THE ENGINEERED KITCHEN — c1917

Sill Stove Works

Sterling Range [Illustrated Promotional Booklet]

Rochester, New York: Sill Stove Works, [c. 1915–1920]. SELLING THE KITCHEN RANGE AS A PIECE OF MODERN ENGINEERING.
Rather than relying solely on appearance, the booklet sells the range through engineering—explaining combustion, airflow, oven construction, heat distribution, fuel economy, and patented components.

A MODERN RANGE FOR A MODERN HOME —
The cover makes the memorable claim that a Sterling Range ‘Bakes a Barrel of Flour with One Hod of Coal.’ Inside, cutaway illustrations show how the stove directs heat around the oven, while the text describes a range constructed from 449 individual pieces and developed over fifteen years.

SELLING SCIENCE IN THE KITCHEN —
The booklet presents cooking as a technical problem solved through controlled combustion and efficient circulation. A cutaway diagram explains the patented Sterling flue system, while other illustrations show the grate, firebox, oven, and circulation plates. The last page lists four Sterling Range sizes and concludes with an equally direct sales argument: ‘A Poor Stove is Not Cheap at Any Price.’

PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS
+++ Small octavo promotional booklet measuring approximately 3.6 by 6 inches. 12 pages, including wrappers, staple-bound.
+++ Illustrated throughout in black and white with images of Sterling ranges, cutaway mechanical views, diagrams of patented components, Sterling trademarks, and decorative typography.
+++ Front wrapper bears a retailer's imprint for John Sutton Estate, 17 Broad Street, Red Bank, N.J. Manufacturer identified internally as Sill Stove Works, Rochester, N.Y., U.S.A., with Boston and Chicago also listed.
+++ Rear interior advertisement gives model numbers K-71, K-81, K-82, and K-92 with griddle and oven dimensions.

CONDITION: NEAR FINE. CLEAN AND WELL PRESERVED. Light general age toning and minor handling wear. Wrappers show modest rubbing and faint soiling. Interior pages remain clean and readily legible, with illustrations sharp and well defined.
Stapled binding remains intact.

HISTORICAL: SIGNIFICANCE: ENGINEERING THE AMERICAN KITCHEN—FROM FIREBOX TO MACHINE.
The Sterling booklet documents the transformation of the kitchen range from a comparatively simple iron stove into an engineered household appliance. Its advertising emphasizes patented construction, controlled combustion, even heat, durability, and fuel economy—the same language of technological improvement increasingly used to market other household equipment.

Sill Stove Works was a substantial Rochester manufacturer. Contemporary Rochester sources document the company manufacturing stoves and ranges on Oak Street and describe Sterling Stoves and Ranges as its standard nationally distributed brand. 

ONE HOD OF COAL —
Dating evidence comes from the booklet's distinctive advertising claim that the range could bake a barrel of flour with one hod of coal. A 1917 advertisement for Sill Stove Works uses essentially the identical claim for ‘The Famous Sterling Range,’ providing strong contemporary evidence for dating this undated booklet to approximately the same period.

GENRES: Trade Catalogues, Advertising Ephemera, Appliance Advertising, Domestic Ephemera, Illustrated Advertising, Manufacturers' Literature

SUBJECTS: Sterling Range, Sill Stove Works, Cooking Stoves, Coal Ranges, Kitchen Appliances, Domestic Technology, Rochester New York, Stove Design, American Kitchens

Item #22558

Price: $35.00