Antique coffee grinders were typically made in the late 1800s to the early 1900s, and they were often made of cast iron, wood, or ceramic. They were hand-cranked, and the coffee beans were ground between two metal burrs. The ground coffee was collected in a drawer or container below the burrs. There are many different types of antique coffee grinders, including wheel grinders, wall-mounted grinders, and stove-top grinders.
| Most Popular Antique Coffee Grinders | |
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Arcade Coffee Grinders & Mills Antique coffee grinders made by Arcade Manufacturing Inc. between 1885 and 1945 |
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Enterprise Coffee Grinders & Mills The world famous antique coffee grinders originally made by the Enterprise Mfg Company of PA. |
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Landers, Frary & Clark Coffee Grinders & Mills Hard-to-find coffee grinders and mills made by the legend in household goods. |
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Charles Parker Coffee Grinders & Mills Buy coffee mills made over 100 years ago by the Charles Parker Company. |
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Peugeot Grinders & Mills Peugeot started making coffee mills about 150 years ago. |
My love of coffee and antique coffee grinders started at a small local coffee shop at Lake Tahoe. It was more than 10 years ago, but I still remember the aroma of coffee that was so soothing on a cold winter night. There was no one in the coffee shop other than us. The owner of the store showed us various collections of his antique coffee grinders and coffee mills displayed on the wall.
I thought they were old fashioned coffee grinders just for display. But I was wrong. The owner took a bag of coffee beans and started grinding them in a wall mount coffee grinder that looked kinda dirty on the outside. He assured us that it is clean inside, but honestly I was a little skeptical :) Thinking back from now, I think it was one of the Arcade coffee grinders, but sure.
The cup of coffee the owner of the coffee shop made for us was just perfect. It was so perfect that my wife and I promised each other that we would travel back to Lake Tahoe just for that cup of coffee. I know it wasn’t just the coffee that gave that perfect taste. I was sure that the antique coffee grinder he used was a big part of that out-of-the-world coffee taste and aroma.
He had at least 20 vintage coffee grinders displayed on the wall and on the shelves. Ones on the shelves were wooden coffee grinders that I’ve never seen before. He didn’t really care about restoring them to their original condition. Many of them were obviously in poor condition.
Anyway, that was my little story how I got my interest in antique coffee grinders. I’m not an expert, I tell you. But I’m learning as much as I can so that I can start my own collection. On this blog, I’m going to share with my findings and good deals on antique coffee grinders and coffee mills on the web, especially on eBay, so that you don’t have to. You will be able to purchase them if you like them.
If you have a grinder that needs to be identified and appraised, just send me the details and the photos. I will post your grinder pictures so that other experts can help you. Also, don’t forget to check out the coffee grinders for sale pages below.
Enjoy your stay!