When I first started working and carrying a lunch, the current available lunch carrier was either a paper bag or a metal box.  The metal boxes had a round top where a small thermos could be carried.  The thermos would hold hot or cold liquid.  (It was not wise to put both in at the same time.)

 

Many workmen became very imaginative about the use and design of their lunch box.  For instance one of the first innovations I saw was a change in the thermos carrying portion of a metal lunch box.  The thermos size wasn’t large enough for some guys.  They would open up the end of one side of the box so that it would accommodate a longer thermos inside.

 

I mentioned previously about the guy that installed a “hot-plate” in his lunch box.  He took the heating element out of a clothes iron and installed it in his box.  He put a metal plate on top of it and fed the plug and cord outside the box.  He would put a cup of soup and a sandwich on it and fifteen minutes before lunch his box-lunch would get plugged in.  I wondered what he would do with his fruit or metal eating utensils, but it worked for him.  At lunch time, he had a hot meal.

 

I expect an electrician could have added a thermostat to the arrangement, but I never heard that anyone did.

 

When I first started hiring employees, I encouraged them to bring a lunch and not go out to a fast food place.  My feeling was that a healthier lunch helps you think more clearly, and promotes continued high production for the full 8 hour day.

 

After a few years you couldn’t buy a metal lunch box anymore.  Now they are all made of “melt-able” materials.  However with new technology you can get a lunch box that will keep your food warm in the winter and cool in the summer.

 

I have also seen the next iteration of that old “heated” lunch box.  You can now purchase a lunch box that works off of a 12 volt system to provide heating or cooling.

 

I wanted to buy one for each of my men, … but they weren’t inexpensive enough.