Sideboard Table

In 1899, Gustav Stickley, a leading designer and proselytizer of the American Arts and Crafts movement, founded the Craftsmen Workshops (called United Crafts before 1904) to manufacture his line of furniture. Simply designed for ease of manufacture, Craftsman furniture was modestly priced to appeal to the average American. The massive tenon-and-key joints protruding from the ends of this sideboard and the bold butterfly joints on the doors are typical of early Stickley designs in which structural elements are accentuated for decorative effect. The 1901 Stickley catalogue "Chips from the Workshops of Gustave [sic] Stickley, Syracuse, N.Y., U.S.A." illustrated this form as "Side Board No. 901." The sideboard bears a decal with an early Stickley mark, used only in 1902 and 1903, as well as the label of a retailer. The square, faceted iron drawer pull on the sideboard is found most often in pieces dating from 1901 to 1903, but this hardware continued to be offered in Stickley sales catalogue until at least 1905.