Still Trusty After 63 Years

CEDAR RAPIDS - Mary Martin has no idea how many coffee makers, toasters and electric skillets have graced her kitchen in the last 60 years. But she knows only one waffle iron has - the shiny, chrome, "Flying Saucer" shaped "Westinghouse Electric Waffle Iron Signaling and Adjustomatic" that was a wedding gift in 1949.

Yep, 63 years later, Mary fires up the old waffle iron with its original ‘40s-style black and white electrical cord a couple of times a month. And, never, has it failed her.

"I haven't ever burned them, but I did get them a little crispy when I was doing something else," Mary says.

"The second one is always better," she adds. "I don't think it tastes better, it just looks better."

Speaking of appearance, General Electric introduced the first electric waffle iron in 1911. Once the electrical "bugs" were worked out, the emphasis was on appearance. This truly modern model was a gift from Mary's sister, Betty Price.

"Mother didn't have one," Mary says, "But she had one and I expressed a liking for it."

Mary grew up in Williamsburg and Ely as a hardworking farm girl, milking cows by hand, picking corn behind a horse-drawn wagon and shocking oats. She finished secretarial school in 1945, worked a couple of jobs, then secretly married Ernest Hurt in 1949 at the Little Brown Church near Nashua. Only their two witnesses knew about it until they returned and were then showered with gifts - dishes, towels, a fancy serving bowl that she still uses and the waffle iron.

"He liked whatever I fixed," Mary says. "Back then I would make waffles from a recipe. Now I just use a mix."

Ernest, who drove a Greyhound bus, died in 1957 after his third heart attack. In 1959 she married Bob Martin who took the new family - he had three children and they adopted two girls - to southern California in 1960. They returned to Cedar Rapids after eight years.

"I didn't want to raise those two little girls there," Mary says. "The traffic was heavy and the smog was horrible."

Bob worked 22 years for Rockwell Goss, retiring in 1990. "I'm pretty fortunate to have a wife like her," he says.

It's usually a Sunday morning when Mary pulls the waffle iron out of its original box, plugs it in, sets the thermostat between "3" and "4" (it goes to "5") and prepares the batter while it heats up. Then she pours the batter in, closes the lid and waits for the waffle iron to stop steaming.

Bob usually eats 2 1/2 waffles; Mary has 1 1/2. While Bob occasionally likes grape or strawberry jam, maple syrup is the topping of choice.

"A couple of the grandchildren," Mary laughs. "I made them for them and they had to have all of the squares filled with syrup."

Out of curiosity, knowing that she owns a working antique. Mary checked online to see if her Flying Saucer might be valuable. She found one for $9.95.

"I'm not going to spend my money yet," Mary laughs, figuring there's no reason to sell her old waffle iron. "It's been this loyal. It has no reason to quit on me now."