Linda August, Curator of Art & Artifacts and Visual Materials Cataloger

Many of us are spending more time in our homes than ever. We are working, reading, and writing—not unlike our predecessors. They also spent a lot of time hunched over a desk. As sitting too much is unhealthy, standing desks have recently been promoted. But standing desks are not a new invention. Our 18th-century forebearers certainly knew of their benefits, and there are several surviving examples, including one in the Library Company’s collection.

Founding father John Dickinson (1732-1808) was known as the “Penman of the Revolution” for his numerous publications supporting the American cause. But in 1756, he was still a student in London studying to become a lawyer.  He had the same issue so many of us face, having health problems from being huddled over a desk all day. In a letter dated January 8, 1756 to his father, Samuel Dickinson, he wrote, “As I have great reason to believe that my disorder proceeded from my bending to write; I now read & write at a high desk at which I am obliged to stand.” Two months later he wrote to his mother, Mary Cadwalader Dickinson, “I have been advised to stand at a high desk to read & write & … though it was a little troublesome at first, yet I can now stand two hours together without any trouble; so that I do every thing on my legs, & may properly enough be called a Peripatetick Lawyer….”  He returned home to America and had this Chippendale-style, mahogany reading and writing stand made.  It provides multiple surfaces for books and papers. Each of the four sides has a lip along the bottom that books could rest upon. The desk can be raised or lowered by turning along the pole. A locked compartment allowed Dickinson to secure correspondence and other valuables. Underneath each corner are slots that can pull out and hold an inkwell.