Belton Area Museum Association
100 North Main Street
Belton, South Carolina  29627

Mission Statement:  The Belton Area Museum Association's purpose is to collect, exhibit, preserve, and interpret the artifacts, sites, antiquities, and genealogical, archival, cultural, and natural history of Belton, SC, Anderson, SC, and the State of South Carolina.  BAMA also provides cultural enrichment, intellectual stimulation, learning opportunities, and activities to increase the appreciation of the traditional, visual, and performing arts.

The Fifth Annual Heritage Days at the Depot

Presenting traditions of the past to preserve their legacy for future generations

October 1 - 3, 2009

Heritage Days Photos (taken Oct. 1 - 3, 2009)
 

Heritage Days Features Hands-on Exploration of History

Heritage Days at the Depot, an award-winning event hosted by the Belton Area Museum Association, is a festival that showcases the talents of folk artisans and living history practitioners from the South Carolina area.  With the overall goal of providing a venue for historical interpretation/demonstration of the skills and artistry of our ancestors which will increase public awareness, interest in and appreciation of these skills, Heritage Days at the Depot will host District Two 2nd - fifth graders (approximately 2000) and the general public (approximately 8000) who will attend this interpretive festival, held on the greenspace surrounding the historic Belton Train Depot on October 1 - 3, 2009.  This event has grown in both attendance and reputation in the last four years, and BAMA has been recognized by the SC Federation of Museums with the 2007 Achievement Award and by the Palmetto Trust with the 2008 Heritage Tourism Award.

In 2005, BAMA was motivated to host Heritage Days at the Depot due to our informal survey that revealed our general public and especially our school children were entirely ignorant of the skills and craftsmanship that were not only necessary to survival in a harsh wilderness but also were aesthetically important to the quality of life of our ancestors.  These living traditions had pockets of practitioners presenting in limited venues, usually too distant for families to travel, and the public presentation of these skills was non-existent in our rural community.  Therefore, BAMA initiated Heritage Days at the Depot to fill that need for the presentation of living traditional skills so their practice could be kept alive and our community would be more aware of, interested in, and appreciative of these skills.

The twelve exhibitors in 2009 will represent traditional skills and historical interpretations including an Appalachian Storyteller, a Cooper, a Decoy Carver, a Clockmaker, a Cherokee Pine Needle Basket Weaver, a Glass Blower, a Weaver, a Miller, a Civil War Musician, a Game Master, a Quilter, a Cast Net Weaver. Their presentations are aligned with the SC History Curriculum Standards for 3rd and 4th grades and the teachers are always so appreciative that they can relate their book studies with actual hands-on experiences through their students' participation in Heritage Days.

The event is sponsored by the SC Arts Commission, John and Susan Bennett Memorial Arts Fund of the Coastal Community Founcation of SC, The Humanities Council-SC, the City of Belton Hospitality Fund, Foothills Community Foundation, and Anderson County.

2009 Heritage Days Presenters

Tent 1

As a veteran craft interpreter and museum educator at Middleton Place, Doug Nesbit has exhibited to thousands of tourists and school children, imparting his knowledge and craftsmanship of the art of coopering.  For 13 years he has been crafting buckets, kegs, and barrels and has completed over 196 vessels which are sold to collectors worldwide.  Using wood directly from the tree and employing traditional methods and tools, he focuses on painstakingly replicating this lost artistic endeavor and by doing so, keeps its practice alive.  Watch him craft buckets and barrels that stand up to the test of time.

Doug Nesbit,
Cooper

Tent 2

With a yearning borne from her ancestors' genes, Parker Brown-Nesbit has been interested in weaving since she was five years old.  A 22 year veteran, she began seriously pursuing her craft 13 years ago and, as she states, has been compulsively weaving for the last eight years.  She has utilized all types of yarns spun from the wool of sheep and Angora rabbits and agricultural products such as linen and cotton.  Using either a rigid Hettle loom or a portable laploom (one of the most ancient types of looms used by weavers), she creates works of art in the form of purses, sashes, blankets, and material for authentic historical clothing.

Parker Brown-Nesbit,
Weaver

Tent 3

Curator of Living History at Roper Mountain Science Center, Michael Weeks uses his childlike enthusiasm and love of history to demonstrate traditional toys and games that children played in the 18th and 19th centuries.  From familiar games such as hopscotch, jacks, and marbles to more obscure past times such as Bilbo, trundling, wimmy diddles and graces, participants will enjoy visiting yesteryear's simpler times.

Michael Weeks,
Game Master

Tent 4

A descendent of a grist mill operator, Alan Warner began looking for all the mill sites in Pickens County in 1990, discovering sixty-five mill sites in all.  Credited with restoring and improving the Hagood Mill Historic Site, Alan oversaw the mill's re-opening in April 1997.  He operates the mill one weekend a month, maintaining the equipment of the mill, repairing the waterwheel, sharpening the stones and producing the best quality stone ground corn meal, grits and wheat in the upstate.  He will be demonstrating the art of milling on a small portable grist mill.

