Signpost is a free ezine from Bob Dillon Windsor Chairs. It is the mission of this monthly ezine to explore the history and contruction of Windsor chairs as well as other aspects of life in early America. For more information please go to Signpost Info. To SUBSCRIBE or UNSUBSCRIBE, see below.

***Signpost***

An Ezine from Bob Dillon Windsor Chairs
Issue No. Two -- March 2, 2000

Contents:

  • News
  • Introduction to Issue Number 2
  • The History of the Windsor Chair -- The Americans Make It Their Own
  • The Colonies Flirt With Revolution
  • JUST FOR FUN -- Your Inflight Entertainment...

NEWS:

I have a new auction on eBay, a Lexington green bow-back that's been around awhile but is still in fine shape. You'll find it right here. Or go to my web site (there's a link right under the title above) and click on the eBay link at the bottom of the main page.

I also added a new entry to my Custom Page, a blanket chest I made a couple of years ago. I hope you will take a look.

Introduction to Issue Number Two

In this issue I continue with my discussion about the origins of Windsor chairs. Last month we saw how they got their start in England. This time we'll see how they came to America and developed into perhaps the most popular type of furniture ever.

I also mention that American-style Windsors were given a boost by the deteriorating relations between the colonies and Britain. My history article delves into the events that brought that about. It's stuff we all learned in school at one time or another, but I hope you will enjoy a short refresher course. There won't be a test.

The last article is borrowed from Miscellaneous Magazine (see link below). I include it here just for the fun of it. I hope you find it as amusing as I did.

Sincerely, Bob

The History of the Windsor Chair

The American Windsor Chair

In 1726 Patrick Gordon came to Philadelphia to assume the lieutenant governorship of Pennsylvania. With him he brought five Windsor chairs, and he may well have been the one who introduced the style to America.

Local chairmakers copied elements of these "gentleman high-back't" (comb-back) chairs, but also added the baluster-style turnings and H-pattern stretchers found on Delaware River Valley rush-bottomed chairs. They eliminated the back splat and cabriole leg which were popular in England.

The inclined back and form-fitting seat made Windsors far more comfortable than the straight-backed chairs then in vogue. They were also light, strong and inexpensive, their seats never needed replacing (as with rush) and the chair could readily be refreshed with a new coat of paint.

Philadelphia craftsmen began to specialize in the Windsor chairmaking trade, and their chairs soon became known as Philadelphia chairs. They built them in near assembly-line fashion. But as a result their styles stagnated, and as the industry spread, chairmakers in New York and New England took advantage, custom-making their Windsors and developing smaller, lighter chairs. Around 1770 there was an explosion in the popularity of Windsor chairs, particularly as the colonists adopted the English fashion of having green chairs in their gardens. These chairs needed to be easily carried about, so the large, comb-back easy-chairs which had dominated the market gave way to the smaller styles we are most familiar with today.

But Windsors were also popular for everyday indoor seating. They were accepted by even the most prosperous members of society whose fashion sense at first dictated a preference for imported English chairs. But as relations with the mother country deteriorated (see below), they proudly bought American. Now Windsors were found everywhere, from the most elegant mansions to the humblest cottages as well as in public buildings. Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin and George Washington are all known to have owned Windsors. A painting by Robert Pine, circa 1785, shows the Continental Congress seated in sack-back Windsor chairs.

In the 19th century Windsor chairs were simplified for factory production, eventually losing their original style and grace. Even today, the furniture stores are full of these heavy, soulless Windsor descendants. Not until the late 20th century was the handmade, 18th century-style chair truly revived.

The Colonies Flirt With Revolution

The Seven Years War (1756-63) (known in America as the French and Indian War) was the most expensive England had ever fought, more than doubling her national debt. At the time, the average Englishman paid 25 shillings per year in taxes; the typical colonist only sixpence one-fiftieth. British elites thought this an outrage, especially since the colonists had benefited most from the war.

George Grenville, then head of British policy, in an attempt to correct the situation, introduced the "Rules of Right Conduct" between Britain and America. First, he resolved to get the Americans to pay existing taxes, most of which were customs duties. The Americans were adept at evading customs, as were the British. But because the Colonial Customs Service was corrupt and inefficient, costing more in administration than it collected, the Americans paid almost nothing. In 1764 Grenville halved the duty on molasses -- but stepped up enforcement. Suddenly there were revenue men everywhere, "low-born and needy people," Ben Franklin reported -- no one else would accept such employment. "I think one may clearly see," Franklin continued, "in the system of customs now being exacted in America by Act of Parliament, the seeds sown of a total disunion of the two countries." And even with the new laws it still cost Britain £8000 for every £2000 it raised.

In 1765 came the Stamp Act, a tax on all printed paper which also cost a lot and raised virtually nothing. The cry was heard, "no taxation without representation." People rioted and publicly burned the stamps. In the end Parliament repealed the act, but then passed the Declaratory Act which asserted its sovereignty over America. Now the dispute was not only financial, but constitutional.

"The whole of government consists in the art of being honest."
Thomas Jefferson.
"Government, even in its best state, is but a necessary evil...."
Thomas Paine

In 1767 came a new series of duties on glass, lead, paint, and tea. The colonies responded with what they called "Nonimport Agreements," in effect a boycott of British goods. Even so, Britain collected £30,000 per year at a cost of £13,000, so they pressed on. Boston now became the center of resistance, which was becoming increasingly violent.

