The 18th century filters into many of Matthew Stein’s pursuits.

The Latrobe resident performs reenactments with the Independent Battalion of Westmoreland County and visits trails his relatives would have walked in decades past. Even his career is inspired by his fascination with history.

Stein, 45, owns and operates Matthew D. Stein Woodworker and Handcrafted Furniture, through which he uses 18th century woodworking techniques to craft furniture such as Windsor-style chairs.

He has been interested in “building stuff” for as long as he can remember.

“I grew up on a farm, so we were always working with our hands, building stuff, fixing stuff,” he said. “I just loved mechanics and really wanted to do woodworking.”

When he was 12 years old, his father bought him a coping saw, which he still uses today.

“I took all of the shop classes that I could in junior high and high school,” he said.

Though he didn’t have an interest in attending college, Stein enrolled at his mother’s insistence. He studied architecture at the Savannah College of Art and Design in Georgia and later transferred to historical preservation. He served as an apprentice in a furniture shop that specialized in antique restoration.

Upon graduating in 1991, Stein returned home to Latrobe and started his own business.

“I just always wanted to work for myself, and I love building stuff and love working with wood,” he said. “I was just trying to figure out a way to put it all together and make a career out of it.”

In 2000, he bought a building on West Monroe Street and converted it to a workshop. Today, the married father of two has sold pieces all over the country and in Europe.

The advanced techniques of the 18th century intrigue Stein. For example, parts of Windsor chairs are steamed and bent. The joints are tapered, Stein said, “so the more you sit in them, the tighter they get, rather than looser.

“I’m really mechanically oriented. I love mechanics and how stuff works, and to me, (the Windsor chairs) just look phenomenal.”

The major difference between modern and 18th century techniques is the level of labor required, Stein explained.

“Obviously, everything is done by hand,” he said of the old methods. “It’s all powered by either your legs or your arms. The chairs — I do everything by hand to make those.”

Though he appreciates old techniques, he’s not a purist. Stein mixes old and new tools when making some items. He built his own 18th century-style lathes.

Many of Stein’s projects involve reproducing something old. He takes custom orders that challenge him to figure out how a past carpenter crafted an original piece. A recent customer asked him to re-create the shutters of an 1850s home.

To make the shutters, he is collaborating with fellow carpenter Dave Horner of Dave Horner Carpentry and Millwork in Latrobe.

“I certainly appreciate the handwork that (Stein) does,” Horner said.

“Even in the carpentry field, I think to be able to appreciate what goes into a panel like this is getting lost,” said Horner, holding up one of the shutters. “To be able to learn, to see what it takes to do all of this, it helps keep the quality of work up there.”

In addition to selling from his shop and online at matthewstein.com, Stein sells at arts and crafts shows such as the Somerset Historical Center’s Mountain Craft Days.

He also serves on the advisory board for the cabinetry and millwork division at the Eastern Westmoreland Career and Technology Center, and he performs demonstrations at historic sites such as the Fort Pitt Museum in Pittsburgh and the Compass Inn Museum in Laughlintown.

“I think what (Stein) really offers to us most is his educational background,” said Sean Murphy, 43, of Laurel Mountain Borough, who is board president of the Ligonier Valley Historical Society.

When the board has questions about fixing something at the inn, Murphy said, they turn to Stein. “He’s oftentimes our go-to guy when we have questions about how to do the right thing,” he said.

Nicole Chynoweth is a staff writer for Trib Total Media. She can be reached at 724-850-2862 or nchynoweth@tribweb.com.

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