 Furniture Heritage
Center
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High Point, North Carolina,
is the home furnishings capital of the world™ by virtue
of its continuing furniture manufacturing base and the
bi-annual High Point Market. But the furnishings
business is changing rapidly and little has been done to
preserve the important contributions made by North
Carolina’s furniture companies in the twentieth century.
The Furniture Heritage Center (FHC), created with funds
from the U.S.
Institute
of Museum and Library Services*,
seeks to document this important industry in North
Carolina in a variety of ways.
Our Purpose
 • Increase the knowledge base about High Point’s and
North Carolina’s significant contribution to the history
of American furniture manufacture and marketing in the
twentieth century;
• Increase High Point Museum’s collections that
illustrate and preserve this history;
• Raise public awareness and participation in this
important aspect of local and regional history at a time
of great change in the furniture industry; and
• Encourage furniture heritage tourism and preservation
of the historical architecture related to the furniture
industry in North Carolina.
Our Plans
 Exhibition
The High Point Museum opened an interactive
exhibition on the history of furniture making in North
Carolina to coincide with High Point’s 150th anniversary
in 2009. The exhibition focuses attention on the
furniture industry as a key element of the city’s growth
and prosperity.
Web site
The High Point Museum will host a Web site that
coordinates with the exhibition and describes the
history of North Carolina’s furniture business. For a
list of High Point’s historic furniture companies
click
here.
Digital Database
The Furniture Heritage Web site will include a digital
database of 20th century North Carolina furniture
makers. The database, called FINial for Furniture
Information Network, will provide public access to
research information and encourage collection and
preservation of North Carolina furniture.
 Driving Tour
The High Point area’s historic furniture sites will be
described in a brochure distributed through the High
Point Museum, Convention and Visitors Bureau and the
Furniture Heritage Web site. The tour will promote
furniture heritage tourism and encourage preservation of
buildings related to the region’s furniture business.
Symposia
FHC will sponsor public symposia as a way to encourage
advanced research on North Carolina’s furniture history.
Study Collection
Eventually, the museum’s North Carolina furniture
collection will be on view for use by collectors, home
furnishers, retailers, students of design, and workers
who made the goods.
How You Can Help
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Oral History
Give us your memories in recorded interviews that will
be preserved in the museum’s furniture archives.
Donate
We need items related to High Point’s furnishings
business, including examples of North Carolina-made
furniture, to use in the exhibition and Study
Collection.
Give
Contribute funds to preserve North Carolina’s furniture
heritage.
* The
Institute of Museum and Library Services is the primary
source of federal support for the nation’s 122,000
libraries and 17,500 museums. The Institute's mission is
to create strong libraries and museums that connect
people to information and ideas. Any views, findings,
conclusions or recommendations expressed in this
brochure do not necessarily represent those of the
Institute of Museum and Library Services. |
