At home on the range - 'cowboy' furniture, and rooms, designed by Thomas Molesworth - Brief Article

Sunset, Feb, 2001 by Elizabeth Claire Flood

The cowboy furniture of Thomas Molesworth is enduringly Western

* While Cody, Wyoming, artist Thomas Molesworth was no Wild West cowboy, he did have an idea of how a wrangler should live. In the 1930s, Molesworth single-handedly popularized "cowboy furniture," creating a whimsical, comfortable home-on-the-range style that is once again coveted by collectors.

Molesworth is best known for Douglas fir peeled-pole furniture featuring bright red Chimayo Indian weavings and carved or routed representations of Western images such as bison, tepees, and bowlegged cowboys. President Dwight D. Eisenhower relaxed on his Pennsylvania farm with a grouping of Molesworth pieces, including a club chair and matching ottoman set next to an unusual creel magazine rack, a lamp, and a curly maple side table. The windows of the posh Abercrombie & Fitch in New York City and of Gump's in San Francisco displayed Molesworth furniture.

While he is recognized for these fanciful appointments, Molesworth did more than build furniture. Like Frank Lloyd Wright, he was responsible for the complete design of a room. He chose the rugs and selected the draperies--he even commissioned the work of popular Western artists to complete a roomscape.

Exposed to the elements of Western and Adirondack vernacular furniture and to the Arts and Crafts movement while studying at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago in 1908 and 1909, he opened his Shoshone Furniture Company in Cody in 1932. By the late '30s, his career was in high gear, with commissions from such movers as John D. Rockefeller Jr. and publishing mogul Moses Annenberg.

Molesworth's work had fallen out of fashion by the time he died in 1977, but it is again capturing people's hearts--original home accessories and furniture now sell for $2,500 to $75,000. And they're worth it. His work is sturdy, comfortable, and timeless. More important, the routed figures, sculpted buns, and brilliant colors that define his style celebrate the romantic view of our Western heritage.

The Buffalo Bill Historical Center in Cody features a permanent collection of Molesworth furniture. It also published a catalog featuring his work. Closed Mon Nov-Mar; $10.

Fighting Bear Antiques in Jackson, Wyoming is an authority on and dealer of Molesworth furniture.

Also in Jackson, Martin-Harris Gallery features a fine selection of Molesworth-style furnishings.