Kentucky native Mike Angel hade been interested in woodworking for years, but only took it up earnestly during retirement.

After serving in the Marine Corps in the 60s, Mike worked as a trooper with the Kentucky State Police. In 1970 he became a special agent for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms of the U.S. Treasury Department and was stationed in a variety of cities throughout the United States.

In 1987, Mike injured his leg during a drug raid and returned to Kentucky to recuperate at his parents' home. During this time, he refinished some hickory-bottom chairs that his grandfather had made years before. This project inspired Mike to study old Appalachian designs and experiment with woodworking techniques.

After Mike retired in 1994, he and his wife settled in Kentucky. Mike decided it was time to "get serious" about his chair making. He created his own line of traditional "mule-ear" chairs, so called because of the way to the back posts of the chairs stick up, like ears on a mule.

London, Kentucky

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