Wednesday, August 24, 2011

Furniture Restoration

Duckloe is pleased to offer a new service for repairs and refinishing of your cherished solid wood furniture.  Our skilled craftsman and finishers each have over thirty five years of experience working for us.  Please call Fred or Barbara at 570-897-6172 for details.

Monday, August 15, 2011

An Introduction to Frederick Duckloe & Brothers

Located in Portland, Pennsylvania, a village on the border of New Jersey, just south of the Delaware Water Gap, Frederick Duckloe & Bros. is firmly committed to many of the same techniques in the manufacture of Windsor reproductions as were used in 1859 when Frederick Duckloe founded the firm.  Because of this dedication, our furniture is among the best available for purchase anywhere.  Just take a look at a few of the highly regarded institutions that have entrusted us with the scaled reproduction of priceless pieces from their collections:

  • Independance Hall, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
  • Smithsonian Institute, National Museum of American History, Washington, DC
  • The Society for the Preservation of New England Antiques, Boston Massachusetts
  • First Boston Coropoation, Boston, Massachusetts
  • Mystic Seaport Aquarium, Mystic, Connecticut
Our chairs can also be found in these places of distinction:

  • American Yacht Club, Rye, New York
  • Blair Academy, Blairstown, New Jersey
  • Franklin & Marshall College, Lancaster, Pennsylvania
  • Fraunces Tavern, New York City, New York
  • Jimmy's Harborside Restaurant, Boston, Massachusetts
  • Princeton Theological Seminary, Princeton, New Jersey
  • Washington Chapel, Freedom Foundation at Valley Forge, Valley Forge, Pennsylvania
  • City Tavern, Independence Park, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania


The evolution to this high level of regard in the furniture business began in 1859 with master craftsman, Frederick Duckloe when he fashioned, by hand, the spokes, rims, hubs, frame and body of passenger carriages.  He soon began experimenting with the production of plain and fancy Windsor chairs.  With success, he soon focused on the production of these chairs leaving the carriage business behind.  Today, his chairs are greatly sought after by serious collectors of early American furniture.

Soon after, Frederick Duckloe trained his only son, W.J. Duckloe in the trade.  Soon W.J. make his own mark by creating fine early American reproductions of hand-turned high-poster beds, bureaus, chests and tables all of solid hardwoods with exquisite detail.  Assuming this newly established family tradition, W.J. Duckloe schooled his soon Frederick Duckloe Sr. in the craft of cabinet making.

Young Frederick Duckloe remained busy in cabinetry until World War II when his talents were called upon for more patriotic efforts, mainly for the production of military drafting tables.  After the war, Fred, as we was called, cultivated a highly skilled group of artisans to meet the demand for furniture after the war's end.  This is when he and his team focused on the reproduction of traditional Windsor chairs and settees and developed new patterns for which we are presently known.

Today, Frederick Duckloe, Jr. and Barbara Duckloe Townsend, son and daughter of Fred Sr., are the proud custodians of this family furniture making tradition.  They've modernized much of the business with the exception of the production of furniture.

In our factory we employ sixteen artisans and their apprentices who craft fine furniture with the same spirit of tradition started by the first Frederick Duckloe in the mid-nineteenth century.  You'll also be delighted to find, along with our collection of furniture for sale, many of the top names in find furniture for your home.
    We've created this blog to help advertise special promotions, events, and to generally publicize what is going on at Duckloe Brothers.  We hope you'll enjoy our posts and look us up on our official webpage at www.duckloe.com or come to visit us in person at our showrooms in Portland, Pennsylvania.