MESDA curator to explore patriotism in early American samplers during Asheboro library talk

A 1798 sampler by an 8-year-old
girl features an American Eagle
at the top.

ASHEBORO – How was patriotism in the early United States channeled through needlework by young girls?

Join Jenny Garwood of the Museum of Early Southern Decorative Arts (MESDA) as she addresses the topic in  “Expressions of Freedom in Southern Needlework Samplers” at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, July 16, at the Asheboro Public Library.

The talk, sponsored by the Friends of the Library, is free and the public is invited.

Needlework samplers were typically worked by girls as part of their early education. The young needleworkers adapted designs of eagles as they appeared on the Great Seal of the United States, and they meticulously stitched maps to emphasize a growing nation.

Accomplished students stitched patriotic prints onto silk to honor Revolutionary War martyrs.

Garwood will explore the patriotic fervor that was revealed though needlework from the 18th and 19th century south and the stories of the girls who stitched them.

Garwood is Manager of Museum Education and Adjunct Curator of Textiles at MESDA in Winston-Salem. A graduate of UNC-Greensboro, she has been with MESDA since 2007, where her focus of research and study has been with the textile collection.

The library is located at 201 Worth Street. For further information, call 336-318-6803.