How To Date Cushman Furniture? Complete Guide!

Many people do not know how to date Cushman furniture in recent times.

In the late 1800s, Cushman was the most prominent furniture maker. At its initiation, the company started off by making coat racks, pencil boxes, hat hangers, and more.

But later, Cushman must have perceived a business prospect in furniture making that had not been well exploited at the moment.

There and then, Cushman ventured into furniture manufacturing. This was over two hundred years ago.

Now, when I say Cushman, well I mean the Cushman family, for this was a family-owned entity.

In 1962, Hall Cushman sold off the Company to General Industries.

In 1971, the business was again resold to another furniture company known as Green Mountain nine years later, in 1980, the company liquidated and was closed.

Knowing the logo, the finishing process, the date, and the style of the furniture are the ideal ways to date Cushman furniture.

Cushman Furniture Legacy

Although the Cushman furniture company has long since been deceased, it left a legacy in the furniture production industry.

Most of their furniture is still sought and most people wish it came back to the market. Cushman’s legacy still lives on two hundred years later.

Over time, the firm adopted a number of wood treatments, which included a wax finish & proprietary lacquer invented by Will Cushman, to make furniture out of oak, maple, and birch.

The Cushman furniture evolved in the following ways throughout the years until its collapse.

Henry Theodore was born in the year 1844, and his initials “H.T.” stand for “Henry Theodore. Cushman was born in the Vermont town of Bennington.

Henry Theodore was born in the year 1863 “H.T. Cushman died in Vermont’s Bennington. H.T.

Henry Cushman gets discharged from the Infantry and embarks on a career as an industrialist.

Cushman Furniture Manufacturing

In the early 1870s, Cushman began producing “novelties” in small nooks very close to the public library.

Henry T. Cushman conceptualized his furniture production idea in1886. In 1901, Cushman introduced a whole line of crafty and admirable furniture in America.

William Cushman built a range of smoking stands in 1913 that soon became popular.

Cushman’s obtains a contract to produce dorm room furnishings at Bennington College.

Cushman launched a complete range of mission-style furniture in 1901. William “W.C.H” Cushman invented a series of smoking stands in 1913 that soon gained popularity.

Note: Cushman was awarded a contract to equip Bennington College's dorm rooms.

Dating Cushman Furniture by The Year of Production

Since the year 1892, the H.T. Cushman Company was a mainstay on Water Street in North Bennington, Vermont.

It would later be purchased by Green Mountain Furniture in the year 1971.

Henry Theodore Cushman began manufacturing furniture dubbed the Cushman furniture in North Bennington shortly after the Civil War had ended.

Cushman Manufacturing is most known for the Herman DeVries-designed Cushman Colonial Creations line of furniture.

In the 1910s and 1920s, Cushman furniture is therefore dated from the early to late 90s.

Anything produced later on than that is a fake or a decoy of Cushman’s work.

How to Identify Cushman Furniture

One key factor that will help you to identify Cushman’s furniture is the logo. Their logo was imprinted under their furniture and this was how it looked.

Model Numbers

Cushman’s furniture was inscribed with model numbers. How they managed to do this in the 80s is applaudable.

Between the 1930s and 1940s, Cushman furniture used paints and metals at times to give their furniture model numbers.

Since alterations were on the rise, they wanted to have a mark on their furniture that assured their customers that the furniture was indeed from Cushman.

The Logo

The Cushman’s Logo is one other way we can use to date Cushman’s furniture.

The logo was placed underneath the furniture in a professional attachment.

The Finishing Process

The Cushman company’s finishing process for their furniture was like no other.

They would use the nine-part finishing process that was of amazing quality.

Cushman industries used natural shellac for their furniture to afford the warm color.

The Internet

You can as well browse the internet to learn about Cushman’s furniture with the dates of production.

The internet is a library with most of everything you will want to know.

There is vital information about Cushman’s furniture on the internet that will help you date it.

The Cushman Catalog

Cushman 1939 produced their first ever furniture catalog. This catalog can be found online from any furniture archive.

The catalog helps us know how to date Cushman furniture accurately with the years of production.

For example, the Lenox Chair by Cushman was produced in the same year 1939.

According to the Bennington Museum, the company’s first real furniture was racks and coat and hat hangers.

In 1892, the firm relocated to its current location on Route 67A, and in 1899, it was established under Vermont law.

By this time, the firm had produced 150 distinct pieces of fine furniture and employed 30 to 100 workers.

In 1933, Cushman launched the Colonial Creations line, followed by the Modern Creations line in 1936.

Tip: Cushman was the first company to use blacksmiths' nail boxes and cobblers' benches as inspiration.

Cushman Colonial Creations

Smokers’ stands were out of fashion before the 1930s, the company had to find its feet and make reinvention of its catalog.

They unveiled a new range of furniture that was inspired by the early-nineteenth-century Colonial Revival trend in 1933.

Cushman Colonial Creations, the new line, was a huge success.

Cushman Furniture Company’s regular reinvention, which corresponded with the debut of new goods, is one of the company’s most distinctive features.

The company’s first goods were modest home decorations and pieces; their second revival saw the debut of Mission-style furniture.

Their third revival saw the production of a wide range of smoking stands.

Then, their last reinvention witnessed the establishment of Colonial Revival furniture that has been for decades.

Dining room sets, bedroom sets, and furnishings for practically all the rooms in the house were all part of its Colonial Revival furniture range.

Note: Beautiful & Vermont maple is included in some of Cushman's most iconic goods. In fact, Cushman used some lovely treatments that really brought out the richness and color of the maple wood.

Useful Tips When Purchasing Cushman Products

If you’re thinking about buying something from Cushman Furniture, keep the following pointers in mind.

• Mission-style furniture should be about 1900-1910
• Smoking stands should be around 1910-1920s or at its earliest, early 1930s
• Colonial Revival furniture should be around 1933-1964 when the firm was bought.

The style is the most accurate method for determining the age of old Cushman furniture.

This is because the firm has had several pivots over its history, it is surprisingly simple to limit furniture dates based on the sort of furniture you want to buy.

Tip: When acquiring Cushman Furniture Company items, keep the aforementioned guidelines in mind of furnishings to narrow down the date.

Conclusion

This article has given you the coolest history of Cushman’s furniture, the evolution of the company till its downfall, and a few tips on how to date Cushman furniture.

Although Cushman furniture was last made several years ago, we still relish them for the craftsmanship and beauty that was applied in making them.

Cushman was a leading furniture maker in the gone days whose skills were undisputedly the best.

You can still find some of Cushman’s furniture from online marketplaces, or from dealers near you.

You however need to be careful since you can fall for fake ones. We hope this article helps you find what you are looking for.