Traditional Amish Hardwoods offers quality
By Stacey Creasy/Editor
MONMOUTH – To Chuck Fry oak is not a color.
“Oak is a wood, cedar is a wood, not a color,” Fry said.
Fry and his wife Ann know good wood when they see it, they sell it everyday in their store, Traditional Amish Hardwoods, 420 N. Main Street in Monmouth.
The Fry family has been a fixture on that corner of North Main Street for more than 20 years. The family has always been involved with the Monmouth community whether it is working with a community activity or being involved with the local schools.
“We bought and opened the Filing station 3 in 1986,” Fry added. “We closed the restaurant after serving a lot of good people, and opened this store five years ago in October.”
Even though Traditional Amish Hardwoods recently celebrated its fifth anniversary, the store is one of the best kept secrets in Warren County and west central Illinois.
When you pass by the store it looks like a small shop from Main Street, but when you walk inside your field of vision is filled with all sorts of furniture and various items, housed in three showrooms.
Everything in the store from the queen-sized beds, kitchen and dining tables to the rocking chairs, curios and computer desks is hand-crafted by Amish builders. There is a long list of items that also includes flag cases, checkerboards, piggy banks, high chairs, bread baskets, Bible cases, night stands, and many other items.
“It is all made from the best wood out there,” Fry explained. “We personally know all our builders. We have been in their shops and their homes. We don’t have a rep that tells us who should build what, we have a personal relationship with all our builders.”
Fry said having a personal relationship with their builders makes it easy to customize any item for any customer. Special orders does not upset the Frys because Fry said their builders can handle just about any special order a customer could desire.
The furniture and merchandise is made from a number of hardwoods. Fry has furniture made of oak, cherry, cedar, and maple just to name a few. The prices are very competitive, especially compared to similar stores in the metro areas, but Fry said there is more to consider than price when it comes to his furniture.
“I had one customer come in and look around. He told me ‘this is the kind of furniture that will still be around a thousand years from now,’ Fry stated. “I don’t know about a thousand years, but this is the kind of furniture you will be able to hand down from generation to generation.”
Depending on the item it can also be the type of furniture that appreciates with age, instead of deteriorates as it ages.
Fry encourages customers to be as informed as possible, come into the store and take their time looking around.
After all, the quality and the craftsmanship of the furniture is what stands out.
“We want the customer to know their measurements if they can,” he added. “We want them to feel the finish, lift the furniture and see how well it is made. Don’t get me wrong, we have no problem with people stopping by and letting us help them figure out what they want.”
Fry said he and his wife have done some remodeling by adding windows to the front of the store. More renovation is in the works. Fry said he leaves the lights on a night because he wants people to be able to window shop and see what the store has to offer, and if they do not have it, they can custom order the item. There are all sorts of Amish catalogues in the store.
“We want to light-up North Main a little bit,” Fry said. “Most people do not realize how much we have in here until they stop in.”
The Frys recently added a member to their staff. Retired Monmouth teacher Sheri Singleton will work part-time at the store.
Fry said residents are welcome to stop in and meet Sheri, who will give them a tour.
