A Dentist's Shop is Fitted Up

In 1848, Waldo Hanchett patented a dental chair by attaching a neck extension to a four-legged chair.  The dental chair depicted here from Canterbury Shaker Village’s collection incorporates these features.  Constructed between 1850 and 1870, this chair is attributed to Enfield Shaker Village, NH (1993 donation to CSV).   

Improvements continued to be made to dental chairs throughout the 19^th and 20^th centuries to encourage patient comfort.  What has emerged in the process is a unique style of furniture used in many medical settings. Improvements included neck braces, reclining options, and the ability to raise and lower the chair.   

Here are some examples of improved dental chairs: 

By the 1880s, chairs like the “Stuck Chair” invented by Dewell Stuck used a disc base and double clutch to raise and lower the patient.  The first hydraulic system was introduced with the “Jacknife chair” of 1890.     

A second dental chair in Canterbury Shaker Village’s collections dates to the 1860s-1880s and may have been one used by Elder Henry Blinn for his practice.  Although this chair is commercially-made, it has been ‘Shakerized’ or improved by the Enfield, NH, Shakers to adjust the height. 

Quote:

"May 31, 1911 "I[rving] Greenwood returns from Ohio via N.Y. city.  The dentist chair has been upholstered by Lincoln & Co. of Concord, N.H. The chair was made at Enfield N.H. Shakers and covered with home made woolen cloth. This was so badly moth eaten we had this removed and covered with leather."  Excerpt from Josephine Wilson's diary.

Captions:

1. Dentist's Chair. Attributed to Enfield Shaker Village.  CSV Collection# 1994.240.1.
2. Dentist's Chair.  CSV Collection# 1982.477.1.