Drexel Travis Court Collection Mahogany Federal Chest of Drawers, circa 1940s
View Similar Items
Drexel Travis Court Collection Mahogany Federal Chest of Drawers, circa 1940s
About the Item
- Creator:Drexel (Manufacturer)
- Dimensions:Height: 50.5 in (128.27 cm)Width: 36 in (91.44 cm)Depth: 21 in (53.34 cm)
- Style:Federal (In the Style Of)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:circa 1940s
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use.
- Seller Location:Germantown, MD
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU5751226743982
Drexel
While vintage Drexel Furniture dining tables, dressers and other pieces remain highly desirable for enthusiasts of mid-century modern design, the manufacturer's story actually begins decades before its celebrated postwar-era Declaration line took shape.
In 1903, in the small town of Drexel in the foothills of North Carolina’s Blue Ridge Mountains, six partners came together to found a company that would become one of the country’s leading furniture producers. The first offerings from Drexel Furniture were simple: a bed, washstand and bureau all crafted from native oakwood, sold as a bedroom suite for $14.50.
One of Drexel’s early innovations was to employ staff designers, something the company initiated in the 1930s. This focus on design, which few other furniture companies were committing to at the time, allowed Drexel to respond to a variety of new and traditional tastes. This included making pieces inspired by historic European furniture, like the popular French Provincial–style Touraine bedroom and dining group that borrowed its curves from Louis XV-era furniture. Others replicated the ornate details of 18th-century chinoiserie or the embellishments of Queen Anne furniture. Always ready to adapt to new customer demands, during World War II, Drexel built a sturdy desk designed especially for General Douglas MacArthur.
In the postwar era, Drexel embraced the clean lines of mid-century modernism with the Declaration collection designed by Stewart MacDougall and Kipp Stewart that featured elegant credenzas and more made in walnut, and the Profile and Projection collections designed with sculptural shapes by John Van Koert. In the 1970s, Drexel introduced high-end furniture in a Mediterranean style.
Drexel changed hands and visions throughout the years. It was managed by one of the original partners — Samuel Huffman — until 1935, at which time his son Robert O. Huffman took over as president. It was then that the company began to expand, with several acquisitions of competitors in the 1950s, including Table Rock Furniture, the Heritage Furniture Co. and more. With the manufacturer’s success — spurred by its embrace of advertising in home and garden magazines — it opened more factories in both North and South Carolina. By 1957, the company that had started with a factory of 50 workers had 2,300 employees and was selling its furniture nationwide.
Drexel underwent a series of name changes in its long history. Its acquisition of Southern Desk Company in 1960 bolstered its production of institutional furniture for dormitories, classrooms, churches and laboratories. In the following decades, contracts with government agencies, hotels, schools and hospitals brought its high-quality furniture to a global audience. U.S. Plywood-Champion Papers bought Drexel Enterprises in 1968, and it became Drexel Heritage Furnishings.
In 2014, the last Drexel Heritage plant, in Morganton, North Carolina, reportedly closed its doors. The company rebranded as Drexel in 2017.
The range of vintage Drexel furniture for sale on 1stDibs includes end tables designed by Edward Wormley, walnut side tables designed by Kipp Stewart and lots more.
