Larry Dennis worked as a custom home builder in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex for several years.

Seven years ago Larry retired from the construction business and bought some land on Texas 281 a few miles south of Interstate 20, near the old settlement of Natty Flat. Here he set up a saw mill and started milling lumber from the local timber.

Larry then started building furniture from this lumber. He did not mill the lumber down into small boards as most saw mills do but left them extra thick and the full width of the log. From these he made what I call “slab furniture” showcasing the full grain pattern of the whole log.

He uses several varieties of wood for his furniture including mesquite, pecan, oak, cedar and some pine, preferably loblolly pine from around Bastrop. No two pieces of furniture will be exactly alike.

To have an outlet for his furniture, he opened the Texas Hill Country Furniture and Mercantile on the highway near the saw mill. Texas 281 has a lot of traffic, and they were getting a good bit of drop-in business, but Larry wanted something to really attract people’s attention.

After a year in business Larry started saving some large logs to fulfill a dream he had. He then built a large rocking chair to put in front of the store near the highway. His grandson thought, “Man, that must be the largest rocking chair in the world.”

The grandson then contacted the folks at the Guiness Book of Records. They came out and weighed it and measured it, and sure enough it was the world’s biggest. There is a certificate on the wall in the store from Guiness stating so. The rocker is 25 feet 11 inches high, 13 feet wide and weighs about 6,000 pounds. You cannot miss seeing it when driving down the highway.

Larry next added the Natty Flat Smokehouse. This is set up similar to an old country store with a meat counter at the back where you can get fresh barbecue. They have a dining area to the side where you can eat.

Two years ago Larry added a blacksmith shop to the operation. He leases the shop to Darrin StAma, a blacksmith from Early. Darrin drives over from Early each Friday and Saturday to work at the blacksmith shop. The public is welcome to watch him work, and if you have something special in metalworking you want made, just let him know. He takes custom orders. If you can, draw out the plans, or tell Darrin and he will sketch it out on the computer for you, and then he will make it.

Darrin has been doing iron art for eight years and has operated a blacksmith shop in Early for six years.

On Oct. 12, Larry held a seventh anniversary celebration. A country and western band played throughout the day. The band played under the shed on the side of the furniture store. There were rockers for the customers to sit and rock while listening to the music.

There was plenty of barbecue and red beans for everyone and picnic tables where you could sit and eat while the band played.

I had been to the Texas Hill Country Furniture and Mercantile store several times and Larry always seems to have something new each time I visit. This time I spotted a wooden bath tub made in the style of the old cast iron claw footed tubs. The tub was made of mesquite wood and looked really neat. If you want something really different for your bath, this is it.

So, your thing is the “Old West.” Want to fix up your own covered wagon?

Larry has the wagon bows to do it with. If you are looking for that hard-to-find item made of wood, you can probably find it here.

If you can’t find it, tell Larry what you want, and he will make it for you because he specializes in custom milling and custom woodwork orders.

While visiting with Larry he made the comment, “You hear a lot in the news today about the family businesses disappearing. This is our family business. I manage the saw mill; my son runs the wood shop; my wife manages the furniture store; my brother manages the Natty Flat Bar-b-que; and my daughter does the cooking. We aren’t doing a real booming business, but it is staying regular.”

I think one of his secrets of Larry’s success is doing quality workmanship at reasonable prices.

The store is open from 9 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays and Sundays 1-5 p.m. It’s closed Mondays.

If you are looking for that unique Christmas gift, this would be the place to get it. To get there take Hwy 4 through Granbury to Lipan. About three miles past Lipan is the intersection of Hwy 4 and Hwy 281. Take a right on 281 and go one half mile; the store is on the left.

You can view their furniture at txhcountry.com.

John Watson is a Cleburne resident who can be reached at texastraveler@sbcglobal.net.