Crafting History: Philadelphia Woodwork and Furniture in Context at Stenton

On Tuesday, October 3rd at 1:00 Stenton curator Laura Keim and I will be leading a virtual tour and discussion at Stenton in Germantown, Philadelphia. Exterior front facade of Stenton's main house, 1723-1730. Image courtesy of Stenton Museum. Stenton house, built for James Logan (1674-1751) and his family, was completed in 1730 and has been … Continue reading Crafting History: Philadelphia Woodwork and Furniture in Context at Stenton

A Philadelphia High-Back Windsor Armchair

High-back Windsor armchair, Philadelphia, Penn., 1765-1775. Artist unknown. Yellow poplar seat and medial-section of arm, Maple legs and stretchers, Hickory crest rail, Mahogany arms, arm supports, and short spindles behind the arm supports. H. 43 3/4", W. 32 1/4", D. 26" Dietrich American Foundation. The armchair has been on loan to Stenton since 1971. The … Continue reading A Philadelphia High-Back Windsor Armchair

The First Philadelphia Windsor Highchairs

As noted in the last post, Windsor chairmakers in Philadelphia were making highchairs shortly after they began producing high-back Windsor armchairs in the mid-1740s. No highchairs modeled on the earliest Philadelphia high-back Windsors with plain crest rails and shaved arm supports are known to have survived, nor have any highchairs been discovered with Thomas Gilpin's … Continue reading The First Philadelphia Windsor Highchairs