WW2 Office Furniture

[BEAST]

@Willys-

 

Yes, I have a similar story. My father purchased it in 1968 from an ad in an employer's newsletter in Fort Wayne, IN. He used it for the next 20 years as his anchor piece in his library. It came to me in 1998 after he died. I've never been able to use it as he did, however, and after 16 years of dragging it across the country, I think I'm ready to part with it.

 

Not sure how the person my father bought it from got it, but probably he got it in similar fashion to what you wrote. I know the government sold off its excess stuff for cheap after the war, so who knows what happened.

 

The desk is so well built that I'm surprised I haven't been able to locate more. But then again the darn thing is so heavy, perhaps folks just gave up on them and they wound up in the dump.

 

 

 

Do you know which company in Fort Wayne that it came from? I grew up there.

 

[SWBorderers]

@Beast-

 

Yep, my father picked it up from an employee from Lincoln Life. The desk didn't belong to Lincoln Life, but rather to someone who worked there. I have no idea of the chain of custody prior to that.

 

Good to talk to another person from Fort Wayne! There ain't too many of us down here in San Antonio.

[RustyCanteen]

 

At the Navy Department in Washington these guys seemed to have been given whatever was available. a couple guys have decent desk chairs but one is sitting on something that looks ike it came from the dining room.

 

navydeptfurn.jpg

 

 

Actually they are. The budget was really low for such items in the interwar years and there is a report floating around where they (Navy) tried to requisition funds for office furniture and equipment to replace the worn out stuff they had been using. I believe the report pointed out that most of the items had been purchased during WWI and some before then even.

 

RC

[12thengr]

Those molded plywood chairs are nice when you can find them. I used to find them all the time, then they dried up almost overnight. I think I have a good half dozen of them, all military marked.

 

 

 

Yes, indeed.

Love the square-leg field table. Been looking for one of those for a very long time, finally found one at the MVPA convention in July, paid a small fortune for it but I'm glad I finally have the correct pattern field desk for my displays...

Home built from plans downloaded from the 90th ID site. Pretty simple as I'm not much of a carpenter.

[billl]

Excellent photos. I'm not thinking of field office gear, but regular office equipment. Here are two pics. The chair is made by Gunlocke.

 

I have one of those American Seating Chairs. Glad to get it. Looking for a second. I think I paid $20 or so at an antique shop, was glad to

get it for that. Stylish. I use it when I set up my WWII jeep at shows.