6/6/2012 - Floyd

In 2011 I travelled to Clanton, AL to attend a funeral.  A good friend of mine had lost his brother.  The local Baptist church was packed to the rafters to honor the deceased.

After the service I decided to tour downtown Clanton.   If you’ve been to Clanton you know this would not take long.  My wife and I find it hard to pass up antique stores.  These also go by the names of Flea Market, Collectibles, Junk Emporium and “Antiques and Upholstery”.  The last was what I found in downtown Clanton.

What the sign said was true.  It was about half antiques and half an upholstery shop.  Talk about diversification.  Anyway, I started looking around and found a dirty piece of machinery on the floor that looked familiar.  It was one half of an antique coffee grinder.  A few feet away I found the other half.  The price was reasonable so I made the purchase and loaded it in my car.  It weighed about 60 pounds.

Manufactured by Hobart in 1923, this model 2040 has a large electric motor attached to the grinding mechanism (burrs).  A large hopper sits on the top where whole bean coffee is loaded.  A dial moves the burrs together or apart depending on the coarseness of the grind.  The serial number was very intact so I went to the Hobart website to see if it was listed.  Not only was it listed, it had a photocopy of the original bill of sale from 1923!

From the picture you can tell it cleaned up well.  The ground coffee drops into the metal container under the shoot.  Presently at our roasting facility, this grinder will move from location to location for others to view.

So where did the name Floyd come from?  The name was picked to honor the deceased:  Floyd Collins.  Sitting next to the grinder in the picture is my good friend, Royce Collins, Floyd’s youngest brother.

<-- Go Back