September 14, 2011 Dear Downhome, In July 2009, you printed a letter in your magazine from me in relation to my old chair, "What's this Chair's Story?" Since the story was printed, I have received numerous letters from people all across Canada, who are very interested to find the story behind these chairs. All their stories were similar to mine. All obtained their chair from family or friends in Newfoundland, who would be near or above 100 years old at this time, but had no history of the chairs beyond that. My most recent letter was from a lady whose grandfather owned a hotel in Shoal Harbour, and as a young girl growing up, she saw several of these chairs. Her grandfather would be 97, if he were alive. No one has any idea of where the chairs were made. Some wondered, were the chairs made in England, and shipped over as luggage when men and women immigrated to Canada? Or was the back panel pressed in England and the chairs made in Newfoundland? We may never know. My chair was given to my parents by my grandparents from the "Old Country" when they had their first baby. The chair was not new at the time. Dad would be 102, this year, if he were alive. When my husband wrote to the archives in England to inquire about the chair, they suggested that he write to St. John's, NL. The archive in St. John's thought the back panel may be Edward VII, Queen Victoria's son, who reigned from 1901-1910. There was no other information. Sorry, I have not gathered any new information in the past two years, but I will keep trying. One place I may try to search is the archives in St. John's, in relation to factories in Newfoundland who either made or sold rocking chairs 100-120 years ago. Sincere thanks to the numerous people who have written or emailed me with such very interesting and heartwarming letters, in relation to their chairs. Sincerely, Shirley R. Wesson   Submitted By: NULL