Ballman Cumming Furniture from Fort Smith, Arkansas

I have two matching pieces of Ballman Cumming furniture that I bought from a contractor who was renovating a house that was well over a hundred years old. As close as I can figure, having done a little research online, the set I have is probably from 1900-1915. It's relatively rare to find very old pieces like these that were actually made in this area (I live in northwest Arkansas, have been collecting for over 30 years--this is the first time I've found furniture that is from a local company and actually has the old stamp from the manufacturer in each piece.)

One of the pieces, a chest of drawers, is actually in pretty good condition for its age. The other is a dresser with a mirror, and I have to make some minor repairs to a couple of the drawers (which I plan to do). Here's a photo of the chest of drawers. Both pieces have round burned wood maker marks inside the top drawers. Does anyone want to venture a guess what I might be able to resell these for? I really like them, but my house is already too crowded. Lol. (Cited from: https://www.antiquers.com/threads/ballman-cumming-antique-set.57263/)

 

Has the fact that they are MCM going for them. Detractors, besides condition, are the rather clunky design and the toned, blended finish. People who want MCM furniture, generally want clean lines and natural wood finishes. That said, someone would like them. Not sure what your market is like, but here in my semi-rural IL location, these might bring $150-200 for the pair. More at retail and less at auction or other wholesale venue.

 

Thank you for your reply! MCM goes for quite a bit here, but they're not quite MCM...more like turn of the century. They do LOOK MCM, so I'm actually planning on marketing that way. I've seen MCM sets go for upwards of $500 a set locally, and I feel that given the local history and the MCM style, I may be able to get close to that for both pieces. I'll try to remember to post to this thread once I sell them, to give those who are following an update.

 

Those are assuredly 50s-60s. That laminate looking finish is a dead give away.

 

My parents bought a new bedrooms set in the mid-50's with a similar design, but different finish. They kept it around for a long time. I also vote mid-century. We had lots of turn of the century stuff that were handed down by Mom's parents. This looks nothing like TOC.