A collection of cedar furniture made for Morpeth's White family and handed down through four generations, has been returned to the place it was manufactured.
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For more than 125 years the J G White family business created high quality furniture for the region from their business on Robert Street, Morpeth.
At one time the firm held the record as being the longest existing family business in Australia.
The collection has been described as a fantastic tribute to the work of the pioneering White family - the heritage value of it immeasurable.
Started by Joseph White in 1845 the factory operated in the same location until the 1960s. His son Samuel took over the business followed by grandson Joe in1926.
Red cedar was the wood of choice - Joseph White once quoted as saying that red cedar found on the Hunter, Williams and Paterson rivers at the time was the best timber in the world.
After the factory closed in the 1960s, the building gradually deteriorated. It was resurrected in the 1980sas antique centre "The Trading Post". Sadly the building is now empty.
The White's were also undertakers, making coffins as well as furniture for a living.
Over time furniture accumulated in the family home and pieces were passed down to fourth generation daughter Paulene White. She recently donated more than 20 pieces of red cedar furniture to Morpeth Museum.
Her career took her to the Solomon Islands where she accumulated a large shell collection displayed in a glass top table made by her father. This and other pieces are now on display at the museum.
