Kling Furniture Company
a brief history of the Kling Furniture Company, an iconic and now vintage furniture brand.
Kling Furniture company was created as a collection of furniture companies in New York State. John Alexander Kling, an immigrant from Sweden, purchased several struggling furniture companies, starting with the Chautauqua Spring Bed & Lounge Company in Mayville, New York in 1911.
He bought three other plants and eventually his enterprise operated under the name “Kling Factories.” Each plant focused on one style of bedroom furniture and within 17 years, Kling became one of the largest volume producers of furniture in the US.
The depression years of the late 1920s and 30s were tough on Kling, but John’s sons were able to manage and pull through as many other furniture companies caved. Aiming to continue to provide heavy, solid wood furniture of great quality remained in the company’s mission.
Quality Furniture Maker
The 1940s through 1960s became the peak production time for Kling and this is generally the period of greatest quality. More advertising opportunities in magazines such as “Better Homes and Garden” and “House Beautiful” helped solidify the company’s reputation as a quality furniture maker.
Kling
Kling was eventually purchased by Ethan Allen in 1962. Sometimes we see a piece which is marked “Kling Colonial” which signifies the joining of Kling with Ethan Allen. Ethan Allen dropped the name later.
We love Kling furniture here at Bohemian’s. To us, Kling furniture has extreme beauty, durability and history. Frequently we are lucky enough to find Kling Mahogany Furniture. Using genuine mahogany on all exposed parts AND all secondary woods (drawer bottoms and sides, inside cabinets), Kling bedroom furniture in mahogany is especially desirable and long lasting. Refinishing this vintage furniture brings back the beauty of distressed Kling pieces and we seem to never tire of it.
Kling furniture
The style of Kling furniture can vary. Often we see echoes of Chippendale Styles: shells, fluted columns and bracket feet are common among vintage Kling styles. Solid brass hardware can either be left with patina or shined to original glory. (The years of WWII left Kling, like every furniture company, not being able to use solid brass and instead using a faux proximity. If you find a piece with plated or aluminum hardware, you can date it to the war years.) We like to clean the hardware to get that sparkle and contrast on a vintage piece.
Indeed, the beauty of Kling and it’s prominence as a true American Furniture Company has not been forgotten. Certainly, we see Ethan Allen looking to its roots for furniture design with Kling. Often, the two brands are indistinguishable. Simple, classic design and high quality materials make Kling one of our go-to brands for vintage furniture. We hope that you too will enjoy this superb furniture maker.
Kling Furniture Stamp
Kling Furniture Stamp is a mark of quality furniture that originated in New York in the early 20th century. The company is known for producing solid wood furniture that is both durable and stylish. The Kling Furniture Stamp is a guarantee that the piece was crafted with care and attention to detail. Today, Kling Furniture is highly sought after by collectors and homeowners alike, with many pieces retaining their value for decades. If you’re looking for furniture that will stand the test of time, look for the Kling Furniture Stamp.
The following is a Kling Colonial Furniture Stamp, this stamp was used after Ethan Allen furniture bought the company at around 1970. The Kling Colonial stamp was used for about 2 to 3 years.
The following is the older tin badge used from the 1940’s thru the 1950’s. Kling Furniture Stamp.
Thank you for inviting us into your vintage home!
Rachel La Bohème
Bohemians Fine Furniture Store
Hi Nancy, value depends very highly on condition. I have not seen your sets style but in our own store currently we typically retail Kling Furniture long dressers in like new condition only, we list them for about $885, we also typically payout 20% plus commissions to a site that sells for us like ebay or chairish, thats there minimum fees. Tall dressers in like new or reconditioned condition about $685 to $785. The bed is not typically of any value but maybe $250 retail. Wholesale, like listing on facebook or craigslist, expect about $200 per piece in very good to good condition, if its rough then its just a painter piece worth about $75, at auction expect about the same minus any commissions, hope that helps. it is great furniture though.
I have a kling solid mahogany bed room set….Full size headboard and footboard…5 drawer tall dresser, 10 drawer long dresser with Mirror ….It has a label inside drawer number 239
Anything you can tell me about this set ….Value???
