Rocking chair

[mart]

No !!  I had rather just argue my point !!  As any true Texan would !!   

[jacon4]

According to Sam Houston, Texan's don't know jack about furniture! BAM! He was veryyyyyyyyyyyyyy disappointed in Texas furniture!

[ghopper1924]

This piece i think demonstrates my argument about what took place at the start of the 20th century in america. For half a century prior, victorian furniture of various styles in walnut dominated the american scene, it was affordable, plentiful and built on an enormous scale for a large and growing middle class. In 1900, all that changed, first off, walnut was getting expensive due to over cutting and 2, the style changed dramatically to the craftsman/mission style with quarter sawn oak as the primary wood. If you were a small manufacturer and could not afford to buy all new machines all at once to accommodate this new style era, what could you do?
If this chair is all quarter sawn oak (hard to tell with pics), that crest rail gives it away, it is clearly a late eastlake shallow relief carving with the rest of the chair in a somewhat awkward attempt at the new mission style. This guy took his existing machines that built victorian and did the best he could with what he had to work with. It happened a lot.

Ah, my point!! (more or less)

[KC]

Is this a rather short chair?  When I view the seat and bottom of the rocker it reminds me of the "Fireplace Rocker" (later called a sewing rocker) from the early 1900's that was "hearth height" to keep one warm.  I agree that the arms just aren't the same "style" as I would expect to go with the back woodwork of the chair (More mission style) - but it looks like it has aged with the chair (from what I can see in the pictures.)

I'll be seeing Sam (Houston that is) next week on my way to my daughter's.  He is so doggone out of place standing along the highway! (stands 70' tall)  I don't know as I would call him a furniture expert tho'!
You are driving south on Hwy 45 and you just pass the Texas State Penitentiary of Huntsville (Prison for those of you that don't know the nicer sounding term) then BAM (stealing from jacon4) There is Sam standing in the trees on the side of the highway all by himself!  Nothing else around! He is huge!

[ghopper1924]

I agree that the arms just aren't the same "style" as I would expect to go with the back woodwork of the chair (More mission style) - but it looks like it has aged with the chair (from what I can see in the pictures.)

A thoughtful analysis, but I would say that the arms are out of scale, and I would also say that a historical alteration from the 1920s could easily age to a patina matching the earlier ca. 1900 chair. After 100 years it's all dark.

[kathyv43]

It is a shorter rocking chair.

[jacon4]

lol, dang, he's bigger than the trees almost! And, i bet ol Sam is STILL pissed about his texas furniture!