The Latrobe Stove, also known as a "Baltimore Heater", was a coal-fired parlor heater made of cast iron and fitted into fireplaces as an insert. It served both as a heater and a stove. They were patented in 1846
and were very popular by the 1870s. The squat device was invented by
John Hazelhurst Boneval Latrobe (1803–1891). He was the son of noted engineer and architect
Benjamin Henry Latrobe II. Latrobe became a patent lawyer and was shy about taking credit for his stoves which succeeded
Benjamin Franklin
Benjamin Franklin ( April 17, 1790) was an American polymath who was active as a writer, scientist, inventor, statesman, diplomat, printer, publisher, and political philosopher. Encyclopædia Britannica, Wood, 2021 Among the leading inte ...
's much larger
Franklin stove.
In 1980 there were a small number of antique stove restorers but most old stoves were used for decoration or as planters.
References
{{Reflist
Further reading
* ''Iron Men and Their Dogs'' Baltimore: 1941 by Ferdinand Claiborne Latrobe
* A History of Hayward And Friend, 1837-1840, Stovemakers.
American inventions
1846 introductions
Fireplaces