Seldom Seen Lane 'Switch-Blade Coffee / Cocktail Table Classic Mid Century

Lane’s Acclaim furniture collection of coffee tables, end tables, dressers and more has been compared to Drexel’s wildly popular Declaration series for its blend of traditional craftsmanship and the impeccably clean contours that are frequently associated with the best of mid-century modern design. 

When the first iteration of the Lane Furniture company began to produce its now-famous Lane cedar chests in the early 20th century, the family behind the brand was unsure of how successful they’d be, so they initially didn’t bother adding their name to the offerings.

In the spring of 1912, in the town of Altavista, John Lane purchased a defunct box factory at a bankruptcy auction. His son, Edward Hudson Lane, was tasked with the manufacturing of the cedar “hope” chests for which the Lane family would become known, even though the company was initially incorporated as the Standard Red Cedar Chest Company.

The Standard Red Cedar Chest Company struggled in its early days but secured a government contract to produce pine ammunition boxes during World War I. The company prospered and applied mass-production methods to its cedar-chest manufacturing after the war, and, in 1922, rebranding as the Lane Company, it implemented a national advertising campaign to market its products. 

Ads tied Lane’s strong cedar hope chests to romance. Anchored by copy that read “The gift that starts the home,” the campaign rendered a Lane cedar chest a necessary purchase for young women to store linens, clothing and keepsakes as they prepared to marry.

In the 1950s, Lane branched out into manufacturing tables, bedroom pieces and other various furnishings for the entire home. Today, the brand’s vintage mid-century furniture — which includes the Perception, Tuxedo and Acclaim collections — is highly sought after. 

Print advertisements for Lane’s Acclaim series suggested that it included “probably the best-selling table in the world.” Before its offerings expanded to include items for the bedroom and dining areas of the home, Lane was primarily known for its tables and case pieces — there are side tables, coffee tables and more in the Acclaim collection, each sporting graceful tapered legs and dovetail inlays. 

Altavista designer Andre Bus, who joined Lane in 1954, created the Acclaim collection. It initially debuted in the late 1950s before the company revisited and expanded the line in 1962. Crafted in warm walnut, the Acclaim furnishings have understandably drawn comparisons to the Scandinavian modernist furniture that gained popularity in the United States during the postwar years.

Later, during the 1960s, Lane offered handsome modular wall units created by the likes of Paul McCobb, an award-winning Massachusetts-born designer best known for his work at Directional.

The company was acquired by United Furniture Industries in 2017 and became particularly well-known among contemporary consumers for its upholstered furniture. In 2022 United abruptly closed and ceased operations at Lane.

Vintage Lane furniture is generally characterized by relatively neutral styles, which are versatile in different kinds of interiors, as well as good quality woods and careful manufacturing. All of these attributes have made Lane one of the most recognizable names in American furniture.

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