Photographic 4th of July

Questions & Common Sense Answers

Charming Vintage Saccharin Containers

What Is It Worth?

The Antique Detective: Collectible Architectural Models

As seen in The Antique Shoppe Newspaper, July 2007

Q. Could you please teach me something about my Hitchcock chairs? I bought them at a tag sale many years ago and would like to know more about their approximate age and value. Thank you for any information. Susan M., Duluth, GA

A. Lambert Hitchcock (1795 - 1852) opened a factory to make chair parts near Barkhamsted, CT in 1826. The settlement was renamed "Hitchcocksville" in his honor not long afterward. He quickly moved from chair parts production to the complete manufacture of chairs. He mass produced a version of the then current and popular Sheraton chair, using interchangeable parts and assembly line methods. His early chairs were invariably painted black and decorated with stencil painting to emulate the imports from Europe, particularly those from France. His "fancy" chairs originally had a continuous back support and rear leg instead of the Windsor type arrangement on your chairs.

In 1832 he went into partnership with his brother-in-law Arba Alford and the company was known as Hitchcock, Alford & Co. until 1848 when Hitchcock disassociated himself from the firm. He had started another factory in 1844 in a nearby town but it had equally bad access to rail lines and was not a successful venture. The remaining company continued in business as the A. & A. Alford Co. until 1853 when it became the Phoenix Co., finally going out of business completely in 1864. The name of the town was changed from Hitchcocksville to Riverton in 1866.

The old factory was acquired and renovated by local Riverton citizens in 1946 and the Hitchcock Chair Co. was reborn. The new owners carefully accumulated original designs and stencils and base many versions of the current product line on these historical records.

The definitive book on Hitchcock, "The Hitchcock Chair", was written in 1971 by John Tarrant Kenney, published by Clarkson N Potter. It is currently out of print but copies are available from abebooks.com ranging in price from $25.00 to $85.00, depending on condition

Your chairs are modern reproductions, probably from the 1970's although this model or a very close version is still shown on the modern company's website. I recently saw a set identical to your chairs for sale in a major antiques mall for $395 for a set of four.

Q. Can you tell me if you are in the business of assessing a value to furniture and can it be done by photograph? I have several items I am needing to either sell or insure that I need advice about. I inherited these pieces and many more in the early 70's and all are pieces that were specifically made for my family.

I would appreciate knowing what you charge for such information and whether or not you can make an assessment by photo and phone. Thank you.

A. While I do occasionally quote a price or a range of values for an article that I have seen. I do not do appraisals. I merely compare items, which have sold recently or are for sale or I consult a reliable price guide if I can find one that has a comparable item. While I place very little credence in most price guides that "cover the world" I have greater faith in the ones that concentrate on a particular type of item, period or style, especially when they are included as part of recent book on the subject. This usually means recent research has been done on the subject and the values are relatively fresh.

However, a price guide is just that, a rough guide and while it is a place to start, to "get in the ball park" if you are just curious, it is not the place to stop if you intend to sell or insure a serious piece of work. For those purposes you need an appraisal by a licensed appraiser who belongs to one of the national appraisal associations.

Then you have to decide what type of appraisal you really need. Appraisals fall into two broad categories, "fair market value" and "replacement value".

A fair market value appraisal tells you what you might reasonably expect to receive for the item from a reputable dealer of like merchandise or what you might realize, before expenses, commissions, premiums etc., if the item were to be sold at a fair public auction of like items.  Fair market value is essentially a "selling" appraisal and represents what amounts to a wholesale value of the item. The IRS, in valuing gifts to charity, uses fair market value appraisals and unless otherwise noted these are the values used by insurance companies when settling claims.

On rare occasions insurance policies call for replacement values which require another type of appraisal. This kind of appraisal sets the price which would have to be paid for the item if it were purchased retail from a merchant or gallery in an arm's length transaction.

In the appraisal market you generally get what you pay for. A "free" appraisal usually is worth about what it costs. You can get electronic appraisals from several sources on the Internet starting at around $25 for basic service and going up from there for more details or you can hire a licensed appraiser, the most expensive of the choices.

 It just depends on what is at stake. It doesn't make sense to pay several hundred dollars for a well researched, well written appraisal for a $500 sideboard. That's why you start with a reliable price guide - just to found out which game you are in.

Visit Fred's website at www.furnituredetective.com. Fred Taylor's new book "HOW TO BE A FURNITURE DETECTIVE" is now available for $18.95 plus $2.00 S & H. Send check or money order for $20.95 to Fred Taylor, PO Box 215, Crystal River, FL 34423. Fred and Gail Taylor's video, "IDENTIFICATION OF OLDER & ANTIQUE FURNITURE", ($29.95 includes S & H) is also available at the same address. For more information call (800) 387-6377, fax (352) 563-2916, or e-mail fmtaylor@aol.com.