The Adirondack chair has existed for more than 100 years. In 1903, Thomas Lee vacationed with his family in the Adirondack Mountains in the state of New York. Without an adequate chair for the outdoor terrain, Lee set about to devise one. His primary concern was producing a chair that would be both useful and comfortable. He began to experiment with pieces of wood and tested his resulting work on his family. His final product incorporated a slanted back and seat, as well as wide armrests.
Lee took his design to a carpenter in the town of Westport. This carpenter, Harry Bunnell, must have seen potential in Lee’s idea. In 1905, two years after Lee designed what is now called the Adirondack chair, Bunnell received a patent for the design. He named the chair after his town; he called it the Westport chair. From what we know, Bunnell applied for the patient without Lee’s knowledge. With the patent in hand, Bunnell began a successful campaign. He built the chairs for the next 20 years and sold them to vacationers in the region. His benches are still around today, although their value has multiplied hugely. During these years, Bunnell also experimented with variations of the original design.
Of course, the experimentation has continued. The basic design retains the same core elements. But furniture makers have adapted the structure of the Adirondack chair to many other pieces of furniture, including rocking chairs, gliders, benches, love seats, tables, footrests, and more. Whereas the original chairs were made from woods native to New York, Adirondack chairs come today in a variety of materials, including fabricated wood and synthetic resin. Likewise, the choice of colors is endless today. And the Westport chair, named for the town in New York, has become known as the Adirondack chair, named for the mountain range in which the town and surrounding country lies.
This style of furniture, although rooted in American history, appeals to people in other countries, too. In fact, Canadians may call this chair by the name “Muskoka chair.” The province of Ontario contains a region called Muskoka, which is known for lakes and other outdoor recreation. In other circles, you might hear people refer to this style as a “Cape Cod chair.”
Despite the name game, the basic elements remain the same. Like the prototype, today’s Adirondack chair continues to be made from planks or slats. Most of these chairs still have wide, flat armrests, which allow users room to rest drinks and snacks while they sit. Many chairs sit low to the ground, which is probably why they have become popular choices for beach chairs. Most still have the angled backrest and seat.
Experimentation with the Adirondack chair will likely continue. As it does, the design may evolve in other ways. But it seems that the basic Adirondack style won’t be disappearing soon. From the product of a vacationer’s search for comfort, we have turned out a whole style of furniture that continues to appeal to people, even after a century has passed.
