Mr. Sobon is an architect and builder specializing in the repair of historic timber framed buildings and the design and construction of new, traditional ones.  He has an architecture degree from Rhode Island School of Design and was initiated into the craft of timber framing in 1976 when he worked for Richard Babcock, a contractor involved with dismantling, repairing, and resurrecting old barns.   To further his understanding of the craft, since 1980 he has constructed over fifty timber framed structures using only traditional hand tools and in many cases, starting right in the forest.   He has taught over 80 workshops using historic methods and is the author of four books on the craft including Build a Classic Timber Framed House, Historic American Timber Joinery, and Hand Hewn, The Traditions, Tools, and Enduring Beauty of Timber Framing.  He is a founding director of the Timber Framer’s Guild of North America and an original, founding member of the Traditional Timberframe Research and Advisory Group, an offshoot of the Guild.  

He has taken one course at Eastfield (Traditional Stonecutting) and has taught one (Timber Frame Restoration) with Don Carpentier.  He lives in the forested hills of Western Massachusetts.