Tell us about yourself!
I’m Hillary Smith, the owner of Black Walnut Books and Little Black Walnut Books. I have been a bookseller for over 15 years and started my own bookstore, Black Walnut Books, in 2021 as an online and pop-up shop. I focus on books by Indigenous, queer and BIPOC (Black, Indigenous and People of Color) authors. I also love stickers, notecards and little gifts, so I have a lot of those too!
In 2022 I was a vendor at The Shirt Factory’s Holiday Open House, and I fell in love with the building and its awesome community of small business owners and artists. I was able to rent a studio there and opened my brick and mortar store in March of 2023.
This March I opened Little Black Walnut Books, a children’s bookstore, down the hall from my original store. It’s been great to have a dedicated space for kids to come and read, play and just enjoy!
I love partnering with other local businesses and non-profits (it’s one of my favorite things). I co-host book clubs with The Wood Theater, Beldame Books and Adirondack Pottery. I have partnered with Lower Adirondack Pride to throw regular pride mixers at The Shirt Factory. Beldame Books, Gifts of Nyx and I team up for awesome Boozy Book Fairs at Mean Max and Adirondack Winery.
On Life In and Around Glens Falls
I grew up in Northern California and have also lived in Southwest Colorado. My partner is originally from the Schuylerville / Saratoga area. When we were looking at potential places to settle down, we really fell in love with Glens Falls. It’s such a sweet little town and I love that you have the Adirondacks in your backyard, but are also just a few hours away from Montreal, Boston and NYC.
We moved here 2 and a half years ago and never plan to leave. We live about 15 minutes outside of town. We bought a sweet little house that the previous owners built. I love that it’s close enough to town that my commute feels easy, but that I still get to have mountain views and the woods as a backyard. We have two dogs, two cats and 10 chickens and they all love it too!
My favorite thing about Glens Falls is how friendly everyone is and how, for a fairly small town, there is always so much to do! There are so many community events and awesome small businesses and local non-profits, it is such a dynamic place.
A Perfect Glens Falls Day
My perfect day would start with a walk in Cole’s Woods; it is so gorgeous all year long and I love that it is right in town. Then I would head over to Sweet Rice for lunch, where they have the most delicious curry. After lunch I would head to The Shirt Factory for some shopping. My favorite stores to browse are Barn and Brick, Sweetside Records and Beldame Books. I can spend hours perusing their shelves.
I’d pop into Rock Hill Bake House to grab my signature double shot of espresso over ice in my Adirondack Pottery mug that I always have in my bag. Then I’d stroll downtown for a cocktail and dinner at Craft on 9. I love bringing a book to read at the bar.
On the Past
Since I am still pretty new to the area, I don’t have much of a past in Glens Falls. I do love hearing from locals about how it has grown and changed over time. It is really amazing getting to work and live in such a historic place. I do, however, already have so many amazing memories here and can’t wait to build up a lifetime of them.
On the Future
I would love it if we had a little art supply and stationery store. I sell a fair amount of that type of thing at the bookstore, but I love getting to go to a shop where they are really knowledgeable and passionate about, you know, the specific qualities of different pens.
