Lorain Lighthouse Furniture Dilemma
By Sue Clark on Jan 24, 2008 in Featured, Other 
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Furniture Needed For Restoration
The Lorain (Ohio) Lighthouse may be missing its Fresnel Lens, but the Port of Lorain Foundation is nonetheless working to redo the house in period furniture. Their dilemma right now, though, is what era? According to a story in the Morning Journal, the choice is between the 1920s, from when the lighthouse was first built (1917), or the 1950s, from which they have photos. Two committees are working on collecting donated furniture in good condition to help with the cost. Items like beds, stoves, desks, kitchen tables are needed.
”Which era we’re going to do it in is being discussed. It’s probably going to be months down the road before any determination is even made,” said Mickey Van Wagnen, restoration chairman for the Port of Lorain Foundation. ”(The furniture) is a big part of this project. We all want to make sure it is talked about, looked at, discussed in every angle.”
The furniture should be appropriate to the era, but should also still be usable, Van Wagnen said. ”We’re trying to make it look like a museum, but if someone wanted to cook a pot of coffee, you (should be able to) do it,” he said, “such as for a fundraiser or educational purposes.”
Should It Be the 1920s?
When you think of the 1920s, the first thing that comes to mind is Art Deco. While that may be what the stylish people of the era placed in their homes, I doubt if the government would be putting fancy furniture in a lighthouse, especially one not right on the land. You’d be more likely to find a kitchen that looks like this one below.
Or more likely the style would be in the poor persons’ fashion. After all, lighthouse keepers were paid a pittance. They might have had a modern gas stove, though (below). It would have been a little difficult to get wood out on a pile of rocks.
If the lighthouse keeper’s wife was lucky, she might on occasion have a visitor to entertain in the parlor.
After a hard day of polishing the brass, the couple may have settled down in a (gasp) brass bed for the night. That is, when the Keeper didn’t have to crawl out of bed every couple of hours to trim his wicks.
So How About the 1950s?
Retro mid century modern is right now all the decorating rage, proving that everything old is new again (except of course, me). So the Foundation might have difficulty getting people to donate furniture from this era, but if someone did, at least they’d have a bigger tax write off after an appraisal told them how much it’s worth. Who’d have thought that those formica topped chrome kitchen tables would be so hot right now? But they are.
And the big thing in living room furniture back in the 1950s was Danish Modern. For example, a good living room set suitable for lighthouses might look like these pieces.
And no mid century modern home would be complete without blonde wood furniture. For example, the coffee table below. Or the dining room set below that. 
Our family had something similar to the style below, and it also had a china cabinet and a buffet table to match. The wood wasn’t always blonde, but that was the preferred look.
For sleeping, the beds were still metal, but of a different style than the old brass or iron beds. These had solid headboards and footboards. Check the price in the ad on a complete set. Oh, and it was most likely that was the type of bed used, since it did come from the Sears catalog.
Donate, Don’t Sell
So, if you recognize anything in the pictures above collecting dust in your house, don’t run out and sell it on E-Bay. Consider donating to the Lorain Lighthouse restoration and get a tax deduction instead. And knowing that your family heirlooms will delight generations of lighthouse lovers for years to come. Contact the Black River Historical Society if you can help with a donation.
Photo Credit: Lorain Lighthouse Interior by Henery Hawk on Flickr. Some rights reserved.
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