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 Stephen Alexander founded Second Empire in 1985 in New York's Hudson River Valley near
West Point. It was primarily a restoration shop, until in 1989, to raise his cabinetmaking skills, he went off to Boston
to attend the cabinetmaking program at the North Bennet Street School. While
at NBSS, he met his future wife, who was studying Bookbinding. Later she applied for, and was accepted for,
a position at the Library of Congress, as a conservator. They settled in Baltimore after their graduation, where Stephen
set up shop. Aside
from running his own business, he has also spent 5 years as one of three Senior Design Associates for the Niermann Weeks Co.
in Annapolis, a manufacturer of high end furniture and lighting. While there, he helped design and develop a number of the
antiqued faux and natural wood finishes for which they have been famous. A senior design job with Chapman Manufacturing in
Avon Massechusetts followed for another four years. His tasks while there was to bolster up this high end lighting companies
long neglected furniture line with new designs and finishes. In 2000, with those previous 9 years of experience under his belt,
he went back to the full time running of his own business again.
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| Robert Frey, Ginger & Katy |
Robert Frey is a 1990 graduate of the North Bennet Street School's cabinetmaking program. He has created pieces for McLain Wiesand and Chapman Manufacturing. His copy of a Klismos chair from
the Madison White House from the Baltimore Museum of Art's Power, Politics &
Style exhibition is now part of the permanent collection of the Maryland Historical Society. When it comes to
complex shapes in wood, if Robert can't make it, and make it to last, it can't be made.
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| A Stow Away On A Delivery |
The four
legged members of our staff only started here in earnest in early 2005 with the unexpected arrival one morning of a mud covered,
dirty and homeless 1+ year old English Shepherd we named Katy. She cleaned up well, and shop life seemed to agree with
her. Little did we know until a month or so later that we were to have 9 more shop dogs by the end of May. Of that litter, all but one found other
welcoming homes; Ginger, was adopted by Robert Frey, and has remained as invaluable to the shop as her master. Late in the summer of '06, when another
English Shepherd from Ohio needed a home, we took in 4 year old Sabrina, who graced us with her wonderful and unique
personality, love, and loyalty for nearly four years, until her sudden passing in 2010. We brought Bixter into our lives
a couple of months later. An English Shepherd from Whippoorwill Farm, down in Tennessee, Bixter was eight weeks old at the
time. He has grown up in the shop, and has been a joy to have around. To see more of them you can click on any of the dogs photos.
For our customers who just don't like dogs however, we can assign
them to office duty's (sleeping on the sofa).
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| Sabrina 2001-2010 |
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| Mother & Daughter |
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| Katy & Bixter |
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401 E. Oliver Street, Baltimore, Maryland
410.528.1120
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