Hi Karen, the name is just who the piece was sold to and where to ship the dresser. The KF stands for “Kling Furniture” the writing around the kf usually says “makers of solid cherry furniture” or all exposed parts are some type of wood. Kling was a very good manufacturer of solid wood furniture until just about 1970 when Ethan Allen bought them out. A rough condition piece of Kling at auction really only sells for between $25 to $100. In reconditioned conditioned with clean brass hardware and waxed drawer glides and again in like new condition we regularly see prices “retail” between $400 up to $800 depending on the piece. Remember selling online carries quite a large shipping price as well as commissions paid to any service that advertised the furniture. We actually have quite a bit of Kling furniture in our home as it is very heavy great quality furniture. It just doesn’t carry the resale weight of say Kittinger or Baker fine furniture. The mahogany Kling furniture looks fantastic stripped and re-stained. I hope that helps! thank you for reading. Best, Rachel
Good Morning,
In getting ready to move, I found a dresser in the garage that I was curious about. The label on the back says
To: M??shan Cartage Co
2353 N Lincoln Avenue (spelled oddly)
Chicago, Illinois
No. 2 MHG. Chest
C-568
From: The Kling Factories, Plant No. 4, Falconer, NY
With a red circle with KF in the middle and writing around the edge I can’t decipher yet.
Also a large black stamped LACQUER imprint
Anything you can tell me about this chest? It has four large drawers, one with dividers, and a top slender drawer divided in two.
Hi there Lori! I would say a mahogany Chippendale highboy by Kling Furniture could sell for anywhere between $200 to $1000. I know that is a wide range but it really depends on condition and the look. I would suggest, a quick sale you may be able to sell it on facebook marketplace, craigslist or a similar site. Best of luck and thanks for writing!
Hi, I have a Kling Mahogany Chippendale Carved Highboy. Not sure of the date of manufacture. We are moving and cannot take it with us. Do you have any idea of the value and who might be interested in purchasing. We are in New Jersey.
Hi Richard! Thank you for the inquiry. I believe your maple chest is from the 1940s-1950s. The label that you are describing with the “Solid Genuine Hard Maple – Kling Means Solid” tends to date to the 1940s to 1950s, as many people were very interested in getting solid wood furniture at the time. Other Genuine Cherry and Mahogany labels were also used. Later in the 1960s and 1970s, you were more likely to see different tags, especially as Ethan Allen purchased the factories and started using “Kling Colonial” labels. One last thing, check the hardware of your chest. If you take off one and try to see whether it is solid or plated brass, it can help you further see the year. During the war time, brass was recalled and not used in furniture hardware. Instead, plated brass was used. So if you try to clean the underside of your drawer pull, and it shines to a silver rather than a brass color, it no doubt was made during the war. Hope this info helps! Thanks for reading!
I recently purchased a Kling Solid Maple 7 drawer chest of drawers. it has a metal rectangle tag inside side of drawer also has 700 on the back with Lacquer 1/2 stamped on back of chest also a paper label says: To Forster Furniture Company 14847 Gratiot Ave Detroit Michigan
No. 700 1/2 MPL CHEST From The Kling Factories Pland no. 3 Frewsburg, N.Y.
On left corner on bottom of lable Red label says KLING inside one drawer there is also a green label that states “All Exposed Parts Guaranteed SOLID GENUINE HARD MAPLE
KLING MEANS SOLID (that paart is inside a red square box)
UNDER THAT IT HAS CHERRY-MAPLE-MAHOGANY- UNDER THAT KLING FACTORIES MAYVILLE, N.Y.ONE OF THE 7 DRAWERS HAS A SMALL TRAY THAT SLIDES FROM FRONT TO BACK AND ONE LARGER DRAWER IS DIVIDED INTO 3 SECTIONS looking for age of chest please
Hi Dennis, Thanks for the comment! I would say the double dresser with mirror could sell for anywhere between $200-$400 and the nightstand maybe around $100-$150. The headboard likely will be the toughest thing to sell but you may be able to get $100 for it. Hope that helps! Best of Luck with it! 🙂
I inherited (from my nearly 102 yr. old Godfather) a very nice Kling Solid Hard Maple #15, 6 drawer, Double Dresser; Cutt 765 with mirror. The markings on the back side show: The Kling Factories, Plant No 1, Mayville, NY. Condition is “like new”, measuring 19″ long x 52″ wide. Also, a matching night stand (in average condition) and a matching full-size headboard , footboard and metal rails. Could you please give me a ballpark value on this very nice vintage furniture, as an individual (not a dealer) just asked me if I would sell this furniture now and I have no idea of its value. I am probably wanting to sell. I am 75 yrs. young and am not any kind of “dealer”.