Deacon's Bench

I never really knew what a deacon's bench was but I knew I like it the first time I saw it.  I went into the antique dealer in San Dimas mid afternoon and saw this bench on my way out.  It had a seat pad and pillows and a couple gift baskets sitting on top so it wasn't obvious.  I knew I wanted it but I spent a good 10 minutes trying to visualize where it would go in the house.  For one, I'm a sucker for Windsor chairs so it was an easy decision.  I'm guessing this is early to mid 20th century but I don't really care because now, I have something nice to greet me as I get up the flight of stairs after a long day at work.  (I do wonder how long it would take the kids to figure out it's a good place to dump their school packs or jackets.)