Widdicomb Furniture Company was an American

furniture Furniture refers to objects intended to support various human activities such as seating (e.g., Stool (seat), stools, chairs, and sofas), eating (table (furniture), tables), storing items, working, and sleeping (e.g., beds and hammocks). Furnitur ...

company.

History

The company was founded in 1858 when George Widdicomb started a

cabinet Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to: Furniture * Cabinetry, a box-shaped piece of furniture with doors and/or drawers * Display cabinet, a piece of furniture with one or more transparent glass sheets or transparent polycarbonate sheets * Filin ...

shop in

Grand Rapids, Michigan Grand Rapids is the largest city and county seat of Kent County, Michigan, United States. With a population of 198,917 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census and estimated at 200,117 in 2024, Grand Rapids is the List of municipalities ...

. The company grew and, with twelve employees, moved to a new, larger location. His four sons went into business with him and the company was named George Widdicomb & Sons. All four sons would serve in the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

. The company dissolved in 1863, while all four sons were enlisted. The oldest sons opened a small furniture shop in 1864, with the other two brothers joining them around when the war ended. Brother George Widdicomb died in March 1866. In 1868 the store had grown considerably and was moved to a new location in Grand Rapids. They had 25 employees. T.F. Richards came into business with the sons on January 1, 1869. They renamed the business Widdicomb Bros. & Richards. They built a larger building and had a

capital Capital and its variations may refer to: Common uses * Capital city, a municipality of primary status ** Capital region, a metropolitan region containing the capital ** List of national capitals * Capital letter, an upper-case letter Econom ...

of $12,000. They formed the Widdicomb Furniture Company on December 1, 1873. Eventually capital would reach $380,000. They had a new building and approximately 150 employees in 1871. At that time, Widdicomb Furniture Company as known for their

spindle Spindle may refer to: Textiles and manufacturing * Spindle (textiles), a straight spike to spin fibers into yarn * Spindle (tool), a rotating axis of a machine tool Biology * Common spindle and other species of shrubs and trees in genus ''Euonym ...

bed frame A bed frame or bedstead is the part of a bed used to position the bed base, the flat part which in turn directly supports the mattress(es). The frame may also stop the mattress from sliding sideways, and it may include means of supporting a can ...

s. William Widdicomb, who served as President, retired from the company in 1883. In 1915, it was sold to Joseph Griswold Sr. and Godfrey von Platen. The company would merge with Mueller Furniture Corporation, becoming Widdicomb-Mueller Corporation, in 1950. Ten years later Mueller would split from Widdicomb. In 1970, the company name is acquired by John Widdicomb Company. From 1943 until 1956, T.H. Robsjohn-Gibbings served as designer for the company, designing

Modern furniture Modern furniture refers to furniture produced from the late 19th century through the present that is influenced by modernism. Post-World War II ideals of cutting excess, commodification, and practicality of materials in design heavily influence ...

George Nakashima George Katsutoshi Nakashima ( ''Nakashima Katsutoshi'', May 24, 1905 – June 15, 1990) was an American woodworker and architect. In 1983, he accepted the Order of the Sacred Treasure, an honor bestowed by the Emperor of Japan and the Japanese ...

also worked for Widdicomb, from the 1950s to early 1960s. He created the "Origin Group" of pieces. In 2002, Widdicomb went out of business; design and manufacturing rights for John Widdicomb Company were acquired by

Gustav Stickley Gustav Stickley (March 9, 1858 – April 15, 1942) was an American furniture manufacturer, design leader, publisher, and a leading voice in the American Arts and Crafts movement. Stickley's design philosophy was a major influence on American ...

in August 2002. Stickley continues to offer pieces under the John Widdicomb Collection.

