As far as he knows, Jackie Woods of Kilmichael is one of the two active chainsaw carvers in Mississippi. Originally from Webster County, Woods’ father was in the sawmill business for a time. But it was not until work took him to the Great Lakes region that he was exposed to artists who used chainsaws […]
Brian Willis brings a deep knowledge of Choctaw tradition to his job of Communications Editor for the monthly Choctaw Community News, the office of which is in the Pearl River neighborhood of Philadelphia. He was born in 1974 to Huey and Nancy Willis of the nearby Tucker community (there are eight Choctaw communities in Mississippi,
Edna White has had a life full of different experiences. She has worked as a florist, a furrier (fur salesperson), a cook on a Mississippi River towboat, and many other jobs. She has always sewn and done different kinds of needlework in her spare time. In the last ten years, she has become very active
Young Bobby Walters would comb the monthly magazines along with the Hattiesburg American for those ads that said: “Draw Me!” He would reproduce the published silhouette, send it off, and receive a letter proclaiming his extraordinary talent. But his mother would say that the correspondence courses cost too much—$150 was a lot of money in
It was in shop class in high school in California that Terry Tjader first employed a lathe, turning table legs. His family moved to Minnesota his senior year. He majored in industrial education at the University of Minnesota. He was interested in furniture design and really hoped to become a shop teacher. However, the work
Norma Thompson is a Choctaw basketmaker who lives in the Conehatta community in Newton County (Conehatta is one of the communities that make up the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians Reservation). She carries on the tradition of making baskets from swamp cane that has been an important part of Choctaw culture for hundreds of years.
Frank Stewart comes from a long line of potters. Members of his family have been creating pottery in Winston County since his grandfather, Homer Wade Stewart, began the business in 1888. Frank grew up in the pottery shop, learning to throw pots from his father (Winford Stewart) and working to fill orders with his five
Prize-winning quilter Judy Spiers was born and raised in Marion County and lives there now, on the western edge of Foxworth. Her family tree is packed with musicians and artists, many of them painters. She also has a great-great-great-great-great grandmother whose quilt is in a museum in Jackson. Most of these ancestors were farmers, though
Susan Rogers is the youngest member of the Tutwiler Quilters. Born in 1977, she first learned to sew at the age of sixteen, when she enrolled in a class at the Tutwiler Community Education Center. After a little bit of trial and error, she was soon able to gain confidence in her craft and was
Hystercine (pronounced “Her-teh-seen”) Rankin of Lorman has been making quilts since the age of twelve. She was taught by her grandmother in order to help make covers for her ten brothers and sisters. She continued to quilt after marrying and starting a family, providing quilts for the beds of each of her seven children. In
Hystercine Rankin (1929-2010) Read More »