138 



AMERICAN HOMES AND GARDENS 



April, 1913 



Banister-back chair 



Elder Brewster slat-back chair 



Early Dutch rush-bottom chair 



period which lies between 1710 and 1720. It shows a seat of 

 rush such as is found in most chairs of like make. The ban- 

 nisters that form the back are, generally speaking, plain in 

 front but turned at the back. This is however, not always 

 the case, as sometimes the turned side is on the front, while 

 the plain frame forms the back. 



Other chairs of this type are perfectly plain and it is 

 one of these that is shown in the George W. Adams 

 house in Byfield, Massachusetts. It was originally used 

 by Annie Longfellow, the daughter of William Longfellow 

 who was the emigrant ancestor of that family in America. 

 The chair was carried across the fields from her father's 

 adjoining estate by the young bride herself, at the time of 

 her marriage to Captain Adams. In the bannister back, 

 we find that the slats are upright instead of horizontal. 

 The chairs themselves are always finished with rush bot- 

 toms and are usually painted black. They are made of 

 soft wood. 



Next comes the Windsor chairs which are usually made 

 of hickory or ash. It is believed that this style of chair 

 was made by the peasants in England, this supposition 

 resulting from the legend that King George II found one 

 in a shepherd's cottage. Being very much attracted by the 

 style, he purchased it and had others made like it, naming 

 it Windsor from the town and castle of that name. This 

 set a kingly fashion and made the chair popular. 



It is not known whether King George had his chairs 

 painted green or not, but those of this style which were 

 made in Philadelphia about 1730, were all painted green. 

 There are few to be found to-day that bear the original 

 colors, however. 



Windsor chairs continued to be made and sold well into 

 the nineteenth century and are reproduced to-day, in such 

 capital imitations that it is hard to tell the real from the 

 spurious. 



During their long season of popularity, they were nat- 

 urally changed somewhat in style from time to time, and 

 therefore are found to exist in many designs. One of 

 these is an armchair of common type, and is very popular. 

 Side chairs were also made in the same pattern, through 

 leaving out the dividing strip which served to make the 

 arm, allowing the top rail to run down into the seat. A 



side chair that is called a "fan back" was also made by 

 using a horizontal top rail with two spindles, which, to 

 support it more firmly, were made much stouter than the 

 others at the outside. These spindles were all set nearer 

 together on the seat than at the top rail, giving it a fan 

 shaped or flaring effect. The rocker sometimes took the 

 shape of a "comb back," the five middle spindles extended 

 upward above the rail back, and formed a head rest. The 

 name was derived from the fact that this projection was 

 shaped like the high-backed comb, which was at this time 

 much worn by ladies of quality. 



The seats of these chairs, as was the chair itself, were 

 made of solid wood with turned legs and under braces. 

 The variety of different styles made was so great, par- 

 ticularly in America, that they are sometimes confused. 

 The rarest chair of this period is the Writing Chair. This 

 shows the right arm widened so that it will hold either 

 writing materials or books. One of this sort was owned 

 by Thomas Jefferson, who, it is said, used it at the time of 

 the writing of the Declaration of Independence. 



'During the period from the year 1740 to 1750 the 

 Queen Anne chair was in vogue. These chairs deserve 

 more than passing mention, as they show the cabriole leg, 

 a feature which might be called a forerunner of Chippen- 

 dale. Queen Anne chairs were usually designed with up- 

 right spindles at the back, or putting it more definitely, 

 three uprights and a splat. Here the chairs are often rush- 

 bottomed, but in the better pieces we find upholstered bits, 

 some of which are very handsome and valuable. 



The genuine chairs of yesterday cannot be purchased to- 

 day for a mere song. In fact, one cannot be too careful 

 in their selection, because modern reproductions are so 

 accurate. The evolution of the chair from the primitive 

 bench or seat to the well-designed chair of the eighteenth 

 century goes to show what strides have been made in this 

 field of design. 



There are many intervening styles of chairs which are 

 not of such great importance that they need to be touched 

 upon, it being most necessary to show only the work of 

 the leading makers. The last of these intervening chairs 

 came before furniture was designed by the three great 

 furniture creators, Chippendale, Heppelwhite, and Shera- 



