| By :
Wendy Moyer
Little was known about the upstate New York area around the Adirondack Mountains before the 1830s. And it wasn't until after the end of the Civil War that the region was surveyed by Ebenezer Emmons. After that the Adirondacks became known as a place where people could go to experience Nature's bounties. Folks soon began to move into the area. This led to an increase in tourism. Shortly thereafter extravagant hotels and guest houses were being built by wealthier segments of the population. Then, during the 1870s, a new type of architecture came to the fore. William West Durant called his designs the "Great Camp" and the name stuck. Durant borrowed design elements from European Swiss chalets for his buildings. He used local materials that harmonized with Nature and constructed edifices that could stand up to the elements with visually appealing designs. The Great Camps were essentially opulent mansions that late nineteenth century magnates commissioned to be built in the Adirondack Mountains. The rustic elegance of these mountain mansions became even more spectacular once native stones and woods were used to highlight certain areas. The natural knots and curves of the roots and limbs of trees native to the area were used to create porch railings and gables on the outside of the buildings. They were also used to make the rustic furniture that graced the insides of the Great Camps. During the winters the camps' caretakers often whiled away their time making tables and chairs out of branches and logs. They often kept the bark on the wood and incorporated the various hues of their chosen media into their unique one-of-a-kind pieces. Local woodsmen crafted two styles of rustic furniture. One was twiggy. It involved using recognizable parts of trees. The other was simply constructed furniture that was more suited for the outdoors and didn't resemble trees at all. Classic Adirondack chairs fall into the latter category. The Adirondack chairs were constructed of thin sheets of wood whose bark has been removed. It had a wide slatted back, its seat was built at a deep angle - the better for relaxing. And its arms were designed to be wide enough to hold a plate and a drink. Nowadays both twig furniture and Adirondack chairs are used in homes across the country and around the world. While the designs naturally fit into log cabins, they are equally at home tucked into the corner of an urban apartment where they can offer a brief respite from the hustle and bustle of city life. Recently other media has been used to build these classic pieces of furniture. One is called "Polywood." It's very appealing from an ecological perspective because it is made of recycled plastic. Aesthetically, it looks like real wood. However, it is extremely durable and pretty much maintenance free.
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