Featured Paine Furniture Company Rocking Chair

Hi All,

I obtained this Paine Furniture Company rocking chair and have it currently dismantled and almost ready to glue and reassemble. There are two missing back spindles that I was able to get replicated locally. The chair was very rickety but no broken pieces but made it difficult for the person selling to be successful…so much so, that they gave to me at no cost just to get rid of it. Because the label is torn the seller assumed the chair was made in New Orleans because the words “Canal Street” were showing. I researched a bit after getting the chair and found out it was actually made in Boston by Paine Furniture Company. I’ve included a pic of a complete label along with the torn label on the chair in the pics. Don’t plan to refinish as I like the patina as is. Haven’t found this exact chair in the couple of archived catalogues online, but the ball-end arms are represented in other similar designs I found in one of the catalogues. Any comments or feedback are appreciated. Thank you.

 

I like the honest wear too.

Debora

 

It's pretty. I wouldn't mess with it either. I'd be thinking 1890-ish, and fix it up and rock babies in it. Rocking chairs are a tough sell, but a godsend if you have a cranky baby of any species or quantity of gray hair.

 

I’ve got the gray hair…still waiting on the first grandchild!! Thanks for the information on the age too.

 

Agree with a circa 1890 date. Detail under the arms is called sick and ball. Hard to tell wood from these pictures. Maybe birch with a dark stain.

 

@verybrad , Thanks for the added info detail. When I got the two spindles remade the furniture maker said it was stained cherry and that’s what the replacements were made of. It’s a pile of pieces right now but hoping to get to it soon and be ready for more rockin’.

 

A note on Paine Furniture . . . as this label indicates,
a "Manufacturer & Importer" of furniture. They indeed outsourced production as well as being a manufacturer, even to American producers - I'm a Cushman furniture collector and have found pieces with the Paine tag that are in fact made by Cushman of Bennington Vermont with no Cushman labeling - but often retaining the Cushman model number incised into the wood underside. This happened in the 1930's when their modernist russet toned Colonial style was the rage and they wanted a piece of the action. The take away is, one can't assume a Paine marked piece is made by Paine, which is often cited out there by folks.