Roll top desk drawers

Just bought a 60 inch roll top desk. It also has a file cabinet with horizontal rolls that sits on the top of the desk with 45 drawers.

These drawers have an open back. What are they for and why is the back open. The small one is one of the 45 drawers. The other one is from the desk.

 

Welcome, mrtexas. Have always heard that Texans like things to be big, but it doesn't work here with photo files, which have to be under 1MB.

 

Desk is in pieces. Had to take it apart to fix the roll top track as it wouldn't close.

 

This is from the ebay ad.

 

This is from the ebay ad.

 

Whole lot of filing going on, I would guess, both index cards & folders in stacks. For a specialized use, for sure, not just general office. Interior measurements of various sized drawers would help.

Edit: Maybe not index cards, something more like time clock cards, also in stacks.

 

12x10 9x4

 

Quite the desk! Think some kind of office use. The backless drawers would allow easy access to contents once removed. Could see accountants taking a drawer away to work elsewhere and bringing it back once done. Sort of mini file drawers for some kind of specific content.

 

Top third of piece (with the backless drawers?) looks like it was added on - the color, wood grain, and back paneling are different. So the middle and top piece are both missing drawer backs? - is it possible someone customized this to remove the backs (any sign that mods were made?)

 

Don't think it was customized. Top piece not born with desk as it is a different color. Both are 60 inches though. All 45 drawers in top are backless. Several draws in the desk are backless.
One of the reasons I bought it is I think the top piece is valuable. I paid $1600 and $500 for shipping. I think the top is worth $500 and the bottom worth more than $1600 although huge desks like this aren't in demand. The dealer said he only broke even on it which I think is true comparing this desk with many the asking price of others on ebay. This guy started at $2400 and settled for $1600.

 

Top piece is a separate version of desk top organizers. It would be acquired if extra file space was needed. The drawers in question were made that way at the factory. The larger one would store flat files or even type paper. The smaller one was for letters, it was a paper only world in the era of these pieces. 1890 to 1920 was the time frame for what you have. I think the desk might be a Moon or possibly an early Globe before Wernicke came on.
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