I am not saying the man is intentionally trying to mislead you,,only that memories are terribly inaccurate at times !! Young people in general do not pay a lot of attention to what fabric a chair is covered in !! In my opinion the fabric is not original,, not that it makes much difference in the chair value !! My opinion is that the chair is late 20`s or most likely 30`s !! I do not see anything that makes me think it is older but looking at pics is not always the best way to examine a chair !! Value is between $125. and $150 as it is.,,these are not one of the best selling chair types and rockers in general are not as popular as they once were !! The carving makes in less attractive to buyers except for those that are into the Gothic style of decorating !! Cleaned up and reupholstered could be a bit more but not worth the expense if re-sale is the intent !!