Friday, May 2, 2008

Exhibitor Spotlight: Wolf's Head Books, Inc.

About Us: "A real class act with some vintage treasures and books covering most subject areas. The books are nicely displayed, attractively priced..." Quote from - The Used Book Lovers Guide to the South Atlantic States, p.58.

Specialties:
Wolf's Head Books, Inc., ABAA is a General Antiquarian Bookseller with an emphasis on the following:
• Americana
• Military
• Juvenile Series
• Signed fiction
• Floridiana
• Genealogy
• Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings
• Marjory Stoneman Douglas
• Clair Bee
• Hendrik Willem Van Loon (for all "Loony" collectors)
• Mrs. E. D. E. N. Southworth

Books & Ephemera in most other fields:
• Appraisals
• Book Search
• Collection Development

Corporate History:
As happens to so many people who eventually become booksellers, we began collecting books and then buying so many more that our house began to lean! It was so much fun being book wholesalers that we decided to open our store.

Barbara left her teaching career to become a fulltime bookseller. Our first location was in the basement of the water department building right next to the post office in downtown Morgantown, WV. We opened our doors in 1980, knowing of course, that in a few months we would have the whole two floors when the water company moved. Harvey continued to teach at WVU.

We always knew that we wanted to live near a warm water ocean, and while on vacation to Florida we found the perfect location and building in St. Augustine. One month later Barbara had up-and-moved here and in October 1988 our second store opened. Harvey continued to profess at WVU. It was pretty rough having two stores 850 miles apart, so in 1992 we sold the Morgantown store.

Harvey retired early from WVU in 1995 and we now devote our time to the St. Augustine store, walking the beach and swimming in the ocean when the water temperature reaches eighty degrees. Like we said, we wanted a warm water ocean!

Our principle staff person is Michael Theeke, a native of Adrian, Michigan. In fact, he was an early supporter of our dream, as he help paint the store and organize books just before we opened in Morgantown, WV. The hour before we had our grand opening, he handed us a sign for the wall after the book titled: "In God We Trust, All Others Pay Cash". Mike's special knowledge areas are Russia and Eastern European history. However, after seven years as our assistant, he's pretty well-versed in most of the subjects we carry.

We really love being booksellers in St. Augustine, as we've made some wonderful book-friends in the area. In addition, lots of tourists take their annual vacations in St. Augustine. And not to be left out are the book friends we've made over the internet who someday we'd like to meet in person.

Affiliations:
• ABAA: Antiquarian Booksellers Association of America.
• ILAB: International League of Antiquarian Booksellers
• FABA: Florida Antiquarian Booksellers Association.
• ADASTA: Antique Dealers of St. Augustine.
• UACC: Universal Autograph Collectors Club.
• ACDA: Antiques and Collectables Dealer Association.


Wolf's Head Books, Inc. is owned & operated by Dr. Barbara Nailler and Dr. Harvey J. Wolf.

Harvey Wolf has been a book collector since his teens. Two years of his early adulthood were spent at West Point. For many years he was a physicist in the aerospace industry; then started second and third careers as a professor of Public Administration, and antiquarian bookseller.
As a young girl, Barbara E. Nailler got hooked on books by her grandmother, Bernice Furbush, who started her reading Gene Stratton-Porter and Mrs. E.D.E.N. Southworth. Barbara was a junior high school teacher in Michigan and Professor of Educational Psychology in West Virginia prior to becoming an antiquarian bookseller.
Hours
11am - 7pm, Monday - Friday
11am - 5pm, Saturday
12.30pm - 5pm, Sunday
Other hours by appointment or chance. Find us here.

Wolf's Head Books, Inc. ABAA
67-B San Marco Ave.
St. Augustine, FL 32084
(904) 824-9357
(904) 824-2212 (fax)
Fax: (904) 824-2212

www.wolfsheadbooks.com

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