...A Brief Introduction to
The Last Unicorn
Unique Architectural Antiques
and Other Pretties for Home and Garden
The Last Unicorn was birthed in New Market, Southern Maryland in 1974-5 by Gaines Steer and Sarah Banta Smith. Originally The Last Unicorn was a country antique store, also featuring vintage clothing and arts and crafts on consignment.
Gaines “re-invented” TLU in North Carolina in 1994 both as a means to make a living and to showcase his growing interest in collecting and promoting unique architectural antiques. In particular the mainstay of the business is the wrought iron gate and stained glass windows. The original business plan is still intact, a source of pride and accomplishment.
The small, yet unusual, house which Gaines and Paul Konove (Carolina Country Builders designed and built in 1987-8 and “the most gorgeous 5 acres in the South…” soon became host and display to an ever-expanding collection of architectural embellishments….. The outdoor showroom is perhaps the only display of wrought and cast iron that requires a customer map to survey the premises.
The grounds include over a dozen themed display and demonstration areas with names like:
The Secret Garden The Iron Forest The Unicorn’s Lair Chapel Woods, NC Reincarnation Pathway The Yellow Brick Road Narnia Wood Planter Trail.
Not to mention (but we will) over a mile in antique laden trails which boast five most unusual buildings: a screened gazebo; a community studio; the olde log cabin (circa 1800); the stained glass barn; the unicorn’s shoppe; and the famous Meditation Gazebo
Over 50 whimsical signs entertain customers at The Last Unicorn:
YANKEES WELCOME MOST DAYS PURCHASE REQUIRED TO EXIT MAGNETIC NORTH POINTS RIGHT HERE PLEASE DO NOT SALIVATE ON THE IRON WHATIS/WASIT? HUMONGOUS IS NOT A WORD, BUT IF IT WERE….ASK YOUR DOCTOR IF IRON IS RIGHT 4 YOU TO TELL THE TRUTH, WE FABRICATE OLDER THAN HELL, BUT A LOT MORE FUN OUR PRICES ARE RELATIVELY INEXPENSIVE, UNLESS YOU HAVE POOR TASTE!PLS IGNORE SIGNS THAT YOU DO NOT UNDERSTAND….
It is understated to claim that The Last Unicorn is one of the major attractions on the East Coast of the United States! Scores of folks visit the Unicorn’s lair to “press the flesh” of the only remaining unicorn in this hemisphere. Some of them actually buy stuff.
In spite of the grossly unimaginative nature of most of the newspapers and magazines that have survived the digital onslaught, The Last Unicorn has been featured in lotsa places. From Southern Living to The Daily Tarheel. The Last Unicorn and its mystical/magical environ has been the subject that has intrigued their readers and writers.
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