Yearly Archives: 2020

39 posts

28 December 2020; Important Donations to People in Need

One of our very special Christmas gifts this year was a food basket donated on our behalf by Linda & Victor Eure.  The donation was made to the Southwest Indian Foundation which has a mission to provide: ”  substantial school grants and individual tuition assistance, homes for battered women and […]

21 December 2020; Inuit Trade Dolls

In a previous post, we shared information on Inuit dolls made by young girls. But not all dolls were made by children. Adults often made dolls designed for the tourist trade. While the children’s work lacked a lot of artistic detail, the dolls made by adults for sale to the […]

14 December 2020; Navajo Quilt Project

Let’s Work Together to Help Keep Our Navajo Sisters Warm! This is what was stated at the end of the mission statement for this project from the site FrenchGeneral. If you have some quilting fabric, embroidery scraps, notions (including thread, scissors, etc), batting, old bits and pieces, sewing books or […]

30 November 2020; New Plantings!

The museum hopes everyone had a wonderful holiday weekend.On Friday we had a visit from two of our amazing long time volunteers, Anna Meshejlan and Patrick Basloe. They planted several North Carolina wildflowers and shrubs as part of a long-term project for the museum’s Natural History Center..  A buttonbush, elderberry bush, red buckeye, marsh sunflower, rattlesnake […]

9 November 2020; WWI Code Talkers

When US military codes kept being broken by the Germans in WW1 a Native American tribe came to the rescue. They just spoke their own language – which baffled the enemy – and paved the way for other Native American “code talkers” in WW2. It’s an irony that probably didn’t […]

27 October 2020; NoTail Bear

We are so happy to be able to share that we’ve had a number of sales of the book of poetry for the new publication of a small collection of poetry written by  Bear Plummer, a long term volunteer at the museum. We’ve also decided to make a small change […]

19 October 2020; Ask A Question!

Each Monday, we try to bring a piece of the what’s going on in our world to our followers on the internet. But we to involve YOU!  With so many people still staying safe at home and children learning remotely, we can use this time as a chance to bridge […]

12 October 2020; NEW Nature Trail Exhibit

One of the exhibits on the museum nature trail has recently been moved and enlarged.   The shad boat has a new location and a new roof with ample space for visitors.  The Round bottom shad boat  . . . also known as Croatan fishing boat, Pamilco Sound boat, Albemarle Sound boat, […]

5 October 2020; New Book Available!

The museum is pleased to announce the publication of a small collection of poetry written by  Bear Plummer, a long term volunteer at the museum. The book opens with a poem penned in 2020   “LETTER TO MY JAILER”   I stand here in my self-imposed prison. Walls not made of brick or mortar,  Bars […]

28 September 2020; Karuk Basket

This delicate basket is from a California tribe named Karuk, meaning “upriver people”. The Karuk were the only tribe in California to grow tobacco plants. Traditional basket materials for the Karuk are willow, pine root, bear grass, maidenhair fern, and woodwardia. The four central ‘lightning’ lines utilize a quilled technique […]

21 September 2020; Beaded Needle Carrier

As the piece is displayed in the exhibit (see first photo in set) it appears to be a simple panel that is covered in beautiful beadwork. What remains unseen is that the piece is actually an imaginative tri-fold carrier for needles. This style of beadwork is common to that of […]

14 September 2020; Kwakiutl Bumble Bee

This is a Bumble Bee (also called “The Scratcher”) mask from the Kwakiutl people of the Pacific Northwest. Often worn by children during the Potlatch ceremony, the Bee Dancers would provide some comic relief as they buzzed around the participants. Those that were “stung” by the bees would then be […]