John Adams, the HBO miniseries - who made the furniture for the sets?

D

dkeller_nc

Well-known member
Like any worthy furniture geek, I've been religously watching the HBO "John Adams" docu-drama, and not for the acting.  I've noticed some faux-pas when it comes to the furniture (like easy chairs being used as we would - as living room furniture), but overall it seems that authenticity has been given great attention by the producers. 

Since I think it's pretty unlikely that they used irreplaceable antiques on the set, does anyone know who (perhaps plural) supplied the reproductions for the show?
 
An interesting question with a good answer.  I don't know about all the furniture, but the windsor chairs used in the Continental Congress scenes in the first installment were provided by Bill Jenkins, a SAPFM member and professional chairmaker.  He did not have enough to meet the requirement so he asked several others to provide chairs.  I provided one and when I got it back it was branded as a prop in the show and even noted which delegate used it.  Along with the prop rental fee is was fun to have been a part of the production.
 
Interesting.  Ordinarily I'd have been disaffected by someone branding a piece of furniture they borrowed from me, but in this case I'd have been happy.  If I ever decided to sell it, no doubt the fact that it was judged to be authentic enough for the set designer/consultant, it'd be worth more to a collector.

One very interesting thing about the last couple of episodes was the contrast between the furniture in Monticello and Adam's Peacefield house.  I think the period of time that was represented was about 1820, and Monticello was furnished in guilded French Empire style.  Adam's house had a number of periods represented ending in Chippendale, including a highboy with a decidedly transitional William & Mary/Queen Anne look.  I wonder if that contrast was a concious choice by the producer/director to allude to Adam's frugal nature and Jefferson's interest in architecture and style.
 
I too have watched the show with great interest. I especially loved the shelf unit in the vice president's house they stayed in in Philadelphia.

Thanks guys for the interesting insight in who made some of the furniture.

Ralph
 
All,
With the research I have done, I have found that Boston and the surrounding areas never really left the Queen Anne style. They would have slightly embelished the furniture with a little bit carving but that was about it. This was due to the fact that the cabinet makers in Boston were 2nd and 3rd generation. New cabinet makers failed to establish new businesses due to the loyalties of customers to established shops. I think the historian on the set did a great job.

Mark
 
Hi Mark,

I think you probably hit the mark for Boston.  Additionally, the people were more conservative fiscally and stylistically than NYC and Philadelphia.  Heck in rural NH, the Dunlop clan continued producting their idiosyncratic brand of Queen Anne furniture right up until the 1840s.  Actually, if you count Donald Dunlop and his nephew, they are still making it today in the original family style.
 
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