British opinion called for "firmness." Said William Pitt, Earl of Chatham, "The American must be subordinate ... this is the mother country. They are children. They must obey, and we prescribe." Many also viewed the colonies as too democratic, one government minister saying, "I would not have men in mercantile cast every day collecting together and debating on political matters." They feared the colonies were taking steps toward independence.

The British garrison in Boston was increased by two regiments, which was like, in Franklin's words, "setting up a smith's forge in a magazine of gunpowder." On March 3, 1770, a mob of Boston youths started throwing snowballs at a party of soldiers. Some of the soldiers, without orders, fired into the crowd, killing three outright. Two more died later. Though the leader of the redcoats and some of his men were put on trial, they were acquitted. The "Boston Massacre" became the first in a series of propaganda victories for the colonists, and Boston was now the center of outright opposition to British colonial rule.

In 1773 Britain passed the Tea Act which, among other things, made it possible for the financially troubled British East India Company to undersell its competitors. Three ships carrying £10,994 worth of tea arrived in Boston on December 16. That night a mob dressed as Indians boarded the ships and dumped their cargo into the harbor where, in the words of eyewitness John Andrews, "it piled up in the low tide like haystacks."

Britain closed the port of Boston and passed the Coercive Acts which included the compulsory quartering of troops on American citizens in Boston and elsewhere. Americans dubbed these the "Intolerable Acts," and they mark the true beginning of the American War of Independence.

The following is reprinted courtesy of Miscellaneous Magazine

Recently Heard in our Skies

Occasionally, airline attendants make an effort to make the "in-flight safety lecture" and their other announcements a bit more entertaining. Here are some real examples that have been heard or reported:

From a Southwest Airlines employee.... "There may be 50 ways to leave your lover, but there are only 4 ways out off this airplane..."

Pilot: "Folks, we have reached our cruising altitude now, so I am going to switch the seat belt sign off. Feel free to move about as you wish, but please stay inside the plane till we land...it's a bit cold outside, and if you walk on the wings it affects the flight pattern."

After landing: "Thank you for flying Delta Business Express. We hope you enjoyed giving us the business as much as we enjoyed taking you for a ride.

As the plane landed and was coming to a stop at Washington National, a lone voice comes over the loudspeaker: "Whoa, big fella. WHOA!"

After a particularly rough landing during thunderstorms in Memphis, a flight attendant on a Northwest flight announced: "Please take care when opening the overhead compartments because, after a landing like that, sure as hell everything has shifted."

From a Southwest Airlines employee.... "Welcome aboard Southwest Flight XXX to YYY. To operate your seat belt, insert the metal tab into the buckle, and pull tight. It works just like every other seat belt and if you don't know how to operate one, you probably shouldn't be out in public unsupervised. In the event of a sudden loss of cabin pressure, oxygen masks will descend from the ceiling. Stop screaming, grab the mask, and pull it over your face. If you have a small child traveling with you, secure your mask before assisting with theirs. If you are traveling with two small children, decide now which one you love more.

Weather at our destination is 50 degrees with some broken clouds, but they'll try to have them fixed before we arrive. Thank you, and remember, nobody loves you or your money, more than Southwest Airlines."

"Your seat cushions can be used for flotation. In the event of an emergency water landing, please take them with our compliments."

"As you exit the plane, please make sure to gather all of your belongings. Anything left behind will be distributed evenly among the flight attendants. Please do not leave children or spouses."

"Last one off the plane must clean it."

From the pilot during his welcome message: "We are pleased to have some of the best flight attendants in the industry...Unfortunately none of them are on this flight..."

Overheard on an American Airlines flight into Amarillo, Texas, on a particularly windy and bumpy day. During the final approach, the Captain was really having to fight it. After an extremely hard landing, the Flight Attendant came on the PA and announced, "Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome to Amarillo. Please remain in your seats with your seat belts fastened while the Captain taxis what's left of our airplane to the gate!"

Another flight Attendant's comment on a less than perfect landing: "We ask you to please remain seated as Captain Kangaroo bounces us to the terminal."

An airline pilot wrote that on this particular flight he had hammered his ship into the runway really hard. The airline had a policy which required the first officer to stand at the door while the passengers exited, smile, and give them a "Thanks for flying XYZ airline." He said that in light of his bad landing, he had a hard time looking the passengers in the eye, thinking that someone would have a smart comment. Finally, everyone had gotten off except for this little old lady walking with a cane. She said, "Sonny, mind if I as you a question?" "Why no, Ma'am," said the pilot, "what is it?" The little old lady said, "Did we land or were we shot down?"

After a real crusher of a landing in Phoenix, the Flight Attendant came on with, "Ladies and Gentlemen, please remain in your seats until Captain Crash and the Crew have brought the aircraft to a screeching halt up against the gate. And, once the tire smoke has cleared and the warning bells are silenced, we'll open the door and you can pick your way through the wreckage to the terminal."

Part of a Flight Attendant's arrival announcement: "We'd like to thank you folks for flying with us today. And, the next time you get the insane urge to go blasting through the skies in a pressurized metal tube, we hope you'll think of us here at US Airways."

Source Unknown

Sources

  1. The Book of American Windsor Furniture: Styles and Technologies by John Kassay
  2. The History of the Windsor Chair
  3. American Windsor Chairs
  4. A History of the American People, Paul Johnson, HarperCollins, 1997
  5. Historical Significance of Seven Years' War
  6. The Stamp Act
Further Links:

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