From History Link thanks to Bob P.
n July 24, 1931, approximately 10,000 people — including Governor Roland Hartley (1864-1952) — attend the Lewis County Farmers and Merchants Picnic at Alexander Park in Chehalis to see what is billed as the world’s largest omelet cooked in the world’s largest frying pan. A good time is had by all.
The Plan and a Pan
Three years earlier, Chehalis received nationwide attention when the townsfolk baked what was billed as the World’s Largest Strawberry Shortcake. The 16-foot-high, 20-foot-long shortcake produced 4,000 slices of tasty delight at the annual Farmer’s Picnic. Buoyed by the success of that event, and egged on by Seattle Times cameraman James Dwyer, the town looked for another noteworthy edible that would garner even more publicity in 1931.
The Great Depression was in full swing, and local farms and businesses needed all the help they could get. Because there were so many chicken farmers in Lewis County, Chehalis opted to cook something egg-related. Chehalis promoters first planned on boiling 10,000 eggs, but decided this wasn’t interesting enough. They then settled on a 10,000-egg omelet, but what could they cook it in? It wasn’t as if anyone had an eight-foot-wide pan lying around the house. So they had to have one specially made.
The job was given to the F. S. Lang Stove Works in Seattle, which was happy to oblige. The giant utensil, weighing nearly half a ton, was shipped to Chehalis by truck. Photos of the pan being readied for transport, with local Seattle women dancing a tango on it, were published in newspapers and magazines across the country.
Wakey, Wakey, Eggs and Bakey
On the morning of July 24, 1931, approximately 10,000 people showed up for the annual picnic in Alexander Park — a record crowd for the summertime event. Festivities started at 11:30 a.m. with an egg-cracking contest. Nineteen women vied to see who could crack a caseload of 30 dozen eggs the fastest, without leaving any shells in the yolk. The winner, Mrs. Al Blair, accomplished the task in 12 minutes.
To ready the skillet for cooking, it needed to be greased. To accomplish this, Thora Yeager (1907-2006) attached a giant slab of bacon to each of her feet and skated around the pan. She maintained her balance by using one of the long wooden spatulas that would later be used to stir the eggs.
Yeager’s performance was one of the most photographed events of the day. She smiled for numerous newspaper reporters, as well as for anyone who brought his or her own camera. Universal Studios and Fox Movietone News were also there to film the event for its newsreels.