Little Journeys

And all the King’s horses….

In 1978, after a brief teaching career and a summer spent running the West Branch Times, I opened Knock On Wood Antique Repair & Restoration in Iowa City. Within a few years I had added a floor refinishing service and had accumulated more…

From The Grove Park Inn to Boston and East Aurora

In 1986, when I began planning the first Arts & Crafts Conference at the Grove Park Inn, there were just a handful of antiques dealers who specialized in Stickley furniture, Roycroft and Heintz metalware, and Grueby, Rookwood and Teco…

Looking Back – Twenty-Five Years or So

It was 25 years ago when I first set foot inside the Grove Park inn. Though listed on the National Register of Historic Places, back then the Inn wasn't that well known outside the South. Nor was Asheville. I was fresh from the Midwest,…

Tales of the Bizarre – Arts & Crafts Style

One of the benefits of doing research is coming across all sorts of unusual (or is it 'useless' ?) information about the Arts & Crafts pioneers we often place on pedestals. But one of the advantages of having this website is that we can…

Side Trips and Sad Discoveries

A few weeks ago, as I was finishing up a road trip through the South, I took a side trip, the kind my father would suddenly announce when we were growing up, eliciting a series of deep groans from the backseat. But I was traveling alone, so…

A Missing Piece in a Mission Oak Puzzle

The best part of writing isn’t leaning back and hitting Save. It isn't seeing what you wrote appear in print. It isn't knowing your work is appreciated. It's the research. In 1946 my father came back from his tour of duty aboard the…

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