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The MQA Legacy Committee:
Working to Identify, Preserve and Promote Mississippi's Quilting Treasures
from information by Linda Jabour, Common Thread #47, Summer 2006 and the Fall
Gathering
The Mississippi Quilt Legacy Committee
was appointed in 2005 to develop guidelines and to begin the research process to
identify MS quilting treasures.
Martha Skelton Book
One of the projects they are making progress
on is a book on the works and life of Martha Skelton, an outstanding quilter
from Vicksburg.
Headed up by Cay Jones and Carol Vickers, the
Martha Skelton book committee has been interviewing Martha and documenting her
more than 175 quilts with the help of some scrapbooks created by Martha's
daughter. They have secured a publisher, University Press, and Mississippi
Quilts author Mary Elizabeth Johnson has agreed to write the book. Notes and
transcripts of taped conversations have been sent to Mary Elizabeth. Also on
board is the same photographer that did the photos for the Mississippi Quilts
book.
Legacy Identification
For some time the committee has been looking
for nominations for outstanding quilters throughout the state to document their
work. Fourteen quilters have been nominated, which is a disappointingly low
number to those on the committee, who are looking for numbers in the hundreds,
rather than the teens, according to Linda Jabour, committee member.
They stress that they are looking for ANY
quilter who has a considerable body of work, whether MQA member or not. And they
are focusing on those over 70 years old, since the time is shorter with which to
work with them. One of the nominees has already passed before the trial
interviewers could get to her. This illustrates the need for and urgency of this
project, explained Linda.
They need Regional Legacy Documenting Teams
to organize and come to the February gathering in Hattiesburg to be trained.
Procedures, interview questions and methods are outlined and developed; they
will need teams of about 6-8 to go to the quilters and get the information. You
don't have to be a skilled interviewer - they have it planned out for you! There
will be several team members: a tape recorder operator, an interviewer, a couple
people to measure and document quilts, a scribe to fill out forms, and a
photographer.
As with the previous documentation project,
all findings of the research will be donated to the Mississippi Department of
Archives and History to be available to future quilt enthusiasts and
researchers.
Any questions can be directed to Faye Peoples
at 601-253-2880.
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Mississippi
Quilt Legacy Committee
Faye Peoples,
Co-chair
Martha
DuBard,
Co-chair
Carol Vickers
Linda
Jabour
Download Nomination Form for Outstanding Quilter |
