Posted 2 months ago
man_of_the…
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This old thing dominates my living room. How might an individual, such as myself, who is inclined to learn about this piece of art figure out its history?
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If you will edit your photos dimensions a tad then repost the edited versions, they will show up correctly oriented. Thats about all I can help you with, assuming you have already Googled the name on the stove itself.
Hi, man_of_the_woodlands. :-)
I see that you found a twin of your wood stove here at CW S&T:
https://www.collectorsweekly.com/stories/112952-old-berkshire-woodstove
Google Lens finds other twins, but this one had some interesting text to accompany it:
*snip*
Apparently this is a Fisher Mama Bear (patented) wood stove, with two doors.
*snip*
https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/have-you-ever-seen-a-berkshire-fisher.171682/
About another hearth dot com twin:
*snip*
It's an old unlisted stove .
*snip*
https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/berkshire-woodstove.195963/
So, I don't know if "Berkshire" was a 'badge' name for a Fisher Mama Bear stove, or a Fisher Mama Bear 'clone' made by some other company.
FWIW, "Berkshire" seems to be a name trademarked in the stove industry not all that far back:
https://trademarks.justia.com/732/53/berkshire-73253022.html
Hi again, man_of_the_woodlands. :-)
I did some more looking into this, and "unlisted" seems to be short-hand for "not listed by UL (Underwriters Laboratories):
https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/old-unlisted-vs-new-unlisted-stoves.15677/
As to that one hearth dot com twin being described as a Fisher Mama Bear, to me it looks more like a Fisher Grandma or Grandpa Bear (because of its size and the double doors):
https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/fisher-grandma-and-grandpa-bear-details-fireplace-series.69448/
Of concern how it was installed (not to mention when and where). It looks like it was installed flush with an exterior wall.
Here is some general information:
https://chimneylinerdepot.com/diy-central/stoves/wood-stoves/wood-stove-clearances/
Here are the standards in Oregon:
https://www.portland.gov/bds/stoves-inserts-chimneys/how-determine-if-your-wood-stove-or-fireplace-listed-and-labeled
Here are the recommendations in Maine:
https://www.maine.gov/dps/fmo/sites/maine.gov.dps.fmo/files/inline-files/standardsfor_solidfuel_stoves.pdf
man_of_the_woodlands, I think I owe you an apology. :-(
In reading back, I realize that I used a couple of terms that you might not be familiar with, and that's understandable, because they're typically used in connection with vintage sewing machines.
When I wrote "badge," I was alluding to a practice in the sewing machine industry of yore wherein a manufacturer would put a name requested by a customer on a sewing machine head. It wouldn't be the name of the manufacturer, nor would it necessarily be the name of the customer, either. It simply would be the customer's choice.
Probably the most famous example would be Kenmore. I think most people know that name, and associate it with Sears, but the reality is that a wide variety of manufacturers made Kenmore appliances for Sears over the years.
The other possibly unfamiliar term I used was "clone."
There used to be a wide-spread practice of sewing machine manufacturers making copies of a popular sewing machine model.
Probably the most famous example is the Singer model 15 sewing machine head.
It was widely copied, especially by Japanese manufacturers in the 1950s. These Singer model 15 clones frequently were superior to the original, because they makers made improvements, so the term "clone" isn't entirely accurate. A lot of the Japanese copies were neither exactly like the original nor were they shoddy knockoffs.
What does all of this have to do with your wood stove?
I don't know. I'm definitely not an expert, but it seems possible that your stove is a copy of one of Fisher's patented "Bear" family of stoves.
Here is Fisher's design patent:
https://patents.google.com/patent/USD237798S/en
Here is a reddit thread in which somebody knowledgeable helps a Fisher stove owner:
https://www.reddit.com/r/woodstoving/comments/10agcnf/help_me_identify_this_stove_and_point_me_to_safe/?rdt=43586
Here's an additional link horse you..
https://www.wainfleetradingpost.com/pages/fisher-wood-stove-history-specifications
Just some observations..the hearth doesn't look up to code. And it appears you have wood blocks under it? Hopefully those are brick, not wood as these stoves can reach high temperatures. Additionally there doesn't seem to be a proper seal around the stove? This could cause carbon monoxide to leak into the room. I would definitely invest in a C O detector.
Not sure where 'horse' came from lol. We cannot edit comments
man_of_the_woodlands, I think dav2no1 made some valuable observations.
It's a beautiful stove, but you could have some code compliance problems, and you'd do well to look into them.
Here is more information about Fisher stoves (because I suspect that what you have a copy of one):
https://www.wainfleetradingpost.com/pages/fisher-wood-stove-history-specifications
D'oh! As dav2no1 already pointed out, we can't edit our comments, otherwise I'd edit my previous one to remove the link he's already provide.
Here are a few more links to information about UL listing, and stove installations:
https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/how-to-tell-if-fisher-is-u-l-certified.131515/
https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/ul-listing-question.169042/
https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/our-old-fisher-stoves-illegal-in-which-states.184113/
man_of_the_woodlands, A few more tidbits.
A search of the USPTO trademark database yielded a company name for that 1980s-ish Berkshire stove trademark:
*snip*
Owner Name:
Enerex Corporation
Owner Address:
150 New Britain Ave.
Unionville, CONNECTICUT UNITED STATES 06085
*snip*
https://tsdr.uspto.gov/#caseNumber=73253022
There is a more modern stove vendor that uses a trademarked (i.e., TM) Berkshire name for one of their lines, but it's for gas stoves. I didn't see that one in the USPTO database.
You might want to contact them for more information:
https://www.lopistoves.com/contact/
Finally, checking your stove installation for code compliance isn't just about keeping government happy, it's about your own safety.
Good luck. :-)