---

Comments and Tags

Be the first to comment on this item!

Login/register to comment

---

Medical ➔ Salt Tablet Dispenser

Identifier:

1987.113.15

Current Location Status:

On Exhibit

Source:

Gift Of Inc. Carl Forslund

---

Exhibit/Program:

Furniture City (1994 – 2013)
Furniture City was one of the signature core exhibits installed at the Grand Rapids Public Museum's new Van Andel Museum Center when it opened in 1994. At approximately 10,000 square feet, the exhibit occupied a significant portion of the museum's second floor and contained hundreds of pieces of Grand Rapids Furniture. The exhibition was accompanied by the authoritative book on the subject, "Grand Rapids Furniture", by GRPM curator Christian Carron. The Furniture City exhibit told a comprehensive story of the Furniture Industry in Grand Rapids, from its origins in the years after the Civil War, up to the present day with office and fixed seating manufacturers like Steelcase and American Seating. The exhibition was significantly reduced in size in 2013 to make room for a new gallery and was closed in 2019.

Related Entity:

Brothers Forslund Company (donor)
Alternate names: Carl V. Forslund, Incorporated

Grand Rapids, Michigan

COMPANY HISTORY
1935: Carl Forslund Sr. quits as a salesman for Stickley Bros. to begin his own retail consignment store.
ca. 1948: Carl V. Forslund, Inc. adds catalog and mail order sales.*
1968: Brothers Forslund Company established to succeed Eaton Shops and Grand Rapids Custom Shop in manufacturing furniture for sale through Carl Forslund retail and mail order. Name is later reversed to Forslund Brothers.
1989: Forslund Brothers manufacturing division sold to Nucraft Furniture Company of Comstock Park.
1990: Carl Forslund retail division sold to Custer Office Environments of Grand Rapids.
1991: Manufacturing plant closed.
1992: Retail stores closed.
1993: Limited production of selected Forslund pieces is resumed for a short time through an arrangement with Swartzendruber Hardwood Creations of Goshen, Indiana.

PERSONNEL
The manufacturing, retailing, and mail-order divisions of Forslund were all established by Carl V. Forslund, Sr., who remained in charge of the company from its inception until his retirement in 1972. He was succeded by his sons, who joined the business in the 1940s and 1950s. Carl Forslund, Jr. headed the manufacturing operations, Jon Forslund the retail, and Blake Forslund the overall administrative and financial management of the companies.

PRODUCTS
Forslund specialized in the manufacture of cherry, oak, and walnut furniture, in revivals of various Victorian and Early American styles. The mail-order business adopted a “folksy” style of advertising, which influenced its product line, and had great appeal to its customers. Reproductions and adaptations were made from originals associated with colorful historical figures. Forslund catalogs were filled with pieces named for famous individuals and lively histories of their namesakes. Such pieces as the “Rip Van Lee Chair” and the “Aunt Lucy Ball’s Chair” were produced for decades and became popular favorites for local residents and devoted mail-order customers.

MARKS AND LABELS
Forslund adopted the silhouette of a Merry-Go-Round horse as its trademark and the phrase “Timeless Furniture” as its motto.