It helps to go to the horse's mouth to get an idea of things like what a chair was purposed for when it was built. I ask about seat height because it's a number typically listed in late 19th and early 20th century catalogues. One will notice that kitchen chairs, sewing chairs, dressing chairs, occasional chairs and dining chairs tended to have different seat heights, and some chairs were built specifically for adolescents and older children. Since it was obvious one chair didn't match, and the seats were so short to the floor, I wanted to know if the seat heights were constant. The fact that they are and that they're too short to be for dining use speaks to the probability they were all cut off to match a common seat height. Of course one or more chairs might have had a worn leg, but these were all modified at one time, and painted at one time to look like a matched set. Nobody claimed that the person who did it did it well. Defining whether one or all was meant to be a dining chair would be worth knowing and most of them did have a pretty constant seat height in that time frame because they had to be used with a dining table. Just going around measuring seat heights of random ladderbacks doesn't speak to what I was getting at. My ladderbacks have very tall seat heights, but I know what they are and where they came from. The were used in pool halls in the late 1800s and have been in the family since the turn of the century. The finial style and the type wood used, would help date these more closely. They are consistent with late 1800s, especially the one with the finials. I have found nearly exact duplicates of this style in that era. However, ladderbacks have such a long history they have been made right along. Take this one for instance. Looks pretty old, but is a pine repro from the early 1960. Saying we can tell you when these were in vogue, but given what you have shared....and with no real defining details, that's about all we can tell you other than surmising history.

Thanks for the input linda. Curious what your eyes see that makes you suspect plastic for the seat? (looked for shiny areas but my tired eyes don't see it ;) I really liked this chair at first look (love a Windsor!). What attracted me was that it was a little different. But now that I've had time to study the photos it seems as if it might be trying too hard to be Early American? It's the turned wood spindles on the back that keeps throwing me. I see what you mean about the rake and splay, both look on the tight side. But then I see something else that makes me wonder. Are you able to zoom in close enough on the rear view, to the back of the seat? Can you see the joinery? It's too precise for hand-made (which the really, really old Windsors were, but we already know it's not 18th century). Would they do joinery like that in a newer, more mass produced repro? In a newer/later (say 1950's) repro I'd expect screws and glue and perhaps a solid piece of wood for the back section of the seat, with support underneath? Not pieced together at middle + sides. Also wonder now if it that is a bad strip job but a good poly job. (Would expect finish 'wear' on the seat, maybe upper back from being handled, but not legs.) Doing a lot of wondering, here, lol. (Just stumbled onto it, & it's quite far from me so not easy to do a go see.) It's a little chair I was considering for the farm house. I like your value far better than asking price ;) Oh, I had all that typed and just now received seat bottom pic. Repair could explain rake and splay. Not thrilled with those staples.

It's a Queen Anne style chair with a pad foot. It looks relatively new, late 20th century. The small wing with the volute or turnout on the seat gives it extra detail, but these chairs are pretty common. If it's sturdy and kind of heavy it may have been made for the commercial environment. If they are in good condition they have the value of quality used furniture, but not more.

Great ideas there, I love the wood Crafstman's style one especially. I do know a carpenter, don't know if he's quite capable of that kind of work, but, he might be. I actually have been scouring Ebay for some vintage tables like that one. Good ones, not so easy to come by. I saw one recently but the top was too badly chipped. I've been walking into local antique stores also and haven't seen any yet. I did see the perfect real wicker porch furniture but I was afraid the squirrels would eat it up just like they have been doing to my porch :P I can't really close up the area because of where the cabinets are let alone, when I renovated it had been sort of closed off, and I opened it up at that time so that I'd be able to have more counter space and more cabinetry. There was sort of a separation between that area as it used to be the old porch which got added to the house and I toyed with making it an arch - to match the arched doorway which leads to the hallway on the other side of the kitchen (not seen in these photos but, can be seen in another thread that I posted today about possible backsplash choices). BTW, I have a lot of Fiestaware, not vintage, although I do have a set of another vintage set similar to Fiesta - I forget the name of it off-hand. It's one of the reasons why I had some glass cabinets put into my kitchen; I have a lot of vases, shakers, small pitchers, etc. that I like to show off.