30
The Davey Bulletin | September/October 2016
ARCHIVES
FROM
THE
Above: Custom, hand-carved elements of
the chair were carefully preserved.
A PIECE OF HISTORY FROM A DAVEY PRESIDENT
A piece of Ohio and Davey history
found new life thanks to the Davey
Company and a special donation.
Dr. Roger Funk, retired vice president,
chief technical officer, recently donated
to Davey the custom, handcrafted
office chair Martin L. Davey, Sr., used
during both his time as president of
the Davey Company and as governor
of Ohio in the 1930s. Funk, who
has always had an interest in Davey
history, received the chair as a gift
from Martin L. Davey, Jr., and wanted
it restored.
Davey's corporate communications
department took the 80-year-old
chair to Kent's Sue Nelson Design.
Nelson, an antique furniture expert,
spent several months carefully
working loose the mechanical features,
replacing the leather and cleaning the
custom-carved walnut. The design
and measurements of the chair are
telltale signs it was custom-fitted.
The restored chair is now a part of the
company's archival collection and will
be stored and preserved for possible
future display.
Have a neat artifact you'd like to
donate? Email bulletin@davey.com.
Right: The chair, at least
80 years old, needed
restorative work. Roger
Funk received it from
M. L. Davey, Jr., and
then donated it to the
Davey Company.
Above: Every aspect of the chair was either
repaired or fully restored to its original condition.
Above: Martin L.
Davey, Sr., then
Governor of Ohio,
stands behind his
desk in 1937. The
recently restored
custom-crafted chair
is behind him.
