Missing Bookcase To Be Returned to Craftsman Farms

For a man who never made it past the eighth grade, Gustav Stickley loved his books - and his bookcases.

When he selected the furnishings for his New Jersey Arts & Crafts log home in 1910, Stickley instructed his craftsmen to make two massive bookcases from American chestnut to display his collection of books. A photograph taken in 1911 of the southwest corner of the living room reveals a treasure trove of Stickley furnishings: a leather-topped hexagon table, two wide armchairs, a hammered copper fireplace hood, hanging lanterns and one of a matched pair of open chestnut bookcases.

After his bankruptcy in 1915, the Stickley family retreated to Syracuse, leaving behind many of the original furnishings, including the two chestnut bookcases. One of the pair has remained at Craftsman Farms ever since. The other was sold in 1989 at a New York auction, where Los Angeles film agent Ron Bernstein purchased it for his home.

After a recent conversation with David Rago, Ron Bernstein made the decision to donate the bookcase back to the Stickley Museum at Craftsman Farms. In the most recent "Notes From the Farms," Bernstein explained, "It only seems appropriate that it go back to its original home, where it is a natural fit. Over the years, my tastes have changed. I began to collect Viennese Secession pieces and started thinking, 'why do I have this bookcase and not Craftsman Farms?' "

As board member Mark Weaver observed, "a primary goal of the Collection Committee at The Stickley Museum at Craftsman Farms is to bring back as many original Log House furnishings as possible. Donations such as Bernstein's help to more accurately interpret the Log House interior as it was when the Stickley family lived in the house."

As Mark Weaver also noted, there could be no more perfect way to kick-off the Craftsman Homecoming Gala on October 15-16 than with the homecoming of one of its original residents.

For information on the Craftsman Farms Homecoming Gala, please go to http://www.stickleymuseum.org.

- Bruce Johnson