Our home was built in 1866 by Jonathan B. Miller, a Confederate Officer who served in the 58th
North Carolina Infantry. He returned to Watauga County after being paroled by the Union. He
authored the book The Watauga Boys in the Great Civil War. The house, although
renovated, still retains most of the original interior with pine planking on walls floors and
ceilings. It has a tin roof which affords a real country flavor - and pleasant sound when it's
raining!
We have renovated the hay loft in the barn and have a comfortable little shop where we run our
business. As part of the renovations, we installed heating/air conditioning, phone linesand
computers. We replaced the original hay loft door with an insulated steel and glass door and
added a large deck and an access ramp to allow visitors to come into the store from the driveway.
Incoming book shipments are received and orders packed and shipped from an area beneath
the store. We ship most books via Priority Mail the next day and have our own postage meter
with USPS daily pickup
We have a nice display area in our
renovated barn, but not as
much room as we could use since we keep expanding our book offerings - we now have displays
for Civil
War, Revolutionary War, World War One, World War II, Korea and Vietnam books. We special
order many other general military, genealogy and Indian War titles as we need them for
customers.
We have a huge in-stock selection of World War II titles - many Specialty Publishers such as
Schiffer, Bender, Fedorowicz, U.S. Naval Institute, Pen & Sword, Casemate and Battery Press
We have a lighted antique Oak and Glass Display Case (rescued from an old cigar shop) that
allows us to display some of our special books.
We have a whole section of World War II Aviation Books, DVDs and Videos - Many of our
WWII books are Signed by the Pilots of WWII - and some by Medal of Honor Winners!
We have a World War I section that includes original battlefield artifacts including helmets,
artillery shells and hand-grenades that we have collected at battlefields in France and Germany.
Many folks enjoy visiting the shop just to look at the collectibes that are on display!
We have samples of Cannon Sets, Swords, Pistols, Caps and other reproduction and gift items
that are shipped direct to our customers from Collector's Armoury.
My wife Suzanne has helped me
with this business for the last 14 years and she packs most of the orders. She carefully packs
every order to be sure books arrive undamaged - - and we have never had one get damaged
in shipping. Suzanne and I like to travel and usually Fly Space "A" using military flights. We
have visited many of Europe's castles and battlefields in Normandy, Dieppe,
Waterloo, Arnhem, Verdun, the Somme and other locations. Here she is Belgium with a
Sherman Tank outside a military museum.
Robert Taylor - PARADIGM
When I started this business, my wife Suzanne, bought me a kitten named
Matilda (after the song Waltzing Matilda) - she likes the book barn and visitors - - she
usually rubs her face on any books that are stacked on the floor. Matilda has recently been busy
making sure the Chipmunks in our yard do not steal any books - in between catnaps!
In Winter of 2003, we rescued Sherman (the Tank) from the Humane Society. He was really
small and
Matilda was quite able to handle his antics - - - he is now almost 2 years old and pounces on her
whenever he gets the chance - - - usually preferring a frontal assault! He is still as sweet as he
was when he first came home, but he sure has grown. He likes visitors - and treats -
Sherman spends a lot of time running around the yard chasing butterflies, crickets and
creepy-crawley things! Sometimes he just curls up and sleeps.
Sherman on the patio table helping Suzanne plan our next trip to France. He's met our house
sitter, but hasn't quite figured out that he won't be flying with us on the C17!
Shrman's favorite pasttime is patiently waiting for Matilda to drop her guard so he can jump
on her back!
Trick or Treat! Sherman looking for the Halloween Candy!
Sherman has enjoyed this Christmas Season - He's now Three Years Old and was up late
partying with Santa on Christmas Eve - - he even baked some catnip cookies for Santa!
We currently have a large selection
of Regimental Histories and Collectible book titles in antique Mahogany Bookcases in our house,
since there is just not enought room in the book barn. When we extend an offer to "come visit" -
we mean just that. You are welcome to sit outside under the trees or relax on the New Stone
Patio - - We are a home-based business in every sense of the word!
We now have a small red trailer that we use for shows. We do
not do many shows, since they are a lot of work for booksellers, but that is how we started our
business, and we try to do 2 or 3 shows a year and are always happy to have customers come visit
us. This year we will do Civil War shows in Charleston, South Carolina and Mansfield, Ohio. If
you see us moving on down the road -
just honk your horn!
Since I started doing this full-time, I have managed to grow the
business and actually make enough income for us to live comfortably. In an era when most
independent booksellers have vanished, I have been fortunate enough to combine the Internet and
old fashioned customer service to stay ahead of the pack. I work pretty hard and sometimes need
to have a little fun - - The Audi TT helps a lot! - - this would never have happened without our
customers!
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Content and associated images © Copyright 2005 by Carter C. Thompson
