Published: January 18, 2008 11:42 pm            

Davidsville couple enjoys re-creating the past

Living in the past is not a bad thing as far as Jim and Robin Cordek of Davidsville are concerned.

The couple, who have been married for 27 years, feel a kinship to the Soap Hollow craftsmen who created a furniture style that is desired by collectors.

The Cordeks are recreating the blanket chests and various smaller boxes that have become synonymous with the painted furniture that has found favor in antique circles.

The furniture takes its name from the valley known as Soap Hollow, which runs between the Laurel and Allegheny mountains in Conemaugh Township in Somerset County, where the furniture was made from 1834 to about the early 1900s.

Pieces of furniture in this style were created by Amish-Mennonite craftsmen who produced a distinctive group of stencil-decorated furniture.

The Cordeks, who also are captivated with the Civil War era, live on a small farm with their daughters, Katherine, 21, and Sarah, 18, who both attend college.

The family has a deep respect for the past. Robin is a period seamstress who fashions Civil War-period bonnets, gowns and dresses.

Jim has participated in Civil War re-enactments and handcrafts the boxes and chests, which Robin paints.

Among the boxes’ distinctive features are the shaped skirts, dovetail joints, dominant use of red paint and black on the body and stenciled rather than hand-drawn decoration.

“This style of furniture was better known as Johnstown Furniture from 1800s up until 1970s,” Jim said. “Most original pieces bear a date of manufacture and the creator’s signature, and I do the same with my boxes.”

Jim is a senior quality control technician for North American Hoganas in Hollsopple, and Robin is a housewife.

Their interest in recreating the past came about when they visited Somerset Historical Center’s Mountain Craft Days in the mid-1990s.

“We attended Mountain Craft Days, and I told one of the vendors that the only thing missing were sun bonnets,” Robin said. “I did some research and began creating my own.”

When Jim decided to build Soap Hollow reproductions, he needed a workshop, so he built one. But in keeping with the couple’s love of all things old and a desire to preserve the past, Jim used the foundation from the homestead’s original 100-year-old farmhouse, which was in disrepair.

He began construction on Memorial Day 2001, and by Thanksgiving of the same year, it was complete. Jim also is a mason, and he constructed a chimney using old bricks from the farmhouse. As an added touch, he incorporated an outdoor oven into the back of the chimney, which Robin has used to bake bread.

While the workshop looks like something from the early 18th century with its saltbox design, wood-burning stove and weathered, rough-cut hemlock siding, it is equipped with modern woodworking tools.

Jim has become fascinated with making boxes.

His creations range in size from the more smallish candle box to the larger blanket box.

Through the years, extensive research and experience has enabled Jim to develop better techniques.

“The only place metal screws are used is to fasten hinges and locks, but everything else is secured with wooden pegs,” Jim said.

An interesting thing about Soap Hollow boxes is the inclusion of a till box in each chest.

“The till is a box within a box,” Jim said. “It has a lid, and I would say 99 percent of tills in Soap Hollow pieces can be found on the left side.”

Jim uses a variety of woods including curly maple and black walnut to make boxes, but he prefers to use poplar, just like many of the authentic pieces.

“Poplar is less acidic than other hardwoods,” he said. “It provides great strength and durability, but it didn’t degrade important papers that were often kept in these boxes.”

Some original blanket boxes have sold for as much as $18,000 at auctions, Jim said.

Jim is working on his 86th and 87th pieces.

He buys kiln-dried lumber and stores it for a year before using it.

“Kiln-drying takes every bit of moisture from the wood,” he said. “I like to store it to get acclimated to the atmosphere and humidity around it. This prevents the wood from cracking later.”

The Cordek’s prices start at $75 for a candle box and go up from there.

“I’m not doing special orders,” he said. “Having a real job puts a damper on this hobby. If it becomes work, it’s no longer fun.”

The Cordeks sell their wares at only three craft shows a year, satisfied that regional craft markets serve their needs.

Along with Mountain Craft Days, the couple travels to Friendship Hill National Historic Site in Point Marion, Greene County, and a third show that will be decided upon at a later date.

They have sold boxes that have gone to destinations from Texas to New Hampshire.

Soap Hollow furniture is at its best with its bright “Chinese” red color and bird decoration combined with the classic scrolled backboard, kite-shaped escutcheons and drop-centered skirt.

Robin uses milk-based paint, which she mixes from a powder.

“Each box starts out beautiful, but once I start applying the paint, the initial finish can be best described as ugly,” Robin said.

The dull, pink finish bears little resemblance to the final finish.

“I put on the final coat, start the stenciling and the piece is transformed into something beautiful. People either love painted furniture or they hate it,” Robin said.

For some boxes, Jim applies a shellac of his own blending.

“I apply between 40 and 60 coats, giving it a deep, rich shine that highlights the grain of the wood” he said. “I actually went to finishing school, but it had nothing to do with learning table manners.”

The couple often attends auctions where original Soap Hollow furniture is being sold.

“We take lots of pictures in order to make our pieces as authentic as possible,” Jim said.

        

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