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A plastic cord that used to be used in basketmaking
Barbara McCormick
Basketry
Basketmaking in South Carolina reflects the blending of Native American, European and African traditions to create two predominate types of baskets - the coiled baskets of the Lowcountry and woven baskets of the Piedmont and Blue Ridge. Native Americans used river cane to plait baskets, mats and fish traps. Europeans maintained Old World techniques and forms, adapting them to new materials like white oak to weave their harvest baskets and clothes hampers. On the coast, enslaved Africans brought their knowledge of rice production and introduced coiled basketry using local sweetgrass, bulrush, palmetto, and pine needles. Today, traditional basketmakers have adapted their forms to a changing market and most baskets are made for decorative use.
Content is provided by McKissick Museum, University of South Carolina.
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Mary Vanderhorst talks about competition and how basketmakers work together.
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Basketmaker from Mt. Pleasant, SC (Charleston County).
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Nathaniel Washington talks about different parts of tree.
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Nathaniel Washington talks about wetting the wood splits.
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Basketmaker Nathaniel Washington talks about the process of cutting the wood.
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Nathaniel Washington explains the steps in making baskets.
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Basketmaker Nathaniel Washington talks about laying out the ribs of the basket.
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Basketmaker from Mt. Pleasant, SC (Charleston County). Another basketmaker from the legendary basketmaking family of "Manigault Corner." According to Maggie "she has been doing it for so long that she...
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Basketmaker from Mt. Pleasant, SC (Charleston County). Manigault hailed from one South Carolina's most prolific basketmaking families. The Manigault's have been making sweetgrass baskets for...
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Mary Jane Bennett talks about ancestry and heritage.
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Mary Jane Bennett other family members that weave.
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Mary Jane Bennett talks about the appreciation for baskets and basketmaking
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Jessie Bennett describes the places he looks for sweetgrass.
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Mary Jane Bennett talks about curing sweetgrass and bulrush.
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Mary Jane Bennett talks about her baskets from her youth.
