Tahiti
Bamboo-style edging and drawer trim on lighter finishes, sometimes with palm or fern motifs, made for dens, sunrooms and Florida rooms.[4][10]
Dixie
Dixie Furniture Company made medium-priced bedroom and dining furniture in Lexington, North Carolina, from the early 1900s until 1987, when Masco merged it and its sister companies into Lexington Furniture Industries. Under Henry T. Link from 1936 it became known for assembly-line production and for bedroom suites in Federal, French Provincial, bamboo-trimmed and mid-century modern styles.
The timeline
- Lexington, North Carolina
- 3 pieces
- 1901–03
Dixie Furniture Company is started in Lexington, North Carolina; accounts give 1901 or 1903.[3]–[5][10]
- 1920s–30s
Dixie is combined with the neighbouring Elk furniture company as Elk-Dixie.[2][3]
- 1936
Henry T. Link and a group of investors buy the Dixie side and run it as a separate company again.[1]–[3]
- 1940
After visiting car factories, Link puts motorised conveyors into the Dixie plant, bringing assembly-line methods to furniture making.[1][3][4]
- 1949–50
Link-Taylor is set up as a model factory, making higher-priced bedroom furniture.[1][3][4]
- 1962
Young-Hinkle is started, first making boys' bedroom furniture.[1][3][4]
- 1960s–80s
Henry Link is added for girls' bedroom furniture and later becomes a large maker of wicker.[1][3][4]
- 1987
Masco buys Dixie, Link-Taylor, Young-Hinkle and Henry Link and merges them as Lexington Furniture Industries; the Dixie name is dropped.[3]–[5][7]
- Today
Available now
(00)Nothing by Dixie is in the studio right now. Tell Kate what you need and she will look for one.
What they made
Dixie concentrated on bedroom and dining room furniture for the middle of the market. Its first success under Henry Link was a five-piece mahogany bedroom suite, which stayed in the range with small changes until the 1980s. The related companies split the market: Link-Taylor made the higher-priced bedroom and dining furniture, Young-Hinkle boys' rooms and Henry Link girls' rooms.
Collectors and dealers group Dixie's output by style. Federal-style bedroom and dining furniture of the 1940s used mahogany veneer over ash with brass hardware, shield-back chairs and Duncan Phyfe pedestal tables. French Provincial ran from the 1950s, increasingly in cream or white paint with gold trim. Bamboo-trimmed tropical furniture was made from the 1950s into the 1970s, and contemporary pieces with straight legs and plain fronts in the 1950s and 1960s.[1][3][4][10]
Lines and collections
(02)From the archive
(03)Set of 2 Mid Century Modern Dixie Dressers
Dressers (F.150)Sold
MCM Vintage Dixie 5-drawer Tall Chest
Dressers (F.163)Sold
Vintage Dixie French Provincial Tall Chest of Drawers / Dresser
Dressers (F.195)Sold
What they’ve sold for
$275 to $1,195
About Dixie
Dixie Furniture Company made furniture in Lexington, North Carolina. Its roots go back to the early 1900s, although accounts differ on the exact year. For a time it was combined with the neighbouring Elk furniture company as Elk-Dixie. In 1936 Henry T. Link and a group of investors bought the Dixie side and ran it as its own company again; the American Home Furnishings Hall of Fame dates Dixie from that year. An early success under Link was a five-piece mahogany bedroom suite. In 1940, after visiting car factories, Link put motorised conveyors into the plant, bringing assembly-line methods to furniture making. Related companies followed, including Link-Taylor around 1949, Young-Hinkle in 1962 and Henry Link. In 1987 Masco bought the group and merged it into Lexington Furniture Industries, and the Dixie name was dropped. The business continues as Lexington Home Brands.[1]–[10]
Common questions
Is Dixie furniture still made?
No. Masco bought Dixie and its sister companies in 1987 and merged them as Lexington Furniture Industries, and the Dixie name was dropped. The business continues as Lexington Home Brands.[3][4][7][10]
Is the Dixie Furniture store the same company?
No. Dixie Furniture stores in South Carolina are retailers that only share the name; they did not make or sell the Dixie-stamped furniture from Lexington.[8][10]
Is Dixie furniture good quality, and what is it worth?
Dixie was medium-priced furniture, a step below makers such as Drexel and Henredon, while its sister company Link-Taylor made the higher-priced lines. One guide notes that solid wood pieces, French Provincial and mid-century modern designs sell best, and that pressed wood or laminate lowers value.[4][10]
Is Dixie furniture solid wood?
Mostly hardwood, but often veneered: 1940s Federal pieces are mahogany veneer over ash. Some later French Provincial pieces use pressed wood and laminate tops under the paint.[4][10]
Good to know
Looking for one?
Looking for a piece by Dixie? Tell Kate what you need, with the size and budget you have in mind, and she will look for one. Or write to hello@formanashville.com.
New pieces go out first in the weekly letter.
Makers in a similar vein
Sources
- Henry Talmadge Link, American Home Furnishings Hall of Fame
- Fire destroys United furniture plant, first known as Elk, built in 1902, DavidsonLocal
- Lexington Home Brands, Wikitia
- The story of Dixie Furniture, Vintage Unscripted
- Manufacturer highlight: Lexington Furniture, Furnish NC (2021)
- How old is Lexington Furniture?, 1stDibs
- The battle of Lexington, Business North Carolina (May 2012)
- Dixie furniture (Show & Tell post), Collectors Weekly
- Help with Lexington Furniture Industries by Dixie cabinet, Antiquers forum
- Dixie Furniture Company, Vintage Furniture Guide
- Pair of Shangri-La nightstands by Dixie, 1stDibs
- Shangri La nightstands, 1stDibs
The Weekly Letter
One email a week, on Thursday. What arrived, what sold and for how much, and a line or two on what we are working on.