Hands-on history workshops at Wilson museum
By From staff reports
Published in News on September 21, 2011 1:46 PM
WILSON -- On the first three Saturdays in October, the North Carolina Museum of the Coastal Plain will be hosting hands-on history workshops in historic gardening, blacksmithing, and spinning and weaving. Each workshop will be held from 10 a.m. until 3 p.m. and will include a box lunch.
The first workshop, "Historic Gardening in the South," will be held on Oct. 1. Participants will learn about the design of historic gardens and plants in the South from settlement through 1960.
All workshop attendees will learn how to save seeds of historic plants and how to propagate new plants from old. Each attendee will propagate an heirloom rose, which they will take home with them. Workshop participants are encouraged to bring a plant cutting they wish to propagate, and photographs or site plans of a house lot or location where they may wish to create an historic garden.
On Oct. 8, the museum will host a workshop on blacksmithing. Workshop attendees will learn about the history, tools, and science of blacksmithing. Participants will also do their own blacksmithing, with each person making their own object.
The last workshop on Oct. 15, "Spinning and Weaving," will teach participants about spinning the three primary textile materials of the region: cotton, wool, and flax. There will be a demonstration of how to use a spinning wheel. Participants will spin their own yarn on drop spindles. Weaving will also be demonstrated on a full-size loom, and all participants will have a chance to weave a piece of a coverlet pattern on the loom.
The cost of each workshop is $75, and attendance is limited. Register online at http://www.ncmcp.org/home/hands, or call Nancy Van Dolsen at (252) 291-5113, ext. 236.