Queer Places:
4521 Keswick Rd, Baltimore, MD 21210
Jennie Alexander (December 8, 1930 – July 12, 2018) was an American woodworker considered a pioneer in the woodworking world, "Instrumental in designing the now iconic two-slat post-and-rung shaving chair,".[2] She also coined the term "greenwoodworking" as a single word in her book, Make a Chair from a Tree: An Introduction to Working Green Wood. [3]
Born as John David Alexander Jr., Alexander was a trans woman who transitioned in 2007, at the age of 77.[2][1][5] Alexander's wife, Joyce, died in 1996. The couple had three daughters. Jennie Alexander has five grandchildren and three great-grandchildren; one of whom is John D. Alexander III.[6]
Jennie Alexander spent her early childhood in Baltimore, Maryland learning to play the piano and later became a Jazz musician. She was introduced to woodworking at the Baltimore polytechnic institute High School and would later go on to open up her own home shop in 1960.[4] Her mother grew up in Quincy, Massachusetts, and was part of the educational sloyd system. Because of this Jennie was always encouraged to explore woodworking and learning through doing.[2] Her father was a lawyer, and Jennie also attended law school at the university of Maryland, becoming a divorce lawyer. She embraced greenwoodworking as an avocation.[2] She both practiced greenwoodworking, and studied the history of greenwoodworking by examining furniture at museums, private collections, auction houses, etc.
In 1978, Alexander wrote, Make a Chair from a Tree: An Introduction to Working Green Wood, which was the first woodworking book published by Taunton Press. This book describes the process and tools required to construct a shaved two-slat post-and-rung chair without the use of a wood lathe. She became a member of the Early American Industries Association (EAIA) which was a crucial step in her exploration of woodworking and chair making as it gave her access to collections of joined furniture.[2] She also demonstrated how to make the shaved two-slat post-and-rung chair at an event hosted by EAIA. She later taught classes at Drew Langsner's Country Workshops in North Carolina and mentored many students.[2] At Country Workshops she met Peter Follansbee, and after years of corresponding, would go on to co write a book with him called, Make a Joint Stool from a Tree: An Introduction to 17th-Century Joinery.[4] She spent her later years mentoring many in greenwoodworking techniques and joinery. Jennie died July 12, 2018.[7][8]
My published books:
