SoLost: Hugh's Place

SoLost got word that the best place in America to get your classic American stove restored was from a man named Hugh Marrioneaux in Port Allen, Louisiana. We were intrigued, so we headed South and found him in a seemingly broken-down building dotted with boiled peanut signs (he sells them & they're GOOD!) and surrounded by rusty old stove parts. Could this place really be home to a craftsman of such distinction?

A quick look at one of his restored pieces put all doubts to rest. A scan of the waiting list for his services provides emphatic further proof.

One might assume, given his level of skill and expertise, that Hugh has been restoring classic stoves his entire life, but in fact it's a second career. Years ago Hugh left his native Louisiana to work in Hollywood, supplying generators on film productions. But his most memorable moment there (other then meeting his wife Ann -- also a good story) was likely being hired to be Robert Redford's driver and security guard during the filming of "The Natural." John Lennon had just been shot and, as Hugh recollects, the studios were worried that copycat killings of other celebrities could occur. Redford took a shine to Hugh and, at the film's conclusion, gave him the only intact bat left from the production of the film.

But back to the stoves. It's no wonder some of High's customers have wept with joy at the sight of their newly-restored stoves. Hugh mentions that his own father is a "mechanical genius," but it's clear Hugh himself could be described in the same way. Combine that technical brilliance with his gentle demeanor, and you've found someone very special.

Meet Hugh Marrioneaux.