Halfway between here and a small town west of here, at a crossroads, is an old country store now used as an antique, unique type shop by an old, kinda odd fellow.

I stopped at the store by accident one day last year. Saw a hound running loose and eating carrion on the side of the road in a ditch. The dog had a collar so I stopped, held my nose and secured the dog in my Jeep. Called the phone number on the dog's hunting collar. It was an out of town number.

Guy that answered the call said he was just about a hundred miles away and would call his dog keeper. Guess the guy just had a bunch of land to hunt on and had a dog kennel keeper for the hunting dogs.

The guy's guy called me and we agreed to meet at the old country store. Which we did after about a 30min wait.

Anyway, while I was waiting for the guy's guy to show up, I looked around the old country store. Saw a bunch of interesting stuff and when it looked like I'd walk out without buying anything, the old, kinda odd fellow said, "Hold on" and we started a polite conversation. From behind and below his counter, the old, kinda odd fellow produced vintage "naughty" novelty items and a stack of vintage "naughty" printed material, magazines and such. Stuff he couldn't have out for public display.

I feigned polite interest and curiosity but was only in there to kill time before the guy's guy showed up for the dog, and made my way to the door.

The old, kinda odd fellow followed me out onto the porch of the old country store. I wasn't getting away without buying SOMETHING and that was for sure.

On the store's porch among other "stuff" was a pair of old rustic chairs. The old, kinda odd fellow said the chairs were hand made by an inmate at a prison in Florida. I'm in lower Alabama, 25mi from the Florida line. $40 for both.

The cane had relaxed and was started to let go here and there on one of the chairs but the other was in good shape and not too wobbly. Gave him $25 for the one chair.

Don't know if this rustic, obviously hand made chair was made by a prison inmate in the 30's? 40's? or not. Guess it's possible. I know when I was a kid in the 50's and 60's, there was a prison work camp (Camp Selma) and inmates made leather stuff, like the billfold pictures below, for a little canteen money. Picked this billfold up in Georgia for nostalgia reasons but turns out to be a damn good wallet. Chair isn't too bad either, after I cleaned it up a little bit.

Interesting. Clearly handmade. Prisons were different in those days.

Is the chair cypress? Very nicely done.

quote:

Originally posted by MikeinNC:
Is the chair cypress? Very nicely done.

Mike, dunno. Most of the wood surface is stained and as you can see, the bottom of the feet is the only natural area. I don't know anything about wood but don't THINK it's cypress. Was thinking hickory but who knows. Doesn't look smooth as hickory either. Whatever it is, it's rustic. I've wondered who might have used this worn old rustic chair and the stories it could tell.

You might not notice this kind of detail unless up close and focused on it ...

EDIT: Last year, I applied a coat of linseed oil on it. Some might can tell by the color but it was already close to that color and I figured linseed was already on it at one time or another. Could be a varnish had yellowed though. I just don't know. The CFC lighting makes a weird color too. The OP pics are closer to the true color.

... a chair I know very little about except an old, kinda odd fellow pretty much wanted me to have it.
Might have been used by many over the years in that country store (it that's where it's from), certainly by a few out on the porch of that store. I did have to clean it up a bit from being out on that porch and could tell it had been there a good while ... or maybe somewhere in storage. Who knows ... maybe the old, kinda odd fellow knows but I didn't ask. The guy's guy showed up for the dog about that time. I swapped the spot in my Jeep with the dog, for a chair.

Had to ride the rest of the way with ALL the windows down because of that dang carrion eating hound dog. Shoot. And turns out the dog wasn't far from home. Could see the (multi hunting dog) kennel off over on top of a hill, down a ways from the country store.

Great story and a really nice chair. The old, kinda odd fellow seems to be a natural salesman...firm and friendly sales pressure is generally the ticket.

Best desk I ever owned was prison made. Solid oak.
Must have weighed 250 pounds. I sold it so I did not have to move it to the Yoop.
I miss it.

OH, and the wood ... if it is indeed inmate made, it's likely from whatever wood was in the general area of the prison or camp, for scavenge and repurpose. Kinda makes me feel relaxed and good sitting in that mysterious and comfortabe rustic chair from time to time. I'm old and it's older than me and certainly had a curious journey to my home.

I was in Huntsville at the state prison when I was asked if I wanted to see the brochure for the prison made goods. I went upstairs to a lady's office who showed me the brochure and some of the items that they officer for sale there.

If y'all are ever in Huntsville, Texas, go into the main prison door and ask about this. Sounds funny, but it is the real deal.

It has been a few years since I was there, but I seem to remember they make furniture, leather goods/boots, fishing rods, police/fireman badges, plaques, etc, etc. You can order things customized, and the price isn't bad.

I never took the plunge, but I did spread the word to the other officers in my agency. FYI, the main door is the 'main' door. It is wear they release prisoners so you may be face to face with someone who has just been released if that matters.

I came across this at the museum gift shop site.
http://txprisonmuseum.org/giftshop.html

nice chair,


the dog looks less than impressed tho,,,,