Have you ever come throughout a classic wooden desk or bench stamped with the quantity “76”?
In that case, you are not alone. Many individuals uncover this mark whereas clearing out attics, looking vintage shops, or researching household heirlooms—solely to seek out restricted info on-line.
The reply? You’ve probably found a bit of Bennington Pine Furnishings—a short-lived however iconic Vermont furnishings model from the mid-Twentieth century.
At Vermont Woods Studios, we’re enthusiastic about preserving the legacy of Vermont-made strong wooden furnishings. Whether or not you are a collector, a design fanatic, or simply inquisitive about a bit you have inherited, this information will stroll you thru the origins of Bennington Pine and its place in Vermont’s wealthy furniture-making historical past.
The Rise and Fall of the Bennington Pine Furnishings Firm
In Winooski, Vermont, in the course of the roaring twenties, the Vermont Furnishings Firm opened its doorways, embarking on a journey of expertise in Northern Vermont following a convention of Vermont Furnishings making that may be traced to the seventeenth century. Identified initially for crafting high-quality maple wooden items, within the Nineteen Sixties, the Vermont Furnishings Firm wished to attempt one thing completely different: furnishings created from pine. Thus, Bennington Pine Furnishings was born someday within the Nineteen Sixties.
The Nineteen Seventies have been the golden period for Bennington Pine, a interval when colonial-style furnishings grew to become a staple in American houses. These items, crafted with consideration to element, featured the sturdiness of strong wooden building and traditional tongue and groove drawers.
Based on historian Joe Rosson, the corporate could be traced to the Nineteen Seventies, “however the little info I might discover means that the mom firm and Bennington Pine have been out of enterprise someday within the Nineteen Seventies.” Nevertheless, it’s not publicly accessible why the corporate went out of enterprise.
Additionally based on Rosson, one solution to distinguish the Bennington Pine benches from genuinely outdated items is that “the Bennington items have been assembled with screws– not with sq. nails as they could have been in any other case.”
The place to View or Buy Bennington Pine Furnishings
Moreover people promoting Bennington Pine Furnishings independently, you may come throughout items from the model in Vermont vintage retailers and classic marketplaces. Nevertheless, for details about different key gamers within the historical past of woodworking in Vermont, take a look at our Vermont Furnishings Encyclopedia.
At Vermont Woods Studios, we stock the torch of Vermont’s woodworking custom ahead. Each piece of our strong wooden furnishings is hand made by native artisans utilizing sustainably sourced North American hardwoods.
Whether or not you are trying to find a future heirloom or just admire the fantastic thing about timeless design, we invite you to discover our collections.
