Woody Ganaway was one of the original basket makers at the Ozark Folk Center.
This Ozark Folk Center 50th Anniversary Legacy Photo is in memory of our mother and grandmother, Gladys Nalezny, who gave us our passion for baskets and love of hand crafts.
With love and appreciation, Lenore and Catherine Shoults.
Woody and Janet Ganaway were the first basket makers at the Ozark Folk Center when it opened in 1973. Through the years, many basket makers followed including Wayman Evans, pictured here standing on one of his baskets to prove its strength! This photo hung in the basket shop for years along with one of Betty Stroud, an original member of the Committee of One Hundred, who was known for her love of baskets.
In 1978, Jackie Stewart apprenticed with Hershal Hall as one of the first Committee of One Hundred apprentices. The Committee funded these apprenticeships:
1979 Sue Kelly Moon with Bob Blair and Wayman Evans;
1980 Bill Wade with Wayman Evans;
1981 Larry Keys with Wayman Evans;
1987 Debra Hipp with Leon Jennings;
1987 Leon Jennings with Erlene and Pete Carter on rib construction baskets;
1996 Ed Yates with Doyle Burton;
1996 Deb Redden with Doyle Burton and Paul Carter with Doyle Burton;
1997 Andrea Richter with Julie Stow;
2000 Jerilyn Nicholson with Leon Jennings, Doyle Burton, and Julie Stow;
2002 David Marry with Julie Stow;
2003 Sharon Ferniman apprenticed with Julie Stow.
Owen Rein was not an official Committee of One Hundred apprentice but he credits Wayman and Ruth Evans (pictured, right) for their generous sharing of basket making knowledge. Owen is one of the last white oak basket makers in the region. He lives on the land that he homesteaded and crafts baskets and chairs using only hand tools.
During a recent conversation, Owen compared his observation of the forest over the decades saying that the trees are not as healthy as in the past. He does not attribute this decline to a specific issue but he does wonder if, in the future, an artisan would be able to make their living off of the land rather than living on the land.
Leon Jennings (pictured, left) was the beloved basket maker known to many Committee of One Hundred members as the husband of Jean. Many events were hosted at Jean and Leon's house and many of Leon's baskets were gifted over the years. Such generous and wonderful people!
The baskets, at left, were all made by Wayman Evans and are a collection assembled by Kay Thomas, the first Crafts Director at the Folk Center. She tells a story of the tiniest one:
I had Christmas ornaments for my tree made by craftsmen at OFC; a small chair made by Les Richardson, a tiny broom by Bill Ford, a tiny china doll head by Mrs. Burrow, a small Cornshuck doll, etc. I asked Mr. Evans to make me a small basket, it was the size of a 50 cent piece. He said he could but didn't want to fool with it so I thought that was where it ended. One day, months later, he came to me office and threw a little basket on my desk and said something like "I told you I could do it." I love that little basket and of course will always treasure it.
Kay has a lot of recollections about Wayman including his early years. He was born in 1911 in a small town that bordered Georgia and Tennessee. His father and grandfather were basket makers and they would load a wagon with baskets and take them to town to trade for staples. Kay first met Wayman and his wife, Ruth, at the Ozark Foothills Handicraft Guild shop in 1975. They were living in Floral, Arkansas at the time and were interested in selling their baskets. They were specific about pricing, likely due to Wayman's family tradition of bartering baskets. You would have to know the market value of your product and hold true to a price structure within your trade region.
Wayman also worked in the basket shop at the Folk Center and he taught many workshops in basketry. He was a tough teacher and, years later, it is a point of pride for those who studied under him. Even today, one hears the phrase "I learned from Wayman" and that conveys a lineage of quality, strength, and a specific style. In the 1980s, the Committee of One Hundred funded a video of Wayman Evans making a basket and he is filmed going into the woods, selecting a particular tree, chopping it down with an axe, hand-splitting the white oak, and weaving the basket. Thanks to Wayman for preserving the art of hand crafted basketry, to Kay Thomas for her awareness that this needed to be captured, and to the Committee for the funding!
Entry by Lenore Shoults with input from Kay Thomas, Owen Rein, Mary Vandiver, the Arkansas State Archives, and fond memories of Jean and Leon Jennings (who always said, "I learned from Wayman Evans!")
The Committee of One Hundred Tribute Wall recognizes contributions to the preservation of Ozark folk culture.
If you would like to help preserve the folk culture of the Ozarks, consider a
The Committee is made up entirely of volunteers so, except for transaction fees, all of your donation funds music, craft, or the herb gardens and, as a 501c3 entity
your donation is tax deductible!