In 1926 our product showroom featured the latest in plumbing fixtures. We’ve managed to track down a piece or two from this era and will publish photos in an upcoming post.

Some items of interest:

Claw foot bath tub - Although it's hard to tell for sure from the photo, this is most likely a solid porcelain claw foot tub, rather than cast iron enameled, which is more common today. (Kelly Supply sells enameled cast iron tubs from Toto.) Here's some interesting background on solid porcelain tubs, found at vintageplumbing.com:

In the late 1870s and early 1880s, American sanitary ceramic ware manufacturers figured out how to cast and fire heavy solid earthenware bathroom fixtures such as bathtubs and sinks, and have them hold their shape in the process. As a result, the top companies in America began to offer solid porcelain bathtubs in the 1880s. These tubs were made of a tan fireclay or earthenware material and coated in glossy white glaze with walls and bottom 3-4" thick. There is no metal in these tubs to give them their shape. These fixtures never suffer from rusty and chipped drain holes, and the finish is pure glass. You cannot scour the shine away with Ajax or Comet. These tubs shine like the finish is 2" deep.

High tank, pull-chain toilets, sitting next to the more modern low tank design. A holdover from the Victorian era, high tank toilets remained in fashion decades into the 1900's.

These one-piece porcelain sinks with work space and a deep, utilitarian basin are often referred to as "farm sinks" or "apron sinks". Although finding these vintage sinks intact is extremely difficult today, they remain in demand for those wishing to remodel their house with antique fixtures or restore an old home to it's original style. Vintage farm sinks in decent condition can sell for thousands of dollars, and farm sinks in good to excellent condition can go for twice as much!

Question for our readers? Any idea what this piece might be? A laundry basin of some kind? A bidet? If you have any information, please leave us a comment!

As mentioned above, these vintage items are in great demand by designers and home decorators wishing to re-create and re-furbish vintage homes. Check out http://www.vintageplumbing.com for all kinds of info, including the prices these pieces can go for. Very interesting, and surprising stuff!