Small world

If you haven’t already, you should check out the cover story in the current issue of Woodshop News.

I love reading the shop profiles in Woodshop News. Getting to know other woodworkers through the profiles is always a treat, but it’s also a great way to learn about other markets and what the state of woodworking is like around the country.

Usually, the area where a profile subject lives is foreign to me, but in the case of Shutler Cabinets of Moundsville, W.Va., I consider the area to be my old stomping grounds. My first two broadcasting jobs where in Weirton, W.Va., and then Wheeling just down the river. Moundsville was right in the middle. All of the other towns mentioned were local to me. I made some good friends, and even met my wife there.

As Jennifer Hicks’ profile describes, that part of the northern panhandle of the state is – or, rather, was – highly industrial, dominated by steel and coal production. But those days are gone, with Weirton Steel and Wheeling-Pittsburgh Steel all but distant memories.

The loss of those two companies, as well as cutbacks in coal mining, was extremely rough on the area for years. But like so many regions transformed by changing industrial climates, the area has adapted over the last couple decades. Population decreases have slowed, new companies and employment opportunities have taken the place of steel and coal, and the standard of living is up again.

And with that, woodshops like Shutler Cabinets, as well as other businesses, are flourishing again. Heavy industry was beginning to wane when we relocated, and I read over the years about the hard times there. But in reading about Shutler Cabinets, it’s wonderful to hear that things are going well again. Jennifer’s article, as with all Woodshop News profiles, was both fun and enlightening. But more than that, it was like a visit home.