These photos were taken Saturday at my wife's family reunion in Warda:

The Lutheran church had a nice layout of smoking pits:



And then, about fifty feet to the rear of the pits, was this thing:



?

I got to talking to some folks and didn't climb up on it to look inside and figure out exactly what this thing is/ what it does.

Thoughts?





[This message has been edited by jagvocate (edited 6/27/2011 10:50a).]

Massive bean pot?

Makes charcoal?

I'm guessing that there are rails in there to set rods w/ sausage links on them. Poorboy smokehouse.

Witch cooker?

2nd pic is used to make the coals. Use long shovels to load the pits in the first pic with coals.

[This message has been edited by confucius_ag (edited 6/27/2011 11:11a).]

vampire prison?

confucius got it right

It's definitely the coal maker. Notice the wood pile in the background.

its just a big firebox with a screen on the inside. As the wood burns the small coals fall to the bottom. Coals are then scooped up from the bottom and placed in the big pits. Most KC halls or church picnic places have this type of set up..... at least in the south central part of texas.

I think it is a German/Bohunk thing.

Thank you--that explains the 12-foot handle shovels that I saw neatly stacked on one of the pits.

quote:

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Most KC halls or church picnic places have this type of set up

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They sure do