Difference Between a Sofa & a Davenport

Sofa

• A sofa is a long, upholstered seat with a back and arms. The cushioned sofa is a mainstay in the living rooms and family rooms of North America. Sofas come in a broad range of casual and formal styles, from historical period furniture styles to modern.

Davenport

• A davenport is a style of sofa that converts into a bed that can be folded up with the mattress and bedding still in place.

History

• Sofas can be dated to as early as 1717 and developed out of the Turkish upholstered, raised seating, the divan. Joseph Luppino patented the davenport sofa in 1920 in Brooklyn, N.Y.

Patent

• A davenport uses patented mechanisms to fold and unfold in a small space. A sofa doesn't require a patent for manufacturing.

Fact

• A davenport is also the name for a style of small desk with cubbies and compartments that was popular in the 19th Century.