I picked this chair up at a yard sale a while back but it has no makers mark. The chair is very well made and some parts of it definetly hand planed to fit. The chair has its original finish and is in over all great original condition with no break or repairs. The cushion has been recovered only onc from the looks of it. The chair itself is on the smaller side the highest point of the back is 31" and the arm rests are just over 22" long.

Hello My Friends,
I didn't notice if you are a new member or not but welcome to th eArts and Crafts Society forums and we hope you continue coming back.

Now as for the chair, I do not recall any of the name craftsmen building a chair of that design, however it does not mean that it has no value. The first thing I noticed was the front legs which are very unusual bu, I do like the through tenon on the front rail. I didn't notice if the back rail had one or not and one thing I do no is that he was a good craftsman in his own right. You really have an heir loom and we hope you like it well enough to keep it in your home.

Respectfully,

Ralph Jones

The construction looks like the work of Frank S. Harden Furniture Co. of Camden, New York. A very stout piece. Congratulations.

PS Just noticed the long corbels. Much like the Stickley Bros. L&GJ. Furniture is not my strength.


Best,

Thank you for the welcome and your input guys I've only had 1 other post about pottery a while back. But I lurk here from time to time and just read since I dont really know much besides what ive read on here and a couple other misc places. I got the chair from the guys grandson. The reason one arms darker than the other is his grandfather was a auto mechanic and would come home from work and sit in the chair with a greasy right arm.

Good Morning Fred and LL Pete,
Fred I had not noticed the long corbel until you mentioned it and Mr. Pete we hope you have a great experience by learning things on these forums that will some day help you to pass on to someone else information that you will have learned here.

Education is something that no one can take away from us, however knowledge is not knowledge until it is passed on.

If you would like to learn more about how and why the Arts and Crafts Movement got started go to the first forum on here and bring up the History that I wrote after 5 years of gathering data and Fred compiled into one combined bit of information. Whom I am ever indebted to.

Respectfully,

Ralph Jones

Hi,

I agree with Fred that it may be Harden, but Charles Stickley also used massive posts and through tenons. Either way, awesome score!

Frank

Hi,

What you have is a Charles stickley chair. Im 99% positive this is what it is.

Mark

Hello Mark,
Welcome to the Arts and Crafts Society and we hope you find what you are looking for and hope that you will find these forums to your likeing so that you will come back often.

Respectfully,

Ralph Jones

I agree with the Charles Stickley assessment. I noticed the Greased Lighting in the backround and would like to caution you about it. I think it a little harsh for antique furniture. Be careful!

I totaly agree about the greased lighting. It is not ment for antique furniture. Try cleaning it off with some mineral spirits and give the piece some time to dry. Then you might want to add a coat of wax to it or maybe two. Liberon black bison wax seems to be the best out there but thats my opinion.

Good morning LLPetej,

First I want to congratulate you on a great find! You've got a really great piece with great beefy dimensions and the ray fleck on the QS oak really comes through. You should be happy regardless of the maker.

Having said that, there were several makers who used the large 2x4 construction on the front legs including Oak Craft Shops, Rittencraft, Limberts (#649) and Charles Stickley. These pieces are regularly miss-attributed to C.S. because of their beefy front posts.

I think that your rocker was made by the Oak Craft Shops (Ramsey-Alton Manufacturing Co.), though. I've attached a picture of a rocker that is very similar to yours. The big difference is the number of slats, the top rail, and the shape of the back of the arms.

Also, for more info on the Oak Craft Shops, you can check out this great thread on the subject in another post here on the forum. Here a rocker pis is posted that is nearly identical to yours (note the difference in the top-rail, but the same through tennon no the arms, front corners, and the same short, stout form for the corbels).

http://forum.arts-crafts.com/e...6079532/m/8731012101

I hope that this helps and again, great rocker!

LLpeteJ,

I forgot to make clear in my last post that the shared attribute between your rocker and the Oak Craft Shop rockers is the stout corbel and through tennons at the front of the arm and where the front rail and front posts come together.

The beefy chairs by CS that I've seen either have no corbels, or the corbels are long, more slender, and extend down past the through tennons, which are not present if the corbels are.

This point raises an interesting question. CS was known for tacking faux through tennons onto his rocker at the front legs and on the upper back adjacent the top rail. What about your rocker? Can you tell if the through tennons on the front posts are structural or tacked on?

If they are, this difference could be telling for the proper identification of the two different makers: Oak Craft having structural through tennons and CS not, the important identifier being the stout corbels.

Thanks for sharing and good luck.

LLpeteJ,

I came across a rocker that looks like a dead ringer for yours. Eastwood Gallery is listing it and has identified it as an Oakcraft.

Perhaps they have an image of a brand or label on their rocker that might help you to ID yours.

Good luck

Whats going on with that seat? Is that the way it should be or is that the cheaper way out cuz they don't have a spring seat for it?

Thanks Again,
Mark & Melissa

I think that rocker is wearing a diaper! Mark, I think you're right: cheap way out.

Does this look like a rocker from either company listed above? It is on Craigslist in CO.

Sorry for the slow response.

It's hard to tell from the photo, but the crest rail, 3 slats and paddle arms match those of a Oakcraft rocker that was posted in another thread:



I don't see the corbels though.

It has nice ray fleck and a decent finish from what is shown.

The Colorado CL rocker has a high gloss, poorly applied overcoat that would have to be removed. Also has obvious "glob some glue" repairs to joints and cracks.

There is a hint of a shop mark on the seat frame that has .....Craft on it. Circular ink stamp with more, impossible to read words below. Certainly looks like the Oakcraft you've shown.

There are corbels, just difficult to see from the angle of the two pics--it is still posted on the Denver CL, I believe under antiques with Stickley in the keywords.