Bookcase

Manufacturer Mark Perkins Cleghorn (American, 1877 - 1967)

OriginUSA

MediumCherry wood

Dimensions60 × 51 × 12 in. (152.4 × 129.5 × 30.5 cm)

ClassificationsFurniture

Credit LineGift of Mr. & Mrs. Robert Samuels. In the Farm House Museum Collection, Farm House Museum, University Museums, Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa.

Object number75.14.3

Status

On view

Collections

CultureAmerican

Label TextFrom the University Museums Collections Handbook, vol. 2, 2025: The American Arts and Crafts Movement quickly became popular in the Midwest. Arts and Crafts societies were formed in Chicago, St. Louis, Cincinnati, Detroit, Minneapolis and Toledo and each city became a hub for the designs that marked the Movement. The movement was a reaction to machine-made, high ornamentation of earlier styles and is often reﬂected in the hand-made artistry of Roycroft, Stickley, and others of the era. Although British adherents remained pure to handcraftsmanship, Americans in general, and Midwesterners in particular, did not believe that machines were incapable of achieving the ideals of the Movement. The effective use of machines led the Midwest to become the country’s largest center for the production of the Arts and Crafts aesthetic. Midwest craftsman Cleghorn, reﬂects the design, materials, and handcraftsmanship iconic to the early origins of the Arts and Crafts Movement in this bookcase. Mark Perkins Cleghorn was born August 24, 1877, in Onawa, Iowa. He graduated from Iowa State College with a bachelor’s in science (1902) in electrical engineering. Upon graduation, he was employed by the Mechanical Engineering Department at Iowa State as an Instructor. He received a master’s degree in 1907 and was promoted to Assistant Professor (1908−1921) and then to Professor (1921−1967). In 1936, Cleghorn was named Chair (1936−1942) of the Department of Mechanical Engineering, a position he maintained until his retirement from administrative duties.

PeriodArts and Crafts

Locations