Part of our philosophy at Manchester Wood is that by using local materials, we can fashion furniture that has a unique, local character. We believe that this character is a big part of what gives our wood furniture its charm and enables it to fit in well with many different surroundings. One of our slate top coffee tables would look just as natural in a modern apartment as it would in a country farmhouse. We are fortunate to be situated in an area – the Vermont-New York State border – that is rich in the resources we need for our wood furniture. Local forests provide us with plenty of high quality hardwood and even the slate we use for our slate top furniture comes from local slate quarries. Buying our materials locally not only means we can expect top quality, but also means that each piece of our furniture is filled with the regional character of the Northeast.

At Manchester Wood, all of the hardwood we use for our furniture comes from local forests across the Northeast. We are conveniently situated between the forests of New York’s Adirondacks and Vermont’s Green Mountains which provide us with much of our lumber. Using local lumber not only supports the local timber industry, but also cuts down on energy spent on transport. Furthermore, all the wood we use for our wood furniture – whether it is an Adirondack chair or a slate top coffee table – is certified by the Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI) as sustainable and eco friendly (more about eco friendly furniture). Buying local lumber means that it is easy for us to know that it comes from sustainably managed forests and has not been harvested illegally. Native Northeastern hardwood species, such as White Ash and Red Maple, provide us with all of the beautiful wood that we need for our furniture. When customers buy our wood furniture, they can be certain that it has been built out of high quality local wood that will last for decades. This durability ensures that Manchester Wood furniture is an excellent possibility for those interested in heirloom pieces.

Slate top tables are perhaps the most unique items that we manufacture and they are very popular with our customers, especially the slate top coffee table. Worked by our in-house craftsmen, the slate tables are made out of hardwood with a slate inlay on top. They are available in golden oak or chestnut finishes. If you are interested in a slate top table, please be aware that the color of the finish affects how the color of the slate looks; please see our product listing for pictures. We use unfading green slate for all of our slate top furniture.

The slate inlay on the tops of our tables means that they are more durable and stain resistant than similar tables that have plain wooden tops. Additionally, slate top coffee and accent tables can add a unique touch of style to any room they are placed in and they fit easily with both rustic and modern motifs. The compact size of our slate top coffee tables is also good for conserving space. It is our mission at Manchester Wood to produce the highest quality wood furniture and this includes our slate top tables. We guarantee that our customers will be pleased with the high quality and atheistic design of our slate top tables.

The most unique aspect of the slate top tables that we make at Manchester Wood is the degree to which they are imbued with local history and character. The slate for our tables is quarried right next door to our Granville, New York plant at one of the largest slate quarries in the Northeast. The slate mined in Granville comes from a vein of slate known as the Slate Valley, which extends for approximately twenty-four miles along the New York-Vermont State border. This is what we use for all of our slate top furniture. The Slate Valley is one of the few places in the world where colored slate abounds. Indeed, slate from Vermont and New York quarries is well-known and highly regarded by the slate community due to the abundance of different colors and its durability. Around the beginning of the twentieth century, slate was discovered in the region and many Welsh slate workers (Wales is another region that has a lot of slate) immigrated to the area. Today the quarries remain although they are now worked by local workers, whose efforts we are proud to support. The proximity of the slate quarries to our furniture plant means that we are never short on materials. Every slate top table produced by Manchester Wood is crafted from high quality hardwood and topped with a fine slate inlay that is full of local history.

Regardless of the piece of furniture you are interested in, you can be sure that all of the furniture we make at Manchester Wood will add character and style to whatever room in which it is placed. We guarantee that all of our customers will be satisfied with our wood furniture. It is manufactured with care by skilled craftsmen with years of experience from the highest quality raw materials available. The care that goes into the construction of all of our wood furniture means that it will last for many years, gaining in character as it ages. We are thankful to be situated in Vermont and New York. It is a beautiful area that is full of flavor, which is reflected in the character of our furniture.