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A gossip bench or telephone table is a piece of Vintage View: 'Gossip benches' are unfortunately not written about
. (2017, October 06). Retrieved April 06, 2018
A gossip bench or telephone table is a piece of furniture
Furniture refers to movable objects intended to support various human activities such as seating (e.g., stools, chairs, and sofas), eating (tables), storing items, eating and/or working with an item, and sleeping (e.g., beds and hammocks). Fu ...
that includes a chair
A chair is a type of seat, typically designed for one person and consisting of one or more legs, a flat or slightly angled seat and a back-rest. They may be made of wood, metal, or synthetic materials, and may be padded or upholstered in vario ...
with an attached side table on one end, sometimes with built-in storage such as drawers or a magazine rack.
The furniture became popular shortly after the telephone
A telephone is a telecommunications device that permits two or more users to conduct a conversation when they are too far apart to be easily heard directly. A telephone converts sound, typically and most efficiently the human voice, into e ...
was invented in 1876. They were most popular between the 1930s and the 1950s, but have no specific date of invention, as they developed over time as a matter of convenience and necessity.
The gossip bench began as a shelf for the telephone (then a very large and cumbersome non-portable object) to rest upon, usually in the hallway of the home. Naturally, telephone users began sitting on a chair while using the telephone. Soon, the two (shelf and chair) were combined into one stylish piece of furniture by opportunistic furniture craftsmen everywhere. A lamp and the telephone would typically be placed on the table top of the gossip bench, while a telephone directory would be stored in the drawer underneath.
As with other types of furniture, different regions produced different types of gossip bench. Scandinavian influence produced more sleek styles, while those in Great Britain were more ornate.. (2017, October 06). Retrieved April 06, 2018
See also
*Telephone desk {{Short description, Small writing desk for a telephone
The telephone desk is the smallest kind of fixed desk. Its traditional role is to provide a working surface barely large enough to write notes while speaking on the telephone, and in some cas ...
References
Benches (furniture) Tables (furniture) Chairs {{furniture-stub