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Pratt-Campbell Mansion Interior View; Wichita, KS
This rare view of the interior of the Pratt-Campbell Mansion (designed & built by William Henry Sternberg, 1832-1906) faces northeast - towards the tower. Evident is the gracefullness of the curved balausters, hard-wood paneling and detailed carvings on the newel posts.
In 1872 Charles Eastlake’s book, “Hints on Household Taste” was printed in America. Eastlake loathed the ornate and polished furniture that was in use at the time. He urged his readers to purchase simple furniture without excessive ornamentation. In 1876 nearly 10 million Americans, about 25% of the population at the time, traveled to Philadelphia for the Centennial Exposition. There they saw all the newest and latest in technology, art and design. This event wrought great changes in the American home.
In 1879 Edison created a successful, practical lighting system. This too, greatly affected decorating choices made for the home. And by the 1880’s some American writers on interior decoration began dwelling on the idea of the bathroom being a pleasurable space and not just a necessity.
Charles Eastlake dismissed the previously popular wall treatments, favoring the idea of a 3 foot high wainscoting around the principle rooms. By using wainscoting, he introduced a new 3 part horizontal wall treatment which remained in style for 2 decades. This consisted of a dado or wainscoting on the bottom (similar as can be seen here), a frieze or cornice on the top and a section called the field in between. He was the one who popularized this treatment and its imitations in all rooms of the house. The top of the wainscoting was usually 36” to 42” above the floor.
There were many ways to achieve this new 3 part wall. The most expensive way was to use real wooden panels as wainscoting (seen here in the Pratt-Campbelle Mansion), but most households couldn’t afford this. Even then, this treatment usually only appeared in entry halls and dining rooms. By the 1880’s, though ready made wainscoting was being offered for sale. It was made of plain vertical boards ¼” to 7/8” thick, glued to a heavy cloth. One could also achieve the fashionable look with wallpaper that imitated the dado, field and frieze patterns.
Lincrusta was a paper that was used to this effect, and it became very popular in the 1880’s. It was invented by Fred Walton in 1877, who also created linoleum in 1863. Lincrusta was very durable and easy to shape into corners and curves. Lincrusta, then as it is today, was made of wood pulp and linseed oil pressed into decorative molds and cut into panels. It was paintable, versatile and decorative and these points made it very popular. Lincrusta simulated tooled leather, so it was a way to “upscale” a room without the expense of tooled leather.
Anaglypta was a thick embossed paper product similar to Lincrusta but not as durable. It was patented in England in 1887 by Thomas Palmer, manager of the Lincrusta-Walton company. It was suitable for walls, friezes and ceiling decoration and was painted or glazed to suit the homeowner. There were many other heavy embossed papers around at the time too.
Your thoughts, comments, ideas and/or additional information is certainly welcomed and appreciated!!
This photo is courtesy of the Wichita-Sedgwick County Historical Museum (www.WichitaHistory.org).
Pratt-Campbell Mansion Interior View; Wichita, KS
This rare view of the interior of the Pratt-Campbell Mansion (designed & built by William Henry Sternberg, 1832-1906) faces northeast - towards the tower. Evident is the gracefullness of the curved balausters, hard-wood paneling and detailed carvings on the newel posts.
In 1872 Charles Eastlake’s book, “Hints on Household Taste” was printed in America. Eastlake loathed the ornate and polished furniture that was in use at the time. He urged his readers to purchase simple furniture without excessive ornamentation. In 1876 nearly 10 million Americans, about 25% of the population at the time, traveled to Philadelphia for the Centennial Exposition. There they saw all the newest and latest in technology, art and design. This event wrought great changes in the American home.
In 1879 Edison created a successful, practical lighting system. This too, greatly affected decorating choices made for the home. And by the 1880’s some American writers on interior decoration began dwelling on the idea of the bathroom being a pleasurable space and not just a necessity.
Charles Eastlake dismissed the previously popular wall treatments, favoring the idea of a 3 foot high wainscoting around the principle rooms. By using wainscoting, he introduced a new 3 part horizontal wall treatment which remained in style for 2 decades. This consisted of a dado or wainscoting on the bottom (similar as can be seen here), a frieze or cornice on the top and a section called the field in between. He was the one who popularized this treatment and its imitations in all rooms of the house. The top of the wainscoting was usually 36” to 42” above the floor.
There were many ways to achieve this new 3 part wall. The most expensive way was to use real wooden panels as wainscoting (seen here in the Pratt-Campbelle Mansion), but most households couldn’t afford this. Even then, this treatment usually only appeared in entry halls and dining rooms. By the 1880’s, though ready made wainscoting was being offered for sale. It was made of plain vertical boards ¼” to 7/8” thick, glued to a heavy cloth. One could also achieve the fashionable look with wallpaper that imitated the dado, field and frieze patterns.
Lincrusta was a paper that was used to this effect, and it became very popular in the 1880’s. It was invented by Fred Walton in 1877, who also created linoleum in 1863. Lincrusta was very durable and easy to shape into corners and curves. Lincrusta, then as it is today, was made of wood pulp and linseed oil pressed into decorative molds and cut into panels. It was paintable, versatile and decorative and these points made it very popular. Lincrusta simulated tooled leather, so it was a way to “upscale” a room without the expense of tooled leather.
Anaglypta was a thick embossed paper product similar to Lincrusta but not as durable. It was patented in England in 1887 by Thomas Palmer, manager of the Lincrusta-Walton company. It was suitable for walls, friezes and ceiling decoration and was painted or glazed to suit the homeowner. There were many other heavy embossed papers around at the time too.
Your thoughts, comments, ideas and/or additional information is certainly welcomed and appreciated!!
This photo is courtesy of the Wichita-Sedgwick County Historical Museum (www.WichitaHistory.org).