- Drexel Campaign Chest of Drawers / Bachelor Chest, Circa 1960sBy DrexelLocated in Germantown, MDOffered is a beautiful 1966 Campaign Chest of drawers / Bachelor campaign Chest in excellent condition by Drexel. Smooth gliding dovetail drawers. Measures 34" Wide x 19" Deep x 45...Category
Mid-20th Century American Campaign Commodes and Chests of Drawers
MaterialsBrass
$975 Sale Price / item35% Off - Drexel Bicentennial Chippendale Mahogany Four Drawers Bedside Chest of DrawersBy DrexelLocated in Germantown, MDA beautiful bed side chest of drawers / nightstand from the prestigious Drexel's Bi Centennial Collection. Very good vintage condition with few signs of use. Measures 23.5" in widt...Category
Late 20th Century American Chippendale Commodes and Chests of Drawers
MaterialsBrass
$796 Sale Price / item11% Off - 1940s Carlton House Mahogany Chest on Chest Of DrawersBy Carlton House Fine FurnitureLocated in Germantown, MDVery rare 1940s Carlton House mahogany chest on chest of drawers. Rock solid red mahogany wood. Fruitwood drawers. Heavy duty drop pull antique brass han...Category
Mid-20th Century English Chippendale Commodes and Chests of Drawers
MaterialsBrass
$2,275 Sale Price35% Off - 1940s English Chippendale Mahogany Commode Chest of DrawersLocated in Germantown, MDEnglish Chippendale Mahogany Commode Chest of Drawers. Features 4 large drawers functioning to perfection with dovetailed joints. Measures...Category
Early 20th Century American Chippendale Commodes and Chests of Drawers
MaterialsBrass
$971 Sale Price35% Off - 1940s Pennsylvania House Chest of DrawersBy Pennsylvania HouseLocated in Germantown, MDVintage distressed Pennsylvania House chest of drawers. Few signs of age. Measurements: 25 W x 14 D x 25 H.Category
Mid-20th Century American Chippendale Commodes and Chests of Drawers
MaterialsBrass
$503 Sale Price35% Off - Travis Court Mahogany Ornate Urn Wall / Mantle/Fire Pl. Mirror by Drexel, C1940sBy DrexelLocated in Germantown, MDTravis Court Mahogany Ornate Urn Wall / Mantle / Fire Place Mirror by Drexel, Circa 1940s. Very good vintage condition. Measures 51" in width and 41.5" i...Category
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Mantel Mirrors and Fireplac...
MaterialsMirror, Mahogany
$1,105 Sale Price35% Off
- Travis Court Collection Drexel CabinetBy DrexelLocated in Pasadena, TXTravis Court Drexel buffet Georgian style mahogany buffet cabinet featuring 3 drawers and shelving below. Brass pulls. Measures: 36" Width x 18" De...Category
Vintage 1960s North American Federal Cabinets
MaterialsMahogany
$1,760 Sale Price20% Off - Russel Wright, Chest of Drawers, Mahogany, 1940sBy Russel Wright, Heywood-Wakefield Co.Located in High Point, NCA sizeable bleached mahogany chest of drawers designed by Russel Wright and produced by Heywood Wakefield, USA, c. 1940s.Category
Vintage 1940s American Mid-Century Modern Commodes and Chests of Drawers
MaterialsMahogany
- American 18th Century Federal Mahogany Chest of DrawersLocated in Carmel, CASheraton style chest with four graduated drawers with inlay banding and cock beading about the perimeter. The chest has a curvaceous apron and Fr...Category
Antique Late 18th Century American Federal Commodes and Chests of Drawers
MaterialsMahogany
- Federal Style Mahogany Chest of Drawers with Lift TopLocated in New York, NYAmerican Federal style 19th century mahogany chest of drawers with 2 lower drawers above dummy drawers having a lift top with replaced brass...Category
Antique 19th Century American Federal Commodes and Chests of Drawers
MaterialsMahogany
- American Federal Chest of Drawers in West Indies Mahogany, Baltimore, circa 1835Located in Miami, FLFrom the Federal period, a very beautiful American Neoclassical chest of drawers in fine West Indies mahogany with two overhanging small drawers supported by turned and reeded column...Category
Antique Early 19th Century American Federal Commodes and Chests of Drawers
MaterialsMahogany
- Early American Federal Chest of Drawers in Bookmatched MahoganyLocated in Hopewell, NJFrom the Federal period, a very beautiful American Neoclassical chest of drawers in fine bookmatched mahogany with one overhanging drawer supported on the sides by two beautifully tu...Category
Antique 19th Century American Federal Commodes and Chests of Drawers
MaterialsMahogany