Patent for the First La-Z-Boy Reclining Chair, January 24, 1929

THF290342 / Patent for the First La-Z-Boy Reclining Chair, January 24, 1929
01

Artifact Overview

In 1927, cousins Edwin Shoemaker and Edward Knabusch established a successful furniture company through a combination of invention and marketing savvy. The "La-Z-Boy" reclining chair technology they developed--and the creative ways they advertised it to customers--came to define the cousins' business. This copy of their patent shows the mechanism that made their upholstered chair recline -- a step toward the iconic La-Z-Boy recliner.

Artifact Details

Artifact

Photographic print

Date Made

24 January 1929

Subject Date

20 January 1931

Location

By Request in the Benson Ford Research Center

Object ID

2015.78.1.81

Credit

From the Collections of The Henry Ford. Gift of La-Z-Boy, Incorporated.

Material

Paper (Fiber product)

Technique

Printing (Process)

Color

Black-and-white (Colors)

Dimensions

Height: 10 in
Width: 8 in

02

Related Content

  • Patent for the First La-Z-Boy Reclining Chair, January 24, 1929
    Set

    Technological Innovations at La-Z-Boy

    • 19 Artifacts
    In 1927, Edwin Shoemaker and Edward Knabusch -- cousins with a shared interest in building things -- founded a furniture-making business. Their ambition to create new products (and to improve upon existing ones) became a defining characteristic of the company. This group of artifacts represents La-Z-Boy's history of innovation motivated by consumers' ever-changing tastes and demands.