Paul Addison Walker was born in Newport, which is near Blackburg, Virginia, on May 15, 1900. He was one of three children of the late John William and Addie Sue Keffer Walker. Paul married Mildred Zell on March 13, 1926 and they lived most of their lives in Giles County, Virginia.

Paul and Mildred, however, lived in Big Stone Gap, Virginia from 1935 to 1942 when Paul was in the Lonesome Pine Civilian Conservation Corp. Congressman C. Bascom Slemp recognized Paul's talents and craftsmanship and commissioned him to make miniatures of historic buildings in Virginia, Kentucky, and Tennessee. Paul kept a work record of the time and other details of the work on these historical miniatures in a small notebook. This ledger was used by C. Bascom Slemp when paying Paul for his work. Paul was paid 50 cents per hour for his work on the models. The scale for the models was 1/2 inch to 1 foot. For the purpose of reproducing the houses, the original buildings were accurately measured. The models show the evolution of homes from the one-room log cabin to two-story frame or brick houses.

In 1942, Paul and Mildred moved back to Newport and he went to work in the Radford Army Ammunition Plant and remained there until his retirement in 1965. Paul continued his wood-working hobby throughout his life. On the morning of May 13, 1996, just two days before he would have turned 96 years old, Paul A. Walker passed away. He was survived by his wife, Mildred, son Paul, Jr., three grandchildren and three great grandchildren.

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Built around 1770 at Popular Camp, Wythe County, Virginia, this was one of the first houses in this county. It is located on the New River. David Pierce built an iron forge and made one of the largest fortunes in the area at the time. He was a direct descendent of the Grahams, of Grahams Forge, Virginia, and Crocketts of Wythe County.

Paul made the model from November 5 to December 12, 1941 and it took him about 107 hours to complete.

This model was made by Mr. Walker in April of 1939. He was paid $24.75 for his 49-1/2 hours of work. In the diary that Paul kept of his work, he mentions that the house was located in the South side of Coeburn, but unfortunately no other entry is made in the diary.

Thomas Witten, assisted by his sons and neighbors in the early 1770s, built a fort for protection against Indians at Crab Orchard on the Clinch River in Tazewell, Virginia. The fort was composed of the main house, or dwelling, two blockhouses used for observation, a stockade, and an out-building. The original buildings burned, and were later reproduced by the Daughters of the American Revolution.

Paul spent 36 hours between October 15 and October 29, 1940, on the replica.