The very early colonists discovered cherry; and because of its strength, beauty, and durability, they used it to construct their furniture. It was out of necessity that they did this, because little furniture was imported at that very early date. A chest was two-fold in use—for storage and for seating. Tools were crude, and the furniture was hand-hewn. We know those early pieces today as primitives. 
With the passing of time, craftsmen with better talents and abilities came who gave the colonists less rugged furniture. Many of the craftsmen brought with them influences from Europe. The popular chairs of that era were ladder back and Windsor. The Windsor no doubt stemmed from Windsor, England, and preceded the Queen Anne styles. Typically English is the one with a solid splat in the center back, with spindles on each side. Few were made with the cabriole leg.

 The American Windsor had more proportion in design and was made with or without arms. Combinations of woods were used and many chairs were painted. The American Windsor is sometimes referred to as the “stick chair.” The rarest of Windsors is the writing-arm chair. Ladder back chairs are less rare, and most common are the three-slat backs; so it almost goes without saying that four-, five-, and six-slat backs are a real treasure.

Lambert Hitchcock of Hitchcocksville, Connecticut, gave us the Hitchcock chair, many of which were decorated with stencil designs. Maple and birch were the chief woods used, and seats were mostly made of rushes. The use of dried rushes woven to cover a specific space was inexpensive and made durable seats. The Hitchcock chair has quite a role in the history of furniture manufacture, in that it was the first mass-production item. 

Relative to the Hitchcock chair is the Boston rocker, and it too was stenciled with design. Some say Ben Franklin was the first to put rockers on a chair; regardless of who rightly could claim credit for that
innovation, the rocker was a piece of furniture admired by many, from peasants to presidents. 

Settles were also part of the Early Colonial furniture and were made with high backs and end pieces for protection from drafts. Some were constructed with a drawer in the bottom—a rare find today. 
Covered wooden boxes—otherwise  known as dough boxes—were used later, particularly by the Dutch in Pennsylvania, in breadmaking. The dough was placed inside to rise, and the top provided a place for kneading and rolling. 

Trestle tables are among the earliest types known. The tops are of softer wood than the ends, or the trestles. Stretchers between the trestles give the necessary support. 
In the construction of cupboards, the colonists used wooden pegs as opposed to nails. Pine and cherry were favored woods for many. Open, hutch-type cupboards, as well as those with solid doors, were made. Dry sinks, hanging cupboards, drop leaf tables, and numerous other pieces of furniture were part of the later colonial picture.