Vintage Sunbeam Kitchen Appliances

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During the mid 1900's, Sunbeam was the leading manufacture of kitchen appliances.   Sunbeam was at the cutting edge in advances with all of their products.   By the mid 1950's most kitchens had a electric coffee maker, electric toaster, electric mixer and maybe an electric waffle maker or an egg cooker and a large share had the Sunbeam name on them.   Sometime in the late 1950's Sunbeam introduced a line of appliances under the name of "Vista".   This line was the Sunbeam economy line of products. 

Many Sunbeam kitchen appliances made more than 50 years ago can still be found in a working kitchen today.    New kitchen appliances have a short life span and are designed to be replaced, not repaired!

In our kitchen you will find a Sunbeam toaster from the 1940's, a Sunbeam Mixmaster from the 1950's, a Sunbeam CoffeeMaster from the 1940's & 1950's, a Sunbeam fryer/cooker from the 1950's, a Sunbeam fryer/skillet from the 1950's and a Sunbeam egg cooker from the 1940's and they are used on a regular basis.   If any of these appliances were to ever fail, they can be adjusted and or repaired, but after more than 50 years of service the odds of failure is still very slim. 

Sunbeam manufactured many other products for the consumer like, electric clothing irons, electric baby bottle warmers, electric shavers, lawn mower, power tools and more....   Click here to view our collection of other Sunbeam items.

To view the Vintage Sunbeam Kitchen products, Click on one of the groups below

 [ Coffee Makers ]      [ Egg cookers ]      [ Mixers 1930 - 1967 ]      [ Toasters ]

[ Waffle Makers ]       [ Fryers, Cookers, Skillets & More ..... ]

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A Brief Summary of the Sunbeam Name

  In the early 1890's the Chicago Flexible Shaft Co. was formed in Chicago, Illinois by John K. Stewart and Thomas J. Clark, to manufacture mechanical horse clippers and sheep shearers.  Between 1908 and 1936, Chicago Flexible Shaft operated as a subsidiary of Wm. Cooper & Nephews, an English company.   During this time, the company began to manufacture a variety of electrical appliances, including irons, mixers, coffeemakers, and toasters under the Sunbeam name.   The first Sunbeam product was the electric clothes iron and was introduced in 1910 as the "IronMaster".   In 1925, Sunbeam hired a young engineer named, Ivan Jepson (1902-1965) who headed up the engineering, design & development during his time with Sunbeam.    It is believed by many that Ivan is the main reason for so many successful Sunbeam products in the 1930's thru the 1960's.

In 1946, the company changed it name, it became known as the Sunbeam Corporation, with annual sales of about $15 million. After World War II, when it continued to introduce new appliances, Sunbeam employed over 1,000 people at the West Roosevelt Road plant.

A controlling interest was acquired in the firm of John Oster in 1960 and the Oster products continued to be manufactured under the Oster name.

Sunbeam continued to expand outside of Chicago. By the end of the 1970s, as the leading American manufacturer of small appliances, Sunbeam enjoyed about $1.3 billion in annual sales and employed nearly 30,000 people worldwide.

In 1981, after Sunbeam was bought by Allegheny International Inc. of Pittsburgh, its Chicago-area factories were closed and the headquarters moved from the Chicago region. Under the management of Albert J. Dunlap, Sunbeam went into decline through the 1990s. Dunlap was fired and the company filed for bankruptcy protection in 2001.

In 2002 Sunbeam emerged as a private company under the name American Household, Inc. (AHI). Its former household products division became the subsidiary Sunbeam Products, Inc.

AHI was purchased in September 2004 by the Jarden Corporation, of which Sunbeam is now a subsidiary.  You will see the Sunbeam name on many products available today.  For example, the "Mr. Coffee" maker is now a Sunbeam product.   The Sunbeam products of today are manufactured outside of the United States.

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