Harry Muir worked with the Preece brothers of Preece's bookshops before buying the Beck Book Company Limited, Adelaide, which he ran for 37 years from 1939. Muir established the
Wakefield Press in 1942, with the intention of publishing small historical monographs which may otherwise have remained unpublished. He was a collector of bookplates, and the press's first publication was
A Checklist of Ex-Libris Literature Published in Australia.
His wife
Marcie Muir shared his love of books and is well-known for her
A Bibliography of Australian Children's Books.