Alumni How a Home Economics Alum Put Pyrex on the Front Burner Stories You May Like Alum’s Brand Offers Tasty Treats—Safe from Common Allergens MVR to ‘Milkorno’: Fascinating Facts about Human Ecology on the Hill Human Ecology Alum Puts Consumer Products to the Test Cookware innovator Lucy Maltby 1921 also founded Corning’s famed test kitchen—and ran it for decades By Joe Wilensky It took a Cornell-educated home economist to turn Corning Glass Works’ pioneering Pyrex cookware into a kitchen staple. The products had already been on the market for more than a decade—and sales were stalling—when Lucy Maltby 1921 joined the company and spearheaded Pyrex’s rise as the 20th century’s quintessential cookware. Her role in the iconic product was so instrumental, in fact, that when she passed away in 1984, the company’s then-CEO observed that Corning’s cookware success was “due in no small part to Lucy Maltby’s unswerving adherence to integrity.” Maltby, a native of the firm’s hometown of Corning, NY, had worked there in a secretarial role while in high school. She earned a bachelor’s degree in home economics on the Hill followed by a master’s from Iowa State, where she researched the design and use of household and kitchen equipment. She was teaching home ec in Pennsylvania when she wrote to Corning in 1929—telling the company, among other things, that Pyrex was not kitchen-friendly enough. Rare and Manuscript CollectionsMaltby in the 1921 Cornellian. Maltby got a meeting, and opened her discussion with the executives (who, unsurprisingly for the time, were all male) by describing a litany of issues. Among them: Pyrex’s shapes were impractical; its small handles were difficult to grasp while using oven mitts or potholders; and its sizes didn’t jibe with many popular recipes—or with the era’s small ovens. Staffers put products through their paces in the test kitchen. Maltby had come prepared, with an armload of sketches of proposed solutions. She also suggested that Corning use applied home ec research to assess consumer needs, and to make customer feedback the core of its product development efforts. The meeting had turned into an interview, in which Maltby effectively created her own job. She was immediately hired. A 1931 design for a six-cup teapot, with a note in the corner: “Made for Dr. Maltby.” Maltby headed up a new home economics division—and within two years had launched Corning’s famed test kitchen, which she would run for more than three decades. Pyrex’s subsequent reign was largely due to Maltby. An official company history even notes that her consumer instinct was so strong that Corning executives’ first question about a potential product was often simply: “What does Lucy think?” Corning executives’ first question about a potential product was often simply: “What does Lucy think?” Perhaps surprisingly, though, Pyrex got its start not in the kitchen, but on the tracks: in the early 1900s, railroad workers found that the glass globes and lenses on their signaling lanterns often shattered when subjected to sudden temperature changes. Corning experimented with recipes, ultimately developing a borosilicate product, called Nonex, that reduced breakage by 60%. The company also developed it into a new line of laboratory glassware. Maltby (at left) consults with two Corning staffers in 1954, and men make a rare appearance in the test kitchen. A staff researcher wondered if it could also make good cookware; his wife had recently complained that an earthenware casserole dish broke after its second use. He brought home the sawed-off bottom of a battery jar, and the sponge cake she baked in it was praised for its uniformity and easy removal from the pan. Stories You May Like Alum’s Brand Offers Tasty Treats—Safe from Common Allergens MVR to ‘Milkorno’: Fascinating Facts about Human Ecology on the Hill Further experiments followed: French fries, steaks, and custards were prepared in modified battery jars and lamp chimneys. Reportedly, the final test was the triumphant creation of a baked Alaska. A 1945 ad cheered the products' convenience. Pyrex cookware was introduced in 1915, and by 1920 annual sales topped $3 million—about 25% of Corning’s total. But revenue dropped over the following decade, with the product seen more as a novelty or gift item than a household staple. Then Maltby wrote her fateful letter. “I was given an office, a secretary, and consumer letters to answer,” she recalled decades later, in an interview for an in-house oral history. “Corning had rather indefinite ideas as to what a home economist could do for the company. I had to be more or less of a self-starter.” Corning had rather indefinite ideas as to what a home economist could do. I had to be more or less of a self-starter. Editors at magazines like Ladies Home Journal, Good Housekeeping, and McCalls, along with cookbook authors, were soon traveling to Corning to see the new test kitchen and Maltby’s research results. It was under her direction that product sizes were standardized to better fit in modern ovens and refrigerators, and the now-iconic Pyrex measuring cups were introduced. Her consumer-first approach meant that large serving dishes could be put in the sink without hitting the faucet, and that slices of bread from Pyrex loaf pans would fit new electric toasters. Signing copies of the Pyrex Prize Recipes cookbook. The innovative Flameware line, which could go directly from refrigerator to stovetop, was developed in the 1930s in partnership with Maltby’s test kitchen. She also created her division’s field service; its staff visited homemakers nationwide to solicit real-world feedback, appeared on radio and TV, did in-store demonstrations, and chatted up newspaper and magazine editors. It was under her direction that product sizes were standardized to better fit in modern ovens and refrigerators, and the now-iconic Pyrex measuring cups were introduced. Pyrex introduced solid colors and patterns at midcentury; over the decades, its more than 150 designs would reflect the styles and trends of their day. While working at Corning, Maltby earned a doctorate in home economics from Syracuse University and authored her only commercial book, It’s Fun to Cook. By the time she retired in 1965, she led a team of three dozen women, and her staff was answering more than 3,000 customer letters a week. An early label from the Flameware line. Asked by Home Furnishings Daily upon her retirement to sum up her most important contribution to Corning, Maltby had a ready answer: “To look with new eyes on the ever-changing patterns of living.” Top: A colorful lineup of Pyrex offerings from a 1973 catalog. (All images courtesy of the Corning, Inc. Department of Archives and Records Management, unless otherwise indicated.) Published August 13, 2025 Comments Louise Tanney, Class of 1962 19 Aug, 2025 As a former home economic teacher with a Masters in Teacher Education in 1962, from Cornell’s College of Human Ecology, I applaud Ms Maltby’s futuristic thinking about how to develop products for use by homemakers (male & female). Great article! I visited those test kitchens at Corning and many of my Corning products were purchased there and now well used! I am sad so many high school programs no longer exist. Reply Michaline Bruyninckx, Class of 1979 7 Sep, 2025 I loved this article! My kitchen is full of Pyrex. I had no idea of their Big Red lineage. Reply Merle Seucharan, Class of 1974 9 Sep, 2025 Loved this article. Visited the test kitchen while I was doing my MS in the College of Human Ecology. Still using the Pyrex dishes that were bought in Corning’s shop. Reply Leave a Comment Cancel replyOnce your comment is approved, your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *Comment * Name * Class Year Email * Save my name, email, and class year in this browser for the next time I comment. Δ Other stories You may like Students Paws Up for Science! Student’s Service Dog Gets His Own PPE Students From Food Network to TikTok, Hotelie Is a Gen-Z Culinary Star Alumni These Alums Are So Inventive, They’re in the Hall of Fame!