Oldenburg, Indiana
The Midwestern Germanic settlement of Oldenburg, Indiana, was initially settled in 1817 by Pennsylvania emigre William George and his brother, Oldenburg soon became the destination of the many German immigrants landing in Cincinnati. In 1837, William Flaspholer and William Ronnenbaum purchased the George brothers’ farm and platted the town, making provisions for a park, school, church, cemetery, and market place.
As the nineteenth century progressed, more immigrants, many of whom had come from the Alsace-Lorraine region of Germany and France, settled in Oldenburg. As a result, the town retained a very strong Germanic flavor, especially in its architecture. Monumental buildings, such as the Immaculate Conception Convent in 1851, the Holy Family Church in 1861, and the girls’ academy in 1885, grew skyward out of the small town, giving rise to the nickname “The Village of Spires”.
Oldenburg furniture is equally monumental and also displays a strong Germanic influence. Large cupboards and schrunken often include classical peaked pediments as well as raised, diamond panels similar to those incorporated into the furniture of other midwestern German settlements, such as Zoar, Ohio. Sidelights frequently adorn glazed-door cupboards, and the hinges on most doors are the lift-off type made of wrought iron or brass. Like most early cabinetmakers, those in Oldenburg mixed woods on pieces intended to be painted or finished with a colored wash, but they also mixed woods, such as walnut and maple, that received only a varnish finish.
The furniture of Oldenburg, Indiana is architectural and often imposing, yet well designed with pleasing proportions. The cabinetmakers who made these pieces are presently unknown, but their work survives as a testimony to their skill and their desire to retain their German heritage.
Reference note courtesy of Cowan’s Auctions, Inc.