TheHistoryOf.net

These days, we all take for granted that no matter what house we move into, we’ll have a functional set of kitchen cabinets to put all our dishes and kitchen gadgets into. This was not always the case, however. In days of yore, people’s problems were twofold:

• Most people were generally too poor to afford cabinets or the wood to make them
• Mass production was unheard of until the Industrial Revolution

Pre-Industrial Revolution Days

As you can imagine, before the days of steam power everything had to be done by hand. What this meant in general was that production was slow and expensive and that there was practically no such thing as consistency because work was generally inaccurate (compared to a machine’s work, that is.) This is not to say that cabinets were sub-par in design and look, but if you wanted a cabinet that was any more than utilitarian you were going to have to pay an artisan to craft it for you and it would be rather expensive.

In those days, cabinet builders would carve exquisite designs into their cabinets, making each one unique and a true work of art. Only the very wealthy could generally afford such affairs. Poorer folk, on the other hand, usually just used whatever could be put together for the cheapest price and the least skill. Utilitarian cabinets like this were no-frills by design and served a purpose, and that was it. They weren’t anything pretty to look at.

Steam Power

The advent of steam power during the Industrial Revolution saw a complete overhaul of the concept of cabinet making. Now, people could build machines that could make a precise cut in wood over the course of dozens of pieces. What this meant was that you could have a set of matching cabinets for a much cheaper price. Hand tools still played a part, of course, but machines bore the brunt of the labor.

The Industrial Revolution also saw the rise of the middle class – a group of families that lacked the purchasing power of the ultra-rich but had enough money to demand nice, modern conveniences. In the mid-19th century, the Arts and Crafts Movement began in England and quickly spread to many other countries. This movement eschewed the idea of mass production in favor of a focus on craftsmanship and increased the demand for artfully designed cabinets and other crafts.

After World War II, there was another burst of popularity, as many middle class husbands and fathers picked out the best wood routers and took up woodworking as a hobby. Many cabinetmaking businesses were born as a result of those men dabbling in woodworking, and a lot of them are still around to this day. In fact, much of the cabinets created by such small businesses are considered the best on the market because of the attention to detail (rather than a focus on mass production) that goes into the work.

So if you are considering picking up cabinetmaking as a hobby or profession, you have a lot of history to emulate and call upon. People in the past have made due with far less, to pick up your wood router and go!

About the Author

Mike Rocha is an engineer from Florida with a passion for woodworking. As an engineer and hobbyist woodworker, he uses wood routers regularly and recognizes the ingenuity and versatility that they represent. Being an electrical engineer who designs and develops medical imaging systems, Mike appreciates more than most the ingenious simplicity of these tools. Check out his website if you are looking for the best wood routers or router tables for sale.