2 cols.

1950s Westinghouse kitchen — complete with sea foam green cupboards, yellow Formica countertops and stainless steel wall oven, cooking range and hood.

FOR 4-20 

HISTORIC NEW ENGLAND ACQUIRES 1950S WESTINGHOUSE KITCHEN w/1 cut

ak/lsb set 4/12 #695823

BOSTON, MASS. — To add to its growing collection of Twentieth Century material, Historic New England recently acquired a 1950s Westinghouse kitchen from a house in Andover, Mass. This complete kitchen becomes part of a collection of kitchen equipment that ranges from Eighteenth Century iron kettles to 1950s electric toasters.

The kitchen, one of two in the house, belonged to the Koravos family, who ran Ford’s Coffee Shop in downtown Andover for 40 years. This was the family’s “show” kitchen, explaining why it remains in excellent condition. In the mid-Twentieth Century, many Greek and Italian immigrant families used a basement kitchen for everyday meals and reserved the kitchen on the main floor for special occasions.

The kitchen is sea foam green, with a stainless steel wall oven cooking range and hood and yellow Formica countertops. It was acquired from Olivia and Spiros Sintros, daughter and son-in-law of the original owners.

In addition to TV dinners, many new gadgets and designs with rounded corners and lots of chrome, the 1950s were also a time when vibrant colors were popular in the kitchen. Today, there is a renewed popularity for many of these same colors in countertop appliances and tableware.

Historic New England is at 141 Cambridge Street. For information, 617-227-3956 or www.historicnewengland.org.