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American Makers I - L

I

Imperial Chair

·         Holland, MI, ? – at least 1926

·         chairs

 

Shop Mark:

 

(from gustavstickley.com)

Imperial Furniture Co.

·         Grand Rapids, MI, 1903 - 1955

·         general line Mission style, amongst other styles

 

Shop Marks:

 

ca. 1910 (facsimile from Carron et. al. 1998)

 

 

 

 

Catalog: 1917?

 

Indiana Hickory Furniture Co.

·         Colfax, IN, early 1900s?

·         rustic style chairs

 

Shop Mark:

 

Indiana Willow Products Co.

·         Martinsville, IN, early 1900s to ca1948?

·         local rival to Old Hickory Chair Co.  

·         good quality rustic style line

 

Shop Mark:

 

Indian River Chair Co.

·         Rochester, NY

Indian Splint Mfg. Co.

·         Geneva, NY, ca. 1909 – ca. 1915

·         rustic style line

Inner Braced Furniture Co.

·         Elkhart, IN, ca. 1911 - 1960s?

·         work table / partner’s desks in oak with steel bracing

 

Shop Mark:

 

 

J

Jamestown Chair Co.

·         Jamestown, NY, late 1800s – at least 1920s

·         chairs, footstools

 

Shop Mark:

 

 

Jamestown Fancy Furniture Co.

·         Jamestown, NY, early 1900s

·         smokers stands, magazine stands

 

Shop Mark:

 

Jamestown Furniture Co.

·         Jamestown, NY, ca. 1911 – ca. 1933

·         general line derivative of Rohlfs but lower quality

Jamestown Lounge Company

·         Jamestown, NY, late 1800s – 1970s?

·         Mission style bulky chairs, settles, davenports (with cedar lined boxes), adjustable sofas, sofa beds, plus all leather furniture

·         advertised in Gustav Stickley’s Craftsman magazine (1910); advertised in the Michigan Artisan (1906, 1907)

Otto Jiranek

·         noted as a designer of Mission furniture with line drawings of pieces in issues of the Michigan Artisan 1908 and listed in the Grand Rapids Furniture Journal in 1917 and 1926 (possibly as passed away)

A.J. Johnson & Sons Furniture Co.

·         Chicago, IL & New York, NY, at least 1912

·         dining room sets, plus other styles

 

Catalog: 1912

 

Johnson Chair Co.

·         Chicago, Il, 1890s? - 1950s?

·         swivel office chairs, dining chairs, rockers, library chairs

 

Shop Marks:

 

 

Jordan, Moriarity & Co. (retailer ?)

·         Grand Rapids, MI, or New York, NY (?), early 1900s

·         complete dining room sets

 

Shop Mark:

 

 

K

C.F. Kade F. & S.C. Co.

·         Plymouth, WI, ca. 1914

·         combination desk-table-bookcase

 

Shop Mark:

 

S. Karpen & Bros.

·         Chicago, IL, 1880 - 1952

·         chairs, rockers, settles, foot stools, davenports, made wicker for Ford & Johnson (see label below)

 

Shop Marks:

 

 

Two examples, showing darkened and bright brass lettering

 

 

First, similar to above tags, but only Chicago listed on the bottom and having a double border

 

Yellow tag notes Fiber Rush (wicker) for Ford, Johnson as made by Karpen; lower tag appears to identify details about the specific furniture model or style (in this case, a tea wagon)

 

Catalogs:

  

No date, 1907, 1913, including Mission and other styles

 

Advertising: mirror (back shown), no date, but logo matches early 1900s and includes “Michigan City”.

 

Keller Office Furniture Co.

·         Buffalo, NY

·         office chairs

 

Shop Mark:

 

Kelly Brothers Manufacturing (J. A. Kelly & Bros.)

·         Clinton, IO, at least 1906 – 1930s?

·         reclining Morris chairs with footrest extension, “The Kelly Automatic Comfort Chair”; “Imperial Automatic Morris Chairs”

 

Shop Marks:

 

 

Highly faded red ink tag with ‘Kelly’ on top found on the same chair as the subsequent metal tag

Kenton Mfg. Co.

·         Covington, KT, ca. 1904 - ?

