Our Story
It all started in 1733 in Central America...
George Black
Co-Founder / 1698 - 1746
One of our beloved founders, George Black was born and raised on the sun-scorched shores of St. Croix, where the sea weren't just a backdrop — it were a calling. Quick with a cutlass and quicker still with a story, George had a gift for makin' landlubbers and sea dogs alike feel as though the world were somehow larger in his company. Those who sailed alongside him swore he could navigate by the stars with one eye and recite passage from memory with the other. While his crewmates chased gold across the Caribbean, George filled his quarters with books, maps, and the kind of dog-eared manuscripts that'd make a scholar weep with envy. "A man who don't read," he'd declare, slamming his tankard on the table, "be a ship with no rudder." He weren't wrong, and nobody dared tell him otherwise.
Henry Barhe
Co-Founder / 1701 — 1767
One of our beloved founders, Henry Barhe was a man of few words and many books. Born on the island of Hispaniola to a family of scholars and seafarers, Henry came up in a world that told him what he couldn't be — and spent his whole life proving it wrong, quietly, without ever raising his voice. He was the one in the corner with his nose in a manuscript, three steps ahead of everyone else and content to let them figure that out on their own time. Sailors who crossed him expecting a pushover tended to walk away confused about what exactly had just happened. He had a code as sturdy as any ship's hull: treat every soul with dignity, deal fairly even when no one's watching, and never — under any circumstances — let ignorance go unchallenged. "The most dangerous thing in any port," he'd murmur, without looking up from whatever he was reading, "be a man who won't learn." Henry Barhe didn't roar. He didn't have to.
Born at Sea, Built for Books
Ahoy there, ye seekers of wisdom and curiosity! Grab a chair, if you will, and sit ye down for a tale as old as the venerable oak.
Our company, Black & Barhe, was “lifted onto its keel,” that’s pirate talk for founded, in the golden age of 1733, by two reliable sea traders, George Black and Henry Barhe – not so average gents as they basked in the mystique of the sailing merchant life.
They first glimpsed each other in the bustling hubbub of the Havana port, the gem of the Caribbean and the liveliest trading crackerjack of the 1700s, where the air rang heavy with a plethora of languages and the scent of foreign spices. Destiny danced them together and, fueled by their shared passion for the boundless sea and the potent power of knowledge, they embarked on a voyage of a lifetime.
Both had harboured dreams of the sea since they were wee lads; the taste of the salty air on their lips and the mighty ocean under their boots were as vital as breath in their lungs. While other sea dogs saw treasures in gold and gemstones, our founders were enamoured by the wealth of words. Printed wisdom on parchment, inked maps of unexplored lands, these were their true treasures, their way of bringing knowledge to ordinary folks. “Words be the most valuable loot,” they’d often roar, laughing heartily, their chests shaking under their travel-worn coats.
Black & Barhe started as a dream birthed in the heart of the ocean, grown and nurtured across generations of steadfast camaraderie and hearty shanties. As the current captain of this metaphorical ship and direct descendant of this audacious duo, I maintain their vision and wit with much pride. Our business, while not battling against the cresting waves, remains a ship of knowledge steering through the modern seas of technology.
Though centuries have passed, our origins echo in the walls of Black & Barhe, in the flicker of every page and the whisper of each loyal customer. We remain tethered to our roots, committed to the same creed as our founders – selling the currency of the wise, written material, ’cause in this world of ours, knowledge be the true power. That’s the Black & Barhe legacy, mate, a tradition both revered and cherished that anchors us to our humble beginnings and propels us into the future.
So here we be, to trade you knowledge for doubloons, bring forth the power of words to common folk and keep the spirit of George Black and Henry Barhe alive in every chapter. Are you ready to embark on an adventure with us? See ye there, matey!