The Adirondack chair is an outdoor lounge chair with wide armrests, a tall slatted back, and a seat that is higher in the front than the back. Its name references the Adirondack Mountains in Upstate New York.
The chair was invented by Thomas Lee between 1900 and 1903 in Westport, New York which is located in Adirondack Park, but the chair was patented by his friend Harry C. Bunnell, who added some minor adaptations to make it more suitable for convalescents. The chairs were popularized in nearby tuberculosis sanatoriums, where they were favored for the way the armrests helped open up the sitter's chest. The Lee–Bunnell chair, however, had a single plank for the chair back; it was not until 1938 that the fan-shaped back with slats was patented by Irving Wolpin. Adirondack chairs are now often made by injection molding and can take any form.
Since the 1980s, they are generally marketed in Canada as "Muskoka chairs", although the design did not originate in Muskoka.
Gallery
<gallery>
A Modern Adirondack Chair.jpg|A modern curved back example in Tofino, British Columbia, Canada
Adirondack chair - 2021-09-06 - Sarah Stierch.jpg|Red chair with foot rest for increased leisure
AndirondacksIntheSnow.jpg|Durable cedar and orange plastic chairs in 20 cm of snow, Boise, Idaho
Relaxing In A Muskoka Chair Around The Trout Pond (2950138145).jpg|At a picnic site
Lazy Days Muskoka Chair - Biggest in the East! (28394218990).jpg|Ornate chair as tourist attraction, maintained with a of both primer and paint annually. North of Cloyne, Ontario, Canada
</gallery>
See also
- List of chairs