Episode 28 - Steve Payne
Steve Payne
Discusses Boston’s Historical Carpentry Scene
Last year we were lucky to have Steve Payne of Payne|Bouchier Builders on a panel discussion titled “Preservation Vs. Performance,” and we wanted to bring him back to the Boiler Room to revisit two moments—which we played recordings of on the boombox.
We also wanted to hear his origin story–which is amazing! In his youth, Steve hitchhiked across the country doing all sorts of jobs in pursuit of actualizing the knowledge he learned from both his father and his Hampshire College geology professor. This fellow woodworker and mountain climber proved to be a major influence on Steve.
Steve’s life is also reflective of deep, life-long friendships and profound love, with an acerbic, hair-trigger wit that always brings a laugh or elevates a story.
We were blown away with how much of Steve’s story IS the history of Boston’s lumber and woodworking scene. With a start at Downes Lumber, the first company to deliver with a horseless carriage, and continuing at Dixon Brothers, Steve eventually opened up Payne|Bouchier. Kevin also knew and worked with many of this generation who have long passed, so it was a welcomed and heartfelt trip down memory lane.
Musically, Steve’s a blues man and has been lucky to see many of these greats live, including in Boston’s historic jazz clubs which have come and gone. Lightnin’ Hopkins, Johnny Copeland, and Delta were some of the legends he mentioned, along with the time he saw B.B. King, Chuck Berry, and Bo Diddley live on the Common.
