The Rocking Chair

My Grandmother's Ladder-back

I have rarely seen a classic New England home that did not have at least one rocking chair. They are in so many ways perfect - easy to anthropomorphize as low-key, friendly, and selfless.

Our rocking chairs are almost always the first choice for guests.  This includes the old and the young, each of whom seem to appreciate the ability to both move and feel some weightlessness for different reasons.  I put rocking chair in the same strata as good kitchen smells and visible toys for children in making a house inviting.

This old ladder-back was my favorite chair in my grandmother’s house.  I have cushions for the seat and back that change seasonally.  In the coldest weather I might wrap a wool throw around the seat cushion with another thrown over the back.  In the summer I substitute them for white cotton covers and throws.

At least six generations of my family has sat in this chair, and the arms show the wear.

For Colder Weather

Although their origins are somewhat in question, (the Benjamin Franklin myth has been pretty thoroughly debunked), some think the first rocker was made in the northeast while others say it was the Windsor Rocker, made in England in 1725.  Wicker showed up shortly after that (in the eighteenth century), the Adirondack Rocker in the early 1800s, and the Boston Rocker around 1840.  Rocking chairs have historically been reserved for the elders and heads of a family.

While I usually stay far away from oak furniture, I happily make an exception in this case, as well as with my old Macey roll top desk. The Presidential Rocker (I always call it my Kennedy Rocker) may be the most comfortable chair in our house.  I also have cushions and throws for this chair.

I asked the Public Relations Manager at L.L. Bean, the affable Mary Rose MacKinnon,  how long they were offered in their catalog.  She checked back - and for her efforts I thank her - and said it was a catalog item from 1985 to 2009.  (My husband ordered mine from there around 1993.) Happily, they still sell it in their Home Store in Freeport – still made in the US - at what I believe is a reasonable $299.99. 

A true Carolina Rocker has this stamp underneath the arm.

Although infinitely less comfortable, this was always on my grandmother’s wrap-around sleeping porch.  I just like the way it looks and of what it reminds me.  She had it painted black, and in my house it has been white, now blue, and might be white again shortly 

Then there are the requisite impractical school chairs, such as this one (of course made in Gardner, Massachusetts, as they still are today at Standard Chair).

 

Like so many perfect things, rocking chairs can easily be forgotten. But their low-key contribution to the quality of our life is, for me, always appreciated.