The Diamond of Christiana , October 6, 2006 Lancaster New Era
by Jeanette Scott
When Donald Harkins saw the writing desk, it was love at first sight. He would pine away for a year and a half before this treasure could grace his home. Certainly he could have gone to any fine furniture store and walked out with a next day delivery scheduled for a handsome, furniture piece. But this was no ordinary piece of furniture.
It was Alexander Hamilton's desk, on display at the Museum of the City of New York. It was a one of a kind and true example of early American Craftsmanship. Should it ever be for sale, it would also be well out of reach.
But, thanks to a little company with a big reputation, tucked quietly away in Christiana, Harkins' fantasy of owning such a work came true. Just as Hamilton had commissioned the original, Harkin's commissioned Irion Company Furniture Makers to recreate the desk's captivating charm to the last detail.
In the same manner as 18th Century furniture makers, one artisan reproduced Hamilton's desk by hand from start to finish. Even the roll-top mechanism is the same.
Irion Company specializes in restoration and reproduction of 18th Century furniture. Until recently, all of its reproduction work has been commissioned. The wait averages about 18 months for a commissioned piece. Last November, Irion also began stocking a limited number of reproduction Chester County style furniture from that period.
"Our niche is that we've always been a custom furniture maker in traditional American furniture" said co-owner Kendl Monn.
"This is a dying art, this craftsmanship. The art of building furniture in the 18th Century manner has been quickly dying since the Industrial Revolution," he said.
To pass it on, he trains apprentices just as an early American furniture maker would.
However, apprenticeship in a 2006 workshop is a bit more free-spirited than one in the 1700s would have been. Instead of keeping a craftsman-in-training on one single task, such as wood cutting, Monn lets them loose to master new tasks as fast or slow as they are able.
The business even operates in much the same way. Irion Company's previous owner, Louis Irion III, supplies the furniture shop with choice lumber through his lumber company in Wellsboro. Irion Company co-owner Richard Herzog provides upholstery services in his Paoli shop. An 18th Century furniture maker, according to Monn, would have been just as self-sufficient.
At Herzog's shop, Irion's reproduction furniture is even upholstered in the early American way. First, traditional webbing is applied, followed by a layer of horse hair sandwiched in with a firm layer of muslin. Next, the piece is topped with an airy layer of down for cushioning. And finally, it is impeccably dressed in fine fabric.
Irion Company was founded in Berwyn in 1947 by Louis Irion Jr. after he caught a contagious love affair for furniture restoration and antiques from his wife's family.
In 1977, his son, Louis Irion III took over the business and moved it to Paoli. When Irion III decided to sell the company in 1988 and dedicate himself to his lumber business, Monn and Herzog welcomed the opportunity.
Herzog had provided upholstery services for Irion for years. A passion for this dying art had been imparted to Monn through years of working for both Irions. Herzog bought the Paoli property to house his upholstery business, and they moved the furniture shop to South Bridge Street ,Christiana.
Can this American artistry survive the age of assembly line furniture and same day delivery from showrooms? Monn says they've done well because in Irions more than half a century of dedication to the craft, "we've achieved a reputation that's never been blemished. That word travels real fast."
And with one look at the product and the process, their passion for 18th Century furniture travels even faster. "We get them in the door and they're hooked, " Monn said.
This love affair with the golden age of American furniture was shared so much by one client, he has commissioned Irion Company to furnish his entire Lancaster County home, a first in reproduction furniture history. At seven years and counting, the customer has waited patiently for each beloved piece to be completed.
When one client saw a piece they built from flame birch, Herzog says, she gasped. "Oh....," she said. "It's better than diamonds."
And with results like that, Irion is sure to keep the craft of American furniture making alive.