Adirondack chair
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
An Adirondack chair (or in some parts of Canada, a Muskoka chair) is a type of chair used primarily in an outdoors setting. The precursor to today's Adirondack chair was designed by Thomas Lee in 1903. He was on vacation in Westport, New York and needed outdoor chairs for his summer home. He tested the first designs on his family.
The original Adirondack chair was made with eleven pieces of wood, cut from a single board. It had a straight back and seat, which were set at a slant to sit better on the steep mountain inclines of the area. It also featured wide armrests which became a hallmark of the Adirondack Chair.
Today's Adirondack chairs usually feature a rounded back and contoured seat. The style has also been translated to other pieces of furniture, from gliders to love seats. Some modern Adirondack chairs are made out of plastic lumber or engineered wood instead of wood.
After arriving at a final design for the "Westport plank chair," Lee offered it to Harry Bunnell, a carpenter friend in Westport, who was in need of a winter income. Bunnell quickly realized the chair was the perfect item to sell to Westport's summer residents and apparently without asking Lee's permission, Bunnell filed for and received patent number 794,777 in 1905.[1] Bunnell manufactured his plank chairs for the next twenty years. His "Westport Chairs" were all signed and made of hemlock in colors of green or medium dark brown.
Adirondack chairs are becoming popular as outdoor seating at cafés, because the flat armrests are suitable for setting food and beverages on, making it possible to provide individual seating without using tables.
[edit] Alternative name
The Canadian name "Muskoka chair" comes from the Muskoka cottage and outdoor recreation region in southern Ontario.