·         general line

Kiel Furniture Co.

·         Kiel & Milwaukee, WI, 1892 - present (w/name changes)

·         dining sets, tables

 

Catalog: 1912

 

Kimball & Chappell Co.

·         Chicago, IL, 1897 – ca. 1920

·         brass and iron beds

Kindel Bed Co. (C.J. Kindel Bedding Co.)

·         Denver, CO, 1899, St. Louis, MI, 1904, Grand Rapids, MI, 1912, Chicago, IL, 1915 purchase by Kroehler (also New York, Toronto), various changes to ca. 1970s

·         sofa beds

·         http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_John_Kindel

 

Shop Marks: 1910s - 1920s “Kindel” or “Kindel Beds” in bold Gothic script surrounded by a rectangle with chamfered corners, and:

 

 

King Furniture Mfg. Co.

·         Warren, OH, ca. 1917

·         china cabinets and sideboard combinations, desks, cellerettes

 

Shop Marks:

 

 

 

Knaus Furniture Mfg. Co. (Knaus Bros. and Arwine / Knaus Mfg. Co.)

·         Fayetteville (1907-1908), Watervliet (1908-1911), Constantia (1911 - 1913) and Oneida (1914 - 1915), NY, references differ regarding locations and dates

·         Knaus family members who worked for Gustav Stickley and L. & J.G. Stickley, joined with Fred Arwine who was Gustav Stickley’s Secretary and Treasurer, to form original company of Knaus Bros. and Arwine 

·         general line using ‘Craftmasters’ name, “Mission Chairs, Rockers, Tables, Bookcases and other Mission Furniture”; derivative of Gustav Stickley and L & J.G. Stickley and with similar looking catalog; failed lawsuit for infringement by Gustav Stickley in 1910, but nonetheless ran a disclaimer “We are not connected with any firm of similar name” i.e. Craftsman

·         also settees, magazine stands, book racks, tabourets. 3 and 5 piece suites, in 125 patterns

·         fire and move in 1908

·         bought by Schubert gear company in 1913 and changed named to Knaus Furniture Mfg. Co. and changed to ‘Meisterwerk’ trade name, but generally a lower quality line

 

Shop Marks:

 

 

Second example is a variant (?) or modified version of first, with rounded corners, found on a pair of turned wood bookends

 

 

Knickerbocker Manufacturing Co.

·         Detroit, MI, early 1900s

·         Morris chairs with flip top arm cabinets

Knoxville Furniture Co.

·         Knoxville, TN, early 1900s

·         Mission style fireplace mantels

 

Catalog: 1910

 

Knoxville Table and Chair Co.

·         Knoxville, TN, 1900 - 1935

·         tabourettes, library tables

 

Shop Marks:

 

 

Kramer Mfg Co.

·         Indianapolis, IN, at least 1912 – at least 1931

·         sofa beds

 

Shop Mark:

 

Kroehler Mfg. Co. ▲

·         Chicago (Naperville), IL, (also New York, NY, Stratford, ON, and later San Francisco, Los Angeles, Dallas, Inglewood, CA), ca. 1913 on

·         chairs, sofa beds

 

Shop Marks:

 

 

Two variants, slightly different line weight

 

Variant with extra locations

 

 

 

 

Catalog:

 

1927, late period catalog but still has Mission style pieces

 

L

Lakeside Craft Shops

·         Sheboygan, WI, 1910 - 1919, re-incorporated w/new owners 1922 - 1934

·         founded by Fred Dennett, the owner of the Wisconsin Chair Co., in which factory the pieces were made using off cuts from chair manufacturing; pieces were originally labeled Woodcraft Guild 1910 - 1912

·         general good quality line of oak and mahogany small pieces; jardinière stands, cellarettes, smoker’s cabinets, planters, book racks and stands, footstools, waste baskets, phonographs from 1916-1919, cedar chests from 1922 on

 

Shop Marks:

 

 

The main shop mark is often accompanied with secondary ‘stickers’ as shown above

 

 

First tag on oak appears slightly transparent, second tag on mahogany is opaque; not clear if this is a design variation or just evidence of color loss/change/fading  

 

 

Upholstery tag found on a footstool, and cedar chest tag, ca. 1922 or later

 

Catalog: 1912

 

Langslow, Fowler Co.

