Overview

Loaded with labor and time-saving conveniences, the Hoosier cabinet was among the earliest design innovations of the modern American kitchen. This culinary workstation allowed owners to maintain an efficient and clutter-free kitchen by centralizing utensils, cookware, tools, and ingredients all the while providing a space in which to prepare the meals of the day. Bloomington-based cabinetmaker Nancy R. Hiller draws on her years of specialty cabinet making and thorough knowledge of interior design to deliver an entertaining, beautiful, and informative history of the Hoosier cabinet—revealing its influence on the development of the contemporary American home. Illustrated with original manufacturers' advertisements and sales literature—some of which is previously unpublished—as well as color and black-and-white photos, this long-overdue book on an icon of the early 20th-century kitchen will be an invaluable resource to cabinetmakers, antiques enthusiasts, and homeowners planning a period-inspired kitchen.

Full Product Details

Author:   Nancy R. Hiller
Publisher:   Indiana University Press
Imprint:   Indiana University Press
Dimensions:   Width: 17.80cm , Height: 2.20cm , Length: 25.40cm
Weight:   0.830kg
ISBN:  

9780253314246

ISBN 10:   0253314240
Pages:   160
Publication Date:   07 April 2009
Recommended Age:   From 18 years
Audience:   General/trade ,  General
Format:   Hardback
Publisher's Status:   Out of Print
Availability:   In Print  
Limited stock is available. It will be ordered for you and shipped pending supplier's limited stock.

Table of Contents

Contents Acknowledgments Introduction 1. Kitchens in Context Indiana's settlement and early economy. Victorian kitchens. Urbanization. 2. Social and Material Influences on the Hoosier Cabinet's Development Women and the kitchen. The servant problem. Why Indiana? Wooton's Patent Cabinet Secretary. Ideas from Catharine Beecher and Harriet Beecher Stowe, Frederick Winslow Taylor, and Christine Frederick. 3. The Hoosier Becomes the Standard Founding of the Hoosier Manufacturing Company. Product development and efficiencies in production. Advertising, marketing, dealerships, and other secrets of the Hoosier cabinet's rise to kitchen prominence. 4. Eclipse Progress brings new products. The 1890-1930 building boom. Architectural millwork catalogs. The rise of modular cabinetry and the built-in kitchen. 5. Legacy Back to basics: the family kitchen. Freestanding kitchen furniture renaissance. Collectors, restorers, and reproductions. Using Hoosier-era documents for design inspiration and guidance. Conclusion: Saving Steps. Notes Bibliography Index

Reviews

In a very real sense, the Hoosier cabinet was a key element in the transformation of the American kitchen from the little-seen, out-of-the-way domain of servants to the focus of all family activity. This book should appeal to the American imagination. Mary Ellen Polson, senior editor of Old House Interiors Old house owners and restorers, interior designers, architects, contractors, historic preservationists, kitchen designers, and antique collectors would love a book like this. Jane Powell, author of Bungalow Kitchens

Author Information

Nancy R. Hiller is a cabinetmaker who has published in numerous period design and woodworking magazines, including American Bungalow, Old House Interiors, and Fine Woodworking. Since 1995, Hiller has operated and been principal designer at NR Hiller Design, Inc. She lives in Bloomington, Indiana.

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