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Archiver > SOUTHERN-CHAT > 2001-08 > 0998578098


From: "The Carver's Daughter" <>
Subject: [SouthernChat] *The Carver's Daughter*
Date: Thu, 23 Aug 2001 10:48:18 -0400


Would have answered you sooner Ramona, but my ISP has been up and down so
many times in the past three days. And I am missing some of my mail so have
to go to the archives to make sure I've not missed anything. And I did miss
your reply to my post.

I used to be told that the 7th son was the one who could cure thrush and all
that, but Pa Beaver was the oldest son. Since he was the oldest, it
couldn't have been the legend that a son who never saw his father could do
it. So Pa must have been born with a hood - that is the only other legend
I've heard about men with special powers to cure.

As for the Carver's Daughter. Da was a master carpenter, but that isn't
where the name comes from. In Cherokee County NC there is a place called
the John C. Campbell Folk School. It was started in the 1930s by Dame Edith
Campbell and patterned after some schools in one of the Scandinavian
countries. They are located in Brasstown, NC. www.folkschool.org

One of their first programmes was teaching some of the area residents to
carve. Da was one of the original *Brasstown Carvers*. He carved from the
1930s right up until he died in 1998. The last 10 years or so he carved the
tiny little pieces that the folk school dubbed *thumbnail* carvings. During
his life he sold hundreds of pieces, some as far away as Germany. There is
a fairly large collection of his work at the NC Museum of Natural History.
There were two spinster sisters who collected Da's carvings and when the
last one passed away, she willed the collection to the museum.
I have pictures on a web site of Da's carvings if anyone is interested in
seeing them. I haven't posted all the pics yet, like the one I have of the
Pegasus he carved for my oldest son. It has a 24" wing span. I have
articles about him from several magazines and video tapes of television
interviews, and a 3 hour audio interview with him done by the NC Arts
Council in connection with documenting the mountain crafters for the
Folkways project for PBS.

Everyone in his family except his father and his youngest brother did at
least a little carving. Pa would sand the finished work.

My aunt once carved over 750 donkey napkin rings for the Democratic
convention in Atlanta.

His youngest sister carved beautiful Scotty dog, and she died before she
was 8 years old.

His brother Avery carved prancing colts. Through the Folk School, two of
these were presented to HRM Princes Elizabeth and her sister HRM Princes
Margaret. I have a copy of the letter sent by one of the ladies-in-waiting
at the request of the Princesses commenting on the workmanship.

Uncle Avery was carving a colt just like that in 1946, sitting on the back
of a wagon on his way home from town. A model T bumped the wagon, startled
the mules and Uncle Avery fell off. Took Pa at least half a mile to get
them mired in mud so they would stop. He got back to Uncle Avery just as he
was breathing his last. He evidentially bumped his elbow on the wagon bed
when he fell and stuck his own pocket knife into his heart. I have the colt
he was working on that day. Have never let another carved finish it either.

As you can tell, I do get long winded when it comes to the carving.
Carol



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