Return to search

Decent Furniture for Decent People: The Production and Consumption of Jacques & Hay Furniture in Nineteenth-Century Canada

The Canadian firm of Jacques & Hay was in business for fifty years, during
which the company, if The Globe (Toronto) is to be believed, furnished the Province
of Canada. This was a stunning and largely undocumented success. Jacques & Hay
was one of the largest employers in the province and dominated the cabinet-making
trade from 1835 to 1885. In 1871, Jacques & Hay employed 430 men and 50 women
in a vertically-integrated operation that included a sawmill, two factories and a
showroom. Jacques & Hay produced abundant furniture at reasonable prices. The
availability of such household furnishings greatly enhanced domestic life in
nineteenth-century Canada, providing scope for a more elaborate social life and
allowing more people to achieve a greater sense of comfort and decency in their living
arrangements.

Identiferoai:union.ndltd.org:LACETR/oai:collectionscanada.gc.ca:OOU./en#10393/19736
Date04 February 2011
CreatorsJacques, Denise
Source SetsLibrary and Archives Canada ETDs Repository / Centre d'archives des thèses électroniques de Bibliothèque et Archives Canada
LanguageEnglish
Detected LanguageEnglish
Typethesis

Page generated in 0.0018 seconds