Products

As of 1891, Widdicomb Furniture Company shipped products throughout the United States. Their focus products included bed frames,

chiffonier The term chiffonier, also chiffonnier, may refer to one of at least two types of furniture. Its name comes directly from a French piece of furniture, the ''chiffonier''. The French name, which comes from the French language, French for a rag-pick ...

s, and bedroom furniture of various kinds made of

oak An oak is a hardwood tree or shrub in the genus ''Quercus'' of the beech family. They have spirally arranged leaves, often with lobed edges, and a nut called an acorn, borne within a cup. The genus is widely distributed in the Northern Hemisp ...

, ash,

birch A birch is a thin-leaved deciduous hardwood tree of the genus ''Betula'' (), in the family Betulaceae, which also includes alders, hazels, and hornbeams. It is closely related to the beech- oak family Fagaceae. The genus ''Betula'' contains 3 ...

and

maple ''Acer'' is a genus of trees and shrubs commonly known as maples. The genus is placed in the soapberry family Sapindaceae.Stevens, P. F. (2001 onwards). Angiosperm Phylogeny Website. Version 9, June 2008 nd more or less continuously updated si ...

. They also manufactured

mirror A mirror, also known as a looking glass, is an object that Reflection (physics), reflects an image. Light that bounces off a mirror forms an image of whatever is in front of it, which is then focused through the lens of the eye or a camera ...

nightstand A nightstand, alternatively night table, bedside table, daystand or bedside cabinet, is a small table or cabinet designed to stand beside a bed or elsewhere in a bedroom. Modern nightstands are usually small bedside tables, often with one o ...

s, wardrobes, and other

bedroom A bedroom or bedchamber is a room situated within a residential or accommodation unit characterized by its usage for sleeping. A typical Western world, western bedroom contains as bedroom furniture one or two beds, a clothes closet, and bedsid ...

furniture. In 1906, pieces were designed in the styles of American Empire style, French design, and the

Colonial Revival Movement The Colonial Revival movement was a national expression of early North American culture, primarily the built and artistic environments of the east coast colonies. The Colonial Revival is generally associated with the eighteenth-century provincial ...

. They created photograph cabinets between 1918 and 1920. During the first two decades of the 20th century, bedroom sets were inspired by the

Italian Renaissance The Italian Renaissance ( ) was a period in History of Italy, Italian history between the 14th and 16th centuries. The period is known for the initial development of the broader Renaissance culture that spread across Western Europe and marked t ...

Georgian Revival Georgian architecture is the name given in most English-speaking countries to the set of architectural styles current between 1714 and 1830. It is named after the first four British monarchs of the House of Hanover, George I, George II, Ge ...

, among others. Traditional pieces like these were no longer made as of 1938, to make way for modern designs. Modern styles, designed by T. H. Robsjohn-Gibbing in the 1940s and 50s, were inspired by

Scandinavian design Scandinavian design is a design movement characterized by simplicity, minimalism and functionality that emerged in the early 20th century, and subsequently flourished in the 1950s throughout the five Nordic countries: Denmark, Finland, Norway, Sw ...

. George Nakashima's "Origin Collection," was inspired by Japanese and

Shaker furniture Shaker furniture is a distinctive style of furniture developed by the United Society of Believers in Christ's Second Appearing, commonly known as Shakers, a religious sect that had guiding principles of simplicity, utility and honesty. Their beli ...

. The collection consisted of bedroom and dining room pieces.

Legacy

Works by the Widdicomb Furniture Company are found in the collection of the

Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum is a design museum at the Andrew Carnegie Mansion in Manhattan, New York City, along the Upper East Side's Museum Mile. It is one of 19 Smithsonian Institution museums and one of three Smithsonian facil ...

. The company's archive is held in the collection of the

Grand Rapids Public Library The Grand Rapids Public Library located in downtown Grand Rapids, Michigan Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares wat ...

References

External links

Fabric Corner Sofa
{{Authority control Defunct furniture manufacturers 1858 establishments in Michigan Furniture companies of the United States Defunct manufacturing companies based in Michigan Manufacturing companies based in Grand Rapids, Michigan

History

Products

Legacy

See also

References

External links