The Grenada sentinel. [volume] (Grenada, Miss.) 1868-1955, 1920-03-26
CHAIR INDUSTRY ASSUMED
LARGE PROPORTIONS IN 1888

In view of the fact that the Phoe-
nix Chair Company has only recently
located plant in Grenada, the fol-
lowing newspaper clipping from a
newspaper where the parent plant is
located will no doubt be Of special in
terest to citizens in this vicinity. The
Grenada plant is an enterprise that
Grenada feels proud of and one that
should appeal to the pride of the
whole state:
An interesting light on the chair
industry of Sheboygan is CLEANED
from the files of the Sheboygan
Daily Journal of March 16, 1883,
which publishes an exact copy of
sketch of two of the most impor-
tant factories here at the time.
The subject was involved by the
wave of free trade which was one
of the campaign issues of the presi-
dental election Of the time, which
may give some color to the article,
but the essential facts, which have
historical value, are not disputed and
the item is reproduced herewith as
being of great interest:
Famous Chair Factory.
There are four immense chair fac
tories in this city. It's leading in
dustry, in fact, is the manufacture
of this article of furniture.
1.-The yearly output is greater than
in any other city in the United
States and is estimated at 1000, 900
chairs. Two of these establishments
The Sheboygan Manufacturing Co.
and the Phoenix Chair Co.-supply
the market with what is known as the
Vienna chair. 1t is cane-seated, OF
light construction, with a bent wood
back, and either varnished or stain
ed.
This chair has a history. 1t was
exhibited by a European firm at the
Centennial Exposition in 1875 and
placed on the American market at
about the same time at $45 doz-
en-. A year afterwards chair man.
ufacturer named Seymour, Of Troy,
N. Y, began making this article and
supplying the trade, when the for
eign goods were Immediately put
down to $36. A year later the Troy
house ceased to make them. =
Exhibited at New Orleans.
( "The foreign chair, in the absence
of any competition. was kept at $50
until the winter of 1884-'S5, VIXEN
the Phoenix company got out SIM
liar line of goods and exhibited them
in competition with the foreign arti-
Gle at the New Orleans Exposition.
At the same time the Sheboygan COM
pany started to make the same goods
but shortly afterwards its factory
was burned down and its patterns
were destroyed.
"The manufacture was resumed,
however, on the premises being re-
built and new patterns obtained.
Thereupon the foreign article was re-
duced to $50 and this price was
gradually lowered until today both
the foreign and the domestic pro-
duct is sold to the jobbing trade ali
over the western country even 20
California, by both the foreign and
the home manufacturers, at $1S to
$50 per dozen, and in New York as
low as SIG and SIS.
Want Duty Continued.
"There is, however, a duty of thirty
five per cent on the foreign product,
and the Sheboygan manufacturers
claim that if it is taken off they can
not compete with it, and hundreds
of hands will be thrown out OF en-
ployment.
"Both the Phoenix Chair Company
and the Sheboygan Manufacturing
Company are prosperous concerns.
The nucleus of the latter was start
ed in 1869 with ten hands. 1t is now
an Incorporated company with cap
ital stock of $25O,000. Its main
works are Indiana street, and con-
sists of a series of handsome and at
tractive white brick buildings with
iron roofs-namely: chair factory,
engine, boiler, and shaving vault
rooms, two drying houses, finish
ing store, shipping rooms and once,
and a blacksmith shop, with spacious
yards.
A Large Force.
"The hands employed number 425,
and are divided up as follows: SAB
men, SO girls and so boys. The
wages of the men average $1.35 n
per day, girls 81 and boys 80 cents.
Those are figures given by G. l..
Holmes, superintendent of the fac
tory.
"The officers Of the company are:
G. L. Holmes, president and general
CT. DeGolyer, vice presl-
dent and treasurer, and R. G: Busch,
secretary. The principal Office and
are in Chicago, where |
there is also a smaller factory en-
ploying IT'S hands. The stockhoid-
ers reside there.
"The value of the output in She
boygan for last year is given as
S35O,OOO, and the capacity OF the
factory is 200 dozen chairs day OF !
ten hours. 1t was the first factory
in the west to manufacture what is !
known as bent stock line goods.
twenty thousand feet Of lumber are
used every day, and the pay roll av-
erages $11 900 per month when the
factory is running to its full capacit-
ty.
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