This year the Seymour Library at 161 East Avenue in Brockport has been featuring special displays in its Local History Room. The two-month exhibits in glass display cases present current activity by local writers, hobbyists, museums, artists, schools, and other community interests.
For December and January, the current display presents “Fiber preparation through the ages.” The tools, fibers, and fabric on display are arranged in a progression to illustrate the process of turning animal and plant fibers into yarn for knitting and weaving.
“The display intends to give an idea of what happened from the moment the wool was sheared from sheep, then processed, washed, straightened, then spun into yarn,” Cathy Chesnut said. Cathy is a Brockport resident and has been spinning fiber for about 12 years. She and Kathryn Tsoukatos created the display using their ideas and items, plus contributions from other spinning enthusiasts. Kathryn (who goes by “Kat”) is a Clarendon resident and a spinner; she also collects and restores spinning wheels. (See photo)
Cathy describes how fiber preparation started historically in homes as a necessity and now is enjoyed in homes as a hobby:
Before the Industrial Revolution in the U.S., fiber preparation was in homes to clothe a family and some ran a cottage industry for income. Some villages might have their own especially big loom or spinning wheel, used by itinerant expert weavers or spinners who would produce the yarn and weave fabric from the wool sheared locally. When the Industrial Revolution came along, the process was done at factories and many people worked in the factories instead of their homes. Today, spinning fiber is a hobby, not something to clothe a family.
Cathy points to two local groups that enjoy spinning and turning the yarn into useable items. One group is called “Lions’ Pride,” formed in the 1960’s by a Mrs. Lions; it meets at the Morgan-Manning House once a month. The other group Cathy belongs to meets in the Seymour Library and enjoys spinning, knitting and crocheting, currently calling themselves the “Fun with fiber and yarn group” until they decide a final name.
In fact, almost by accident, the two groups were instrumental in planning the display and providing the display items. Cathy was scheduled to set up the display on spinning for December and January. At the end of November, she was in a spinners group meeting at the Library when Director Carl Gouveia asked her how her display was coming. Prodded by his comment, “I made an announcement to the group and begged for their help in planning,” Cathy said. “We brainstormed for ideas and what items they could loan.” Later that night, she met with the other group and they contributed ideas and items. Cathy and Kat set up the display over several days and completed it the day of the photos and interview in the first week of December. With hobbyists from a wide area contributing their ideas, personal tools, and artifacts, the impressive show is really a grass roots endeavor.
At the end of January, a major event will take place for Library patrons in the Local History Room to bring alive the fiber-making process that is represented behind the glass. On Saturday, January 26, from 1 to 3 p.m. there will be spinners present to show how fiber is produced. Children will have a chance to work on Doug Chesnut’s portable loom. “The only thing we won’t be doing is bringing in a sheep and shearing it!” Cathy said.
(Note: Cathy and Doug Chesnut retired from Cortland County to Brockport a couple of years ago, after making a wish-list and thoroughly researching the town most suited to them. Read about them in the August 21, 2016 Suburban News and Hamlin-Clarkson Herald: “Planning, downsizing and uprooting: A senior couple chooses Brockport for their retirement home.” Go to www.westsidenewsny.com. Click on “archives.”)
