John,

Rest assured, you are of sound mind to consider this.  Many new skills to learn,
research to do, tools to acquire and fun to be had.  Be careful, though,
chairmaking from green wood is a rabbit hole that may occupy your time for a
while.

Jennie Alexander's chair is a pretty refined example of a post and rung chair.
JA, Peter Follansbee and Brock Jobe ( I think ) wrote an article for an antique
journal ( possibly Chipstone) that explores the regional and ethnic variations
of these chairs that may be of interest to you from a living history
perspective.

Have fun,

Jim Crammond