~ A Short History of Leonard’s Books ~
Leonard E. Haley first opened Leonard’s Antiques & Used Furniture back in 1972 in a familiar storefront in Lafayette, Indiana. After he passed away in 1988, his son Eric continued the family business, gradually adding his favorite stock — books — and changing the name to “Leonard’s Antiques & Books.”
Leonard’s was the first antiques store in the Lafayette area to go online in 1996. Five years later, in 2001, the landmark store was closed, and Eric moved his collection of rare, out-of-print, and quality used books and magazines to a new location in Carroll County, Indiana–right next to our house in the old Burrows fire station. The name was changed to “Leonard’s Books” to reflect our new focus on both book sales and bookbinding. Today, the vast majority of our business is book and Bible rebinding, repair and restoration.
Eric’s bookbinding beginnings were humble, when he used his experience in antique books to bravely attempt to restore his wife’s treasured copy of The Prince and the Pauper, rescued from a relative’s damp basement and covered with contact paper. From there, with much practice, he became an experienced bookbinder, with over 30 years of experience in bookbinding, restoration, and book repair, including commissioned work for museums and rare collections libraries.
Now he has passed on his trade secrets to a new generation of skilled craftsmen, who use TLC to reassemble and restore your treasured and priceless possessions and give them a glowing finished look. Our business is a team effort and to many of us, it’s also a ministry.
Eric is a pastor, and at Leonard’s, we love the Bible: it is the written Word of God. The message of the Bible is timeless, but the cover of your Bible is not. If your Bible needs a resurrection, visit our Bible Rebinding page to find out more about what we can do for it. From small hand-held Bibles to large old Family Bibles, we can help.
Our many satisfied customers would tell you you’ve come to the right place. Leonard’s still has that same friendly service Leonard and Eric have always been known for. That we don’t intend to change–it’s a family tradition!
You can find information about our services and our pricing from the links at the top. Feel free to look around!
Or you can go ahead and contact us, and we’ll give you our best estimate on your priceless treasure. You’ll be glad you did! You can use our convenient bookbinding quote request form.