Sheffield Historical Society Offers Textile Workshop

The Sheffield Historical Society is the recipient of a National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) Preservation Assistance Grant of S5,000. This is a nationally competitive grant and the Society received the maximum allowed under this category; grants totaling $20.6 million have been awarded to 324 organizations across the country.

The Sheffield Historical Society's work to be undertaken with this grant funding is three-pronged: to purchase equipment, to remount two- and three-dimensional objects and train staff in the mounting of such objects; and to undertake a survey of the textile collection and train the staff in caring for textiles. These goals will be accomplished with the help of two consultants who are among the best in their respective fields, Lori van Handel for objects and Gwen Spicer for textiles.

As a part of this grant, the Society is offering "The ABCs of Textile Conservation," a workshop to help stitch up the gaps in your textile knowledge. The workshop, which will take place on Wednesday, October 30 from 9 a.m.-1 p.m., is free and open to volunteers and staff of historic sites and to other community members who strive to preserve society's textile heritage. You will learn the terminology for determining and recording the condition of artifacts in a textile collection; the procedure for proper handling, vacuuming, and rehousing of artifacts, such as the padding fold; and how to identify insects and warning signs of potential infestations. Registration is required and space is limited; additional details will be provided upon registration. For more info call 413-229-2694.