The Armstrong Perc-O-Toaster & The Forgotten Art of Table Cooking

A century ago, consumers in the United States were finding new and exciting ways to use electricity in their homes. Among them were small electric cooking gadgets that could be used anywhere they could be plugged in, freeing cooking from the kitchen and bringing it directly to the dining room table. This is the story of the Armstrong Perc-o-toaster and the forgotten art of table cooking.
Sources
“Local Department,” The Union County Journal, Jul 20, 1899
“The Auto Craze,” The Wayne Republican, Aug 7, 1901
“What Has Become of the Bicycle Craze?” The Atlanta Constitution, Apr 11, 1902
“Business is Branching Out,” Marysville Journal-Tribune, Jan 26, 1904
“Local Department,” The Union County Journal, Feb 11, 1904
“Table Cooking by Electricity,” The Missoula Sentinel, Aug 14, 1911
“Standard Electric Table Stove,” New-York Tribune, Jun 10, 1917
“Electric Dining Room Appeals to Housewives,” The Buffalo Times, Apr 6, 1920
“Get the Dining Tables Wired!,” Electrical Merchandising, May 1921
“Modern Breakfast Table,” The Record, May 16, 1923
“Sets Stand of Hospitality,” S.E. Devenish, The News-Democrat, Oct 21, 1923
“Getting the Most Out of Your Electric Table Devices,” Ethel Wan-Ressel Chantler, The Ladies Home Journal, May 1926
“Perc-O-Toaster!” The Emporia Gazette, Oct 26, 1928
“Convenience and Charm in Table Appliances,” The Portsmouth Star, Mar 20, 1930
“Electrical Conveniences,” Porterville Record, Nov 4, 1930
“Petition in Bankruptcy for Armstrong Appliance,” The News Journal, Aug 8, 1931
“Receiver for the Armstrong,” Marysville Journal-Tribune, Aug 19, 1931
“Armstrong Appliance Corp.,” The Knoxville Journal, Oct 11, 1931
“The Etiquette of Table Cookery,” Phyllis Kraft Dunning, The Ladies Home Journal, Sep 1932
“Electric Table Service Saves,” Electrical West, Apr 1934
“Local Activities Promote Small Appliance Sales,” Electrical Wholesaling, Jun 1934
“Institute to Promote Small Appliance Market,” Electrical World, Dec 8, 1934
“Armstrong Marks 50th Anniversary,” Electrical Merchandising, Jul 1949
Armstrong Products Corporation, 1949
“The Bicycle Boom and the Bicycle Bloc: Cycling and Politics in the 1890s,” Michael Taylor, Indiana Magazine of History, Sep 2008

[@craigsawyer6453]

When I was little we had a house with a breakfast nook. In the center back wall, just above the table top was an outlet. Sadly, I was far too young for the perc-o-toaster, but most likely that was the intended purpose. I imagine the children that first lived in the house, coming down before school, and making their breakfast on such a device. I had clients in their late nineties, that had a butlers table in the dining room with appliances at the ready, to make their breakfast a special treat every day. Perhaps if one grew up with such conveniences there would be a reluctance to give them up. I would ditch the smart phone for good conversation, and a nice hot breakfast meal. Perhaps some inventor will introduce the "smart table" that has built in appliances, and cooks everything to perfection; with out popping circuit breakers, scorching fingers, or burning down the house.

[@MoonMonkeyMCM]

Your images just make it. I think these are the best looking videos on UA-cam.

[@thevintagecompany]

Thank you!! Finding vintage ads and images is one of my favorite parts of making these videos. 😊