wall beds

from patent #1,030,201

Wall beds, also known as Murphy beds, are beds that are designed to fold up into a closet or cabinet when not in use. Wall beds from different manufacturers were used in a large number of apartments around Oakland. Brands used locally include Marshall and Stearns (or Marshall-Stearns), Simmons, and Rip Van Winkle. The California Wall Bed Company manufactured beds locally for a time. There were also different disappearing beds, which slid into hidden spaces when not in use.

Murphy beds are named for William Lawrence Murphy, an Irish immigrant in San Francisco who needed to find a creative method of making space in his small apartment. ¹ He was not the inventor of disappearing beds, but filed a number of patents around 1900.

It's worth noting that Sarah E. Goode was the first Black woman to be granted a patent. In 1885 she was granted a patent for a cabinet bed, which could be used as a desk when not in use as a bed.

"It appears that the art of constructing disappearing or concealed beds has been followed over a period of more than 70 years, during which time more than 800 patents have been issued for inventions in improved structure in such devices." ²

The earliest references to wall beds in the Tribune appear around 1906. One of the first references to a specific brand came in 1907 in an ad for rooms at the Muri-Ell Apartments which refers to Marshall-Stearns patent beds. ³

Rip Van Winkle Wall Bed Company

The Rip Van Winkle Wall Bed Company started c.1918. Neil Sinclair was the vice president and general manager, and apparently the inventor, as the various patents assigned to Rip Van Winkle were in his name.

In 1922, they opened a new factory at 792 - 22nd Street. In addition to Sinclair, George Osmer was the president, and H.A. Harmes, secretary-treasurer.

The company was involved in several patent lawsuits. In 1924, the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals reversed an earlier decision by the Federal District Court in favor of the Murphy Wall Bed Company and Marshall and Stearns. In 1926, they won in the appeals court in a suit with the Holmes Bed Manufacturing Company and Marshall and Stearns. ²

A 1925 classified ad describes an apartment as having a "Rip Van Winkle roll-about wall bed." An ad in Architect and Engineer in 1930 lists them as manufacturers of door beds, roll beds, and wall beds.

1924US1380502US1945826A

California Wall Bed Company

The California Wall Bed Company started in the early 1920s, with classified ads for 165 - 13th Street appearing in 1920. In 1922, they announced they were purchasing the former Western Casket Company building at 165 - 13th and would remodel it into a wall bed factory. California Wall Beds were used in the Forest Apartments (1923) and the Trestle Glen Apartments (1923), among others.

The factory on 13th Street was badly damaged in a fire set by Willie Fisher in 1928, and references to the company drop off after that.

1922 ad1924 ad 1924 ad

Marshall and Stearns

It appears Marshall and Stearns started in real estate in Los Angeles in the early 1900s. By 1904, they were also running ads for W.C. James patented fixtures as a way for landlords to help maximize "economy of space" and "profitable rents". ⁴ By 1906 they were running ads referring to Marshall and Stearns Company patented wall beds, and had offices in San Francisco and San Diego. ⁵ At some point they opened a branch in Oakland; c.1918-1923, their Oakland branch was at 1774 Broadway. They later called their beds Add-A-Room beds.

c.1922 ad from Western Architect and Engineer1922192219221929

1930

Simmons

Simmons wall beds were distributed by the Rip Van Winkle Wall Bed Co. in northern California, and later by O'Keeffe and Company.

Inco

The Inco Wall Bed Agency appears in exactly one new apartment listing in Oakland, the Rudonia Apartments in 1929. ⁶ This despite a 1926 classified noting they were closing their Oakland store. ⁷

Relatively few mentions can be found in any newspapers available on newspapers.com except around Los Angeles.

1929 ⁶

Holmes Disappearing Bed

The Holmes Disappearing Bed was designed to be rolled out of site when not in use. Lawrence Holmes filed for a patent in 1908, and patent #1033401A was granted in 1912.

They were used in at least one apartment building in Oakland, the Casa Rosa Apartments which opened in 1909.

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Miller Folding Roll-away Bed

A related space-saving product was the Miller Folding Roll-away Bed. The Miller Auto Bed & Manufacturing Company at 4001 E10th Street appears to have mostly marketed and sold camping beds that could be disassembled and strapped to the running board of a car. Their Folding Roll-away Bed was first advertised in November of 1928⁸ and was used in the Casa del Lago Apartments in 1929. The company went out of business in late 1932 or early 1933, and the company's equipment was then liquidated.⁹

1929