·         Rochester, NY, early 1900s

·         general line, rockers

 

Shop Mark: rectangular paper label

Larkin Co.

·         Buffalo, NY, 1901 - 1941

·         general line, mail order, plus all household goods; furniture was offered as a premium give-away for large orders of household goods

·         continued to offer Mission style well into the 1920’s presumably in response to customer demand; frugal customers likely picked up single pieces over several years and still needed pieces to complete sets for various rooms or settings

·         Elbert Hubbard was a salesman for Larkin prior to founding the Roycrofters, and Frank Lloyd Wright designed the Larkin main office building and much of its furniture

·         http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Larkin_Administration_Building

 

Shop Marks:

 

 

 

  

 

 

‘Slip-On’ chair seat label and large paper tag entitled “HELPFUL INFORMATION”

 

Catalogs: various dates 1905 to 1925

 

   

 

   

 

   

 

   

 

 

William Leavens & Co.

·         Boston, MA, ca. 1909 - at least 1927

·         general line

·         advertised in Gustav Stickley’s Craftsman magazine (1911)

·         also known/assumed to be a retailer; seller of Old Hickory (Royka 2003)

 

Shop Marks:

 

 

 

 

Two examples of brass tag; second example on a green stained piece which agrees with Leavens catalog notes that said pieces were available in “any color finish”

 

Catalog: no date

 

(From Craftsman Auctions Catalog, Sale # 4, May 18, 1997)

Charles A. Lee Chair Co. (same as Lee Chair Co., Syracuse, NY?)

·         Oneida, NY

·         chairs

Lentz Table Co.

·         Nashville, MI, at least 1906 – 1953?

·         dining tables; advertised in the Michigan Artisan (1906, 1907)

Leonard Peterson & Co. Inc.

·         Chicago, IL (later Auburn, AL), 1890 - present

·         drafting tables, laboratory and school furniture

 

Shop Mark:

 

Lestershire Furniture Co.

·         Lestershire, NY, early 1900s

·         small tables

 

Shop Mark:

 

 

Levin Bros. Inc.

·         Minneapolis, MN, ca. 1917 - ca. 1932

·         upholstered chairs and settles, desks, pedestals, davenports, daybeds, rockers

 

Catalog: 1917-1918

 

Lewisburg Chair Co.

·         Lewisburg, PA, late 1800s - early 1900s, later named Pennsylvania House

·         arm chairs, rockers

 

Shop Mark: Combined mark for the company and a retailer

 

Library Bureau Sole Makers

·         New York, NY factory / head office?, also Boston, Philadelphia, Chicago, Washington, London, also a Canadian location?, late 1800s–1925?

·         filing cabinets, card catalogs

 

Shop Marks:

 

 

 

 

 

Library Filing Cabinet Co.

·         Chicago, MI, at least 1902

·         not explicitly a Mission furniture maker, but rather an office furniture maker, of interest because they were the first listed furniture company to advertise in Gustav Stickley’s Craftsman magazine in December 1902, ironically with a testimonial from Elbert Hubbard of the Roycrofters

Lifetime Furniture (Grand Rapids Bookcase & Chair Co.)

·         Hastings, MI, 1911 - 1920

·         founded by A. A. Barber as a merger of Barber Brothers Chair Co. and Grand Rapids Bookcase Co.; several designs copied from Gustav Stickley and L. & J. G. Stickley

·         general high quality line, dubbed “Cloister Style” from 1911 until 1917 with heavy forms and pegged tenons, then lighter style introduced called “Puritan”

·         marketed with images of monks and southwestern Mission churches

 

Shop Marks:  

 

 

 

 

Three examples of color variation seen in the decal mark

 

 

Two partial examples above of less common paper labels

 

 

 

Pair of paper tags found on the same piece

 

 

 

Pair of tags found on a bookcase; Top: “Consigned to / Goods for / Article / No. / Finish / FROM Grand Rapids Bookcase and Chair Co. HASTINGS, MICH” 

 

Catalogs:

 

Includes pages showing Missions in California as well as furniture listings, thus making a clear connection between furniture style and Missions in the south-west; ca. 1913 

 

1916 - 1917, contains Mission and several other styles

 

Advertising:

 

Suggested to be an original advertising display sign (?), but possibly a painted/stenciled fire screen

Charles P. Limbert Co.

