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Abstract:
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The Canadian firm of Jacques & Hay was in business for fifty years, during
which the company, if The Globe (Toronto) is to be believed, furnished the Province
of Canada. This was a stunning and largely undocumented success. Jacques & Hay
was one of the largest employers in the province and dominated the cabinet-making
trade from 1835 to 1885. In 1871, Jacques & Hay employed 430 men and 50 women
in a vertically-integrated operation that included a sawmill, two factories and a
showroom. Jacques & Hay produced abundant furniture at reasonable prices. The
availability of such household furnishings greatly enhanced domestic life in
nineteenth-century Canada, providing scope for a more elaborate social life and
allowing more people to achieve a greater sense of comfort and decency in their living
arrangements. |
