Viking Indestructible Maple City Stamping Folding Chair

I just picked up 5 cool metal and wood folding chairs. I can find one pair on Etsy that was from a movie (and already sold). Does anyone know any information or value? The tag says viking indestructible maple city stamping. Thanks!

 

Score one for truth in advertising, it seems to have survived about 50 years undestroyed.

 

True! I saw online that they are from the 1920's... So maybe even older than 50!

 

Interesting chairs and a bit different than you usually see. I think you can compare them to other similar sets even if can't find an exact match. In my Midwest location, you would be lucky to get $15.00-20.00 per chair at retail. However, I see some selling on ebay for quite a bit more. Most that are selling are all wood but I would think these compare favorably to them. Some people might prefer these over the wood for their style.

 

From the following Arizona Historical Society page, it appears Maple City Viking chair was patented by the Maple City Stamping Co. on September 19, 1924. They say the metal braces of the legs are stamped with this patent info. There is always the possibility the braces were patented at that time and not the whole chair??? I tried to find the patent with no luck. Tracking down patents without a patent number is always a tedious job for me because hundreds of patents are issued on the same dates as well as most times a patent is issued to an individual rather than a company.
http://azhstempe.pastperfectonline.com/webobject/D6A02A2E-79F7-41CB-92AF-508849187528

Here is another type of folding chair by Maple City presumably patented in 1926 per the seller:
http://www.urbanremainschicago.com/...steel-four-legged-portable-folding-chair.html

Then there are these with the same back as yours, but the seats are not. The seats are like those on the 1926 chairs:
http://www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/set-antique-maple-city-stamping-co-470446087

and these with a patent date of Sep. 16, 1924. Note Sep 16 and not Sep 19 like above. Wonder if this listing made a typo in the date or the Arizona H.S. did? If both dates are suppose to be the same, then the Arizona H.S. chair is not identical to yours.
http://www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/antique-industrial-metal-folding-20341159

Here's another listing of their 9/19/1924 patent chair. As yours has a different back etc.... Yours are probably later.
https://www.etsy.com/listing/102673676/reserved-for-amanda-collection-of-8

I haven't found any with the same rounded back ***and*** with the same seat as yours.

Found a little history on the Maple City Stamping Co. of Peoria. It was originally Maple City Mfg. Co. of Monmouth, IL, who made oilers, lamps, etc.... I thought the name sounded familiar because I have had a life time interest in oil lamps. Anywho, the company was founded in 1904 located in the Soap Works Factory building in Monmouth. In 1907 the Soap Works business was sold to Proctor & Gamble and moved to Cincinnati. Soon after the Soap Works was moved, Maple City bought the building calling it the Can Factory. In 1917 the building burned down. Maple City moved to Peoria where they made oilers and folding steel chairs. They went bankrupt in 1920. "Out of the bankruptcy came the Maple City Stamping Company who continued to manufacture oilers as well as other metal fabrication products."
http://www.halslamppost.com/Oilwick Lamps/slides/MC Oiler 002.html

--- Susan

 

Hi Susan,
The date must be a mistake. ALL patents are granted on TUESDAYS. If you find a patent dated on a non Tuesday it is either a mistake or a fake.
greg

 

Mornin' Gregg! I forgot about the Tuesday patent thing. Soooooo, the first link to the Arizona Historical Society with a date of Sep 19, 1924 is wrong, probably a typo. The next link that says Sep. 16, 1924 is probably right for that was a Tuesday,

Anyhow, the OP's chair is not like any of those with a patent date of 1924. The style of the Op's looks newer. It looks more like what others have said, the 1950s with possibly the late 1930s to the 1940s as the earliest. I have seen a couple of listings of chairs with backs like the OP's but different seats - none with the same wood insert seat, and none of them said there was an actual patent date on them. I suspect they are saying 1920s only because what they have seen about the other style Viking fold chair. It is highly unlikely that Maple City would have patented 2 different back style folding chair on the same date or even in the same timeframe. Do note the ones with the same backs that I found, all had the same style seat as those with the patent date - none with a plank of wood.
Note the seat differences from the Op's:
http://www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/set-antique-maple-city-stamping-co-470446087
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/244249979765683287/

--- Susan

 

Found the patent for the Sep 16, 1924 fold chair. It was issued to a Emory Findley of Peoria, Il.
https://www.google.com/patents/US1508388

--- Susan

 

We recently purchased 19 all steel maple city chairs. They fold quite brilliantly to a very small width and are elegant in design. Rich patina from years of use. Stamp indicates sept. 16, 1924.