Davenport was the name of a series of sofas made by the Massachusetts furniture manufacturer A. H. Davenport and Company, now defunct. Due to the popularity of the furniture at the time, the name davenport became a genericized trademark in parts of the United States.[1]
It is used as a synonym for "sofa" or "couch" in some Great Lakes regions of the United States, especially the Upper Midwest and Buffalo, NY - Erie, PA areas.[2] It was used in the Adirondack Region and the Tug Hill Plateau amongst those born there before World War II. The so-called davenports of the northern New York region are often sofa versions of the locally manufactured convertible Adirondack chair.
The word has come to mean a more formal sofa among the younger generations. In the Tug Hill and Adirondack regions in New York, a davenport may refer primarily to a couch which, like a modern futon lounge, converts on pivoting hinges from a sofa to a bed.
In other areas of North America, the word davenport is used for a futon-style sofa with storage under the seat area.
A "large upholstered couch," 1897, apparently named for the manufacturer. Earlier (1853), it was "a kind of small ornamental writing table." The proper name is attested from the 12th century, from a place in Cheshire (Old English Devennport).[3]
A similar word, Daveno, also refers to a sofa or couch. The term was more widely used in the 1950s and 1960s, particularly in the Pacific Northwest.
Most Davenporters call this type of furniture a couch.