Family Heirlooms Hold stories to be told
Quilts and fiber art from the African American Fiber Art Exhibition curated by Torreah “Cookie” Washington (pictured), part of the North Charleston Arts Festival.
Recently, I attended several events at the North Charleston Arts Fest, a five-day showcase of regional and local artists from various disciplines.
One of the events was the 18th Annual African American Fiber Art Exhibition, themed "In Praise of the Ancestors.” It was curated by Torreah “Cookie” Washington, a master quilter and fourth-generation needle worker. The event included a lecture by Dr. Vanessa Moore from the National Museum of African American History and Culture, entitled “Preserving Family Heirlooms.”
I arrived early to visit the quilts and textile art submitted for the exhibition before the lecture. I became emotional seeing the creativity in the quilts; it stirred up memories of my mother and her sister, who were quilters. Each quilt told a story of the artist's family history or the history of African Americans and our culture. Also, I met the artists and engaged in one-on-one conversations about their work, inspiration, and technique. They were passionate about their art.
Our mother made each of her children a quilt specific to their personality. One of my sisters has two quilts! A brother has a precious, heavy quilt made by our paternal great-grandmother. These are heirlooms.
The presentation urged me to consider family heirlooms in our possession that we may take for granted.
Heirlooms I possess include a quilt, my mother’s Singer sewing machine (gifted to her brand new in the 1950s), handkerchiefs, a cameo pin, aprons, cast iron skillets, cookbooks, and other jewelry. Items like cast iron skillets from my grandmother, I use regularly. Other items like my grandmother’s handkerchief, I pull out when I need the spirit of my ancestors. I have yet to use my mother’s sewing machine.
All of us might have heirlooms or artifacts in our possession and may not understand their historical significance.
During Dr. Moore’s presentation, she told a story of a woman from New Jersey who had clothing handed down to her from her grandmother. “These were my mother’s, mother’s, grandmother’s, mother’s, mother’s clothing, who was a slave,” her grandmother told her. It was a skirt and a top.
After seeing the post on social media, the National Museum of African American History and Culture contacted the owner and authenticated the items as pre-1865 and worn by slaves. The items are currently on display at the museum.
Family heirlooms can hold a story worthy of being told and remembered.
When I consider the aprons handed down to me, I know our family history they carry. In the 1940s-1960’s, my grandmother and most of my aunts worked in ‘private family’ - a palatable term meaning they worked for a white family as their maid and/or caregiver for their children. My mother was one.
The family apron collection includes a handmade cobbler's apron, likely worn while cleaning around the house. The more delicate aprons with intricate designs, I imagine, were worn while serving guests as the lady of the house entertained. These aprons hold the strength, sweat, and honor of the women who worked in a role that tried to make them feel inferior.
As history continues to be erased and rewritten, heirlooms and artifacts with stories are significant. They allow us to remain connected with someone or a time we never knew, living on and being remembered through oral storytelling and the heirloom.
Click the links below to read related articles.
A Symbol of a Family’s Place in American Culture
Skirt worn by an enslaved ancestor of Janett Sharee Galloway
