The Historic District

Hey all,
I need some inspiration. I am fitting out a cabinet with period 1890-1900 hardware. I have some nice bin pulls for the drawers but the top section has a pair of glass doors. Would you post some close u pics if you have upper glass doors from this period, be it on a pantry or buffet or secretary? I am thinking either knobs or perhaps a latch.

My dining room cabinet, with leaded glass doors, has a latch that looks a lot like this:
https://www.theoldhardwarestore.com/ima ... -latch.jpg

JRC wrote:My dining room cabinet, with leaded glass doors, has a latch that looks a lot like this:
https://www.theoldhardwarestore.com/ima ... -latch.jpg

nice - I forgot to mention, this cabinet has leaded doors too!

+1 on the cupboard latches. Definitely appropriate for a late 19th/early 20th Century application.

Don't forget - use slotted screws.

1918ColonialRevival wrote:Don't forget - use slotted screws.

I never use anything else. In fact I buy boxes of unused antique ones off ebay from time to time... Nice to have US made screws (a now extinct beast I believe), but also the steel ones are not plated.

what do the holes look like? if it is just one hole it's probably a knob and I wouldn't add more holes. If it has something to keep the door closed like a ball bearing with a spring behind it then it wouldn't have had latches. It could just be a simple hook type catch. I do have a large knob collection. I bought them from a long term collector and he probably amassed several collections and you wouldn't believe the variety of knobs radios used. there are thousands and to find someone who will have a spare of the exact type you need for a certain radio is a common problem and collectors want the correct ones. Radio knobs usually are a pressure fit, with a metal tab or lots have setscrews. on the shafts, most common is 1/4" D style so if you use radio knobs you'd have to fiddle a bit but it's usually not too difficult to work that out.

most small ones will probably look ok if they are wood or Bakelite. there are online dealers too. try here maybe?
https://www.gobsofknobsllc.com/Antique-s/1864.htm

Ive bought knobs through Mark Oppatt and you can find him here. He got some runs of the generic ones shown made and I bought a dozen or so for sets that I can't get a match. He has a collection too and sells them.
http://www.oldradioparts.net/knobs.htm

If you decide what you want I can have a look to see if I've got something similar but most of mine are for radios not cabinets. I could have some. my first guess would be that it had round wooden ones about 1/2" diameter.

its possible that there are holes from hardware on the inside of the door. it may have had a lock for the right hand door and then a catch that you can only reach when the doors are open on the top of the left door.

If it has a lock then sometimes you can just use the key as a knob and it may not have had them. those old locks usually aren't' complicated so it's usually possible to fashion a key that works.