Alan Warner,
Miller

Tent 5

A talespinner who has achieved national recognition (2003 first runner up in the National Storyteller of the Year contest), Thom Bristow portrays Persimmon Plumbottom, a folk character who spins stories about his family living in Appalachia.  Since many of the tales that have been passed down in the Appalachian Mountains originated with the Scottish people, Thom visited Scotland this summer and was invited to tell a few tales at an international conference of storytellers.  He is a registered artist with the SC Arts Commission and has organized and presented at many events on the state, national and international levels for the last 30 years.  His humorous stories and songs accompanied by a tenor guitar will delight audiences of all ages.

Dr. Thom Bristow,
Appalachian Storyteller

Tent 6

Thousands of hand stitches go into the making of a quilt, and Jackie Patton will show us the lively patterns, shapes, and materials that make a quilt an heirloom.  Having researched the meanings of quilt patterns, she will demonstrate the timeless forms while explaining their historical significance.  Jackie has perfected this art form for almost 10 years and will encourage visitors to piece together remnants of fabric to be made into a commemorative quilt.

Jackie Patton,
Quilter

Tent 7

Mike Green began working with glass about five years ago when an artisan from Mississippi, Toney Harris, taught him how to work with the unusual substance.  Harris showed Mike important basic techniques and styles, and since that time, Mike has been experimenting with forms, styles, and techniques that have made his artglass renowned and treasured by collectors.  Watch him form intricate baubles and utilitarian pieces with a flair for traditional and timeless artistry.

Mike Green,
Glass Blower

Tent 8

A nominee for the 2010 National Folk Fellowship Award, Ernie Mills has practiced his traditional folk skill of creating decoys that are both beautiful and utilitarian for over 50 years.  A third generation carver, as a child he spent the summers with his grandfather in North Carolina, was given his first knife, and was taught to carve at the age of 8.  In the 1980's Ernie started making traditional working decoys, using techniques that he had been taught as a young man.  All of his decoys are made using hand tools such as hatchets, chisels, and knives.  He demonstrated decoy carving at the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games, and his works appear in the Smithsonian Institute in Washington, DC. Come by and visit while he carves decoys that are at home in the water as well as in museums.

Ernie Mills,
Decoy Carver

Tent 9

Cultural historian, artist, author, and Jean Laney Harris Folk and Traditional Arts award recipient, Nancy Basket takes her name and the work she does from her Cherokee grandmother, Margaret Basket.  While making baskets from pine needles, she tells traditional Cherokee stories.  She has presented at colleges, pow wows, museums, and schools across the Southeast, and she shares her culture and artistic skills with those wanting to learn about her ancestors and their cultural contributions.  Listen to stories of her Cherokee ancestors as you learn to weave beautiful creations using a few pine needles.

Nancy Basket,
Cherokee Pine Needle Basket Weaver

Tent 10

Tom Benko, an avid collector and restorer of antique clocks for over 40 years, learned the art of clock repair and building as a young boy because he was always fascinated with "all things mechanical."  As a former owner of The Village Timepiece, he has established himself as a provider of quality restorations and repairs.  Among those clocks he has restored include rare items from America and Europe, dating back to the 1700's.  He is eager to share his knowledge and skills with other collectors and will demonstrate how to restore time pieces of exquisite quality, history, and craftsmanship.

Tom Benko,
Clockmaker

Tent 11

A 2009 Jean Laney Harris Folk Heritage Award recipient, Joseph Legree has been recognized for his net weaving skills and for his work in preserving a folklife tradition of the Gullah culture.  A community partner with Penn Center for more than 20 years, Legree contributes to the oral history and folklife of the Gullah people by demonstrating his craft.  He learned the art of cast net making from a fellow St. Helena resident, Mr. Harry Owens, when they worked together on an oyster boat.  Legree weaves nets for fishing and shrimping and bases the size of the net on the height of the caster.  The intricate weaving skills required for the completion of a net will fascinate visitors.

Joseph Legree, Jr.,
Cast Net Maker

Tent 12

Philip Cheney has presented versions of songs from the American Civil War to a wide range of audiences:  from battle re-enactments to conventions, from college classes to weddings.  Believing that participation is essential to the learning process, he encourages his audiences to join in when he presents a song while accompanying himself on the five-string banjo.  Slap your knees and hum along as he presents popular songs sung by the Blue and the Gray.

Philip Cheney,
Civil War Musician
 

For more information, contact:
Alison Darby
864-958-5264

 

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Belton Area Partnership - PO Box 83 - Belton, SC  29627