Appliances Have Been Around For A Long Time

Published on
August 2, 2022 at 12:23:17 PM PDT August 2, 2022 at 12:23:17 PM PDTnd, August 2, 2022 at 12:23:17 PM PDT

The history of appliances in the United States likely goes back for as long as man has settled these shores. And maybe even back then, replacements parts for appliances were needed, too!

At least since the middle 1800s, Americans were becoming more domesticated and leading less pioneer lifestyles. So inventors and old-time entrepreneurs were trying to find out ways to store, cook and refrigerate food.

According to Wikipedia and lore, the first appliance to make its way into US homes was in the 1800s, after the first gas stove was patented. Even though some gas stoves were developed in the early 1800s, the development of gas pipes underground wasn’t as developed, so the innovation had to wait for the pipes to catch up. Stove in a real sense did not start to gain real traction with US homes until the 1880s.

The gas stove reigned as a luxury for the kitchen until Thomas Edison invented electricity in developing the electric lamp. Once Edison started his Edison Illuminating Company in 1882, he was able to start to apply his invention to other needs, like turning the has stove into the electric stove.

By the early 1900s, electric stoves were seen as more convenient than gas stoves, and became the more popular version of household cooking. The choice between both types of cooking and heating power has remained pretty steady over the years. Consumer Energy Center estimates that just about 58% of U.S. households cook with electricity today, but gas cooking stays popular, mainly due to its lower operating costs.

Another big appliance of our modern times is the refrigerator. For centuries, ice was used by humans to cool elements. But the modern electric refrigerator was patented in 1914. and an early leader in making refrigerators was Charles Leonard, who founded the Leonard Company. Lore has it that the famous Leonard "Cleanable" Refrigerator came to be after a pail of hot cooling lard was left inside an icebox in their home on top of a cake of ice, resulting in melted ice, a spilled pail and cooled lard spilled all over. Charles Leonard eventually created his refrigerator with removable liners and flues, parts today that still need replacing!

Appliance Parts Company may not be able to supply parts for your 1940s refrigerator, but we certainly have refrigerator replacement part for your GE fridge. Search for your replacement parts at our wide-ranging parts catalog at http://www.appliancepartscompany.com. We also offer a manufacturer’s resource list on our website that links directly to the manufacturer sites. You can check manufacturers’ sites by category, including air conditioning, appliances, faucets, range hoods and more.