·         Grand Rapids (1894 - 1906 (?)) & Holland, MI (1906-1925), then sold

·         considered to be one of the top tier and more influential makers

·         Charles Limbert also represented the Old Hickory Chair Co. for many years

·         general high quality line with multiple influences, incl. Art Nouveau (early), English, Medieval, Japanese, Glasgow School, Austrian Secessionist, Viennese, Prairie School, w/stained glass (early), curves, inlays i.e. “Ebon-Oak” line (1915), cutouts

·         used “Holland Dutch Arts & Crafts” reference in catalogs and advertisements, and claimed to have Dutch craftsmen; advertised in Gustav Stickley’s Craftsman magazine (1914)

·         http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_limbert

 

Shop Marks:

 

  

Pre 1906 tags, including rare green stain piece (from gustavstickley.com)   

 

Post 1906 (added “TRADE MARK” and replaced “MICHIGAN” w/”AND HOLLAND”)

 

 

Post 1906 brands; note the distinct two-tone coloring; it is assumed that a patch was placed on the piece to prevent over staining of the area where the brand was applied or conversely it was simply company practice/policy to not color over the brand; this also demonstrates that the undersides of arms and inside of drawers were often stained, i.e. places where the brand was applied

 

  

Brand marks with model number stencils

 

Dining table model number on top and extension length on bottom

 

 

 

 

Four example pictures, above, of rare copper tag with patinated background and raised lettering (these are smaller size than the brand); top right is of a possible fake – slight difference in outside border thickness, no outline border on figure, rounded off edges/corners in lettering, different lettering sizes, e.g. Grand Rapids is comparatively smaller than Holland (first picture from gustavstickley.com, black & white picture is from Bartinique 1995)

 

Reprint of a graphic found in a Limbert catalog (date? ca. 1910); an example of this leather tag would be a rare find (from Gray and Marek 1997)

 

 

Two versions of tags found under leather covered spring cushion seats with instructions for cleaning and caring for leather

 

Invoice letterhead 1909

 

Paper tag found under the seat of a dining chair, authenticity unknown

 

Catalogs and Pamphlets:

 

 

1908, and ca. 1913 (from Craftsman Auctions Catalog, Sale #3, January 19, 1997)

 

  

Catalogs #100, #112, #114

 

  

Catalog #117 with retailer name ‘A. Hamburger & Sons Inc., Los Angeles’, and catalog examples with the cover type seen in the first picture turn up on the market appearing to be in original condition, however this is in fact the inside cover page and reflects a catalog missing the external cover as shown in the subsequent example

 

 

 

Two examples, above, of retailer pamphlets (#118), 8 pages 6” X 7” dated 1913 (black and white picture from Bartinique 1995)

 

 

ca. 1910, small 3.5 X 6 inch 16 page pamphlet with line drawings of furniture and rooms, and retailer pamphlet, 8 pages 6” X 7” dated 1911; ironically this example is marked for a retailer in Syracuse NY, the location of Gustav Stickley’s workshops

 

Advertising:

 

  

 

 

 

 

Wooden shoe advertising with pyrographic carving (date?), came in a range of sizes and design variants up to approximately 10” long (black and white pic from Bartinique 1995, last pic from Craftsman Auctions Catalog, Sale #4, May 18, 1997)

Luce Furniture Co.

·         Grand Rapids, MI, 1896 - 1930, 1935 - 1938 as owned by Kroehler

·         general line including flat spindle columns w/inlay work, Glasgow School influence (on dressers, beds), dining room suites, china cabinets

 

Shop Mark:

 

C.J. Lundstrom Mfg. Co.

·         Little Falls, NY, early 1900s – ca. 1950s

·         stacking or ‘barrister’ bookcases (a.k.a. ‘elastic’ bookcases), Mission style made until at least 1926

 

Shop Marks:

 

 

 

 

 

Catalogs:

 

  

1905, 1907, 1911

 

  

1916, 1925, no date

 

 

 

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