2010 Annual Convention Highlights Creative North Carolina and North Carolina During the Great Depression
The Tar Heel Junior Historian Association held its 2010 Annual Convention on April 23 at the North Carolina Museum of History in Raleigh.
In a morning ceremony, Jessica Pratt, THJHA program coordinator, welcomed attendees, made announcements, and introduced museum staff members who led the junior historians in singing North Carolina’s state song, “The Old North State.” She then led a roll call of clubs to recognize who was present. Following the opening ceremony, everyone prepared to attend workshops. This year’s attendance was 615 junior historians, advisers, and family members.
The 2010 Annual Convention highlighted Creative North Carolina and North Carolina during the Great Depression. Workshops focused on article topics from the fall 2010 and spring 2010 Tar Heel Junior Historian magazine issues. Marvin Gaster, a North Carolina Heritage Award recipient and former THJHA adviser, played old-time music on the banjo, and fellow presenter Evelyn Shaw played fiddle. The pair shared songs and stories about the Great Depression. In the Limber Jacks and Jills workshop, students made paper versions of the wooden dancing dolls created by the late George SerVance. Potter Sid Luck demonstrated making pottery—including his well-known face jugs—on a wheel, and students then worked with clay to design their own funny face. In the Trash=Treasure workshop, junior historians received bags of trash and scraps and were instructed to make a tool or toy; they were shown examples of such creativity from the Great Depression. Participants in the Warp and Weft workshop watched a weaving demonstration on a loom before making their own woven bookmarks. Hopscotch, marbles, and tiddlywinks proved to be popular games during the Great Depression; in the It Wasn’t All Doom and Gloom workshop, students tried out such games. For the One Noble Journey workshop, actor Mike Wiley became Henry “Box” Brown, an enslaved man who mailed himself to freedom. Volunteers joined Wiley on stage as characters in this story. Participants learned about and practiced on a variety of musical instruments important to North Carolina in the Music Makers workshop. They also made their own musical spoons. Students in another workshop learned to answer the question Why’d They Do THAT? about life on the Carolina coast. In Looking Beyond the Lens, junior historians analyzed photos taken by the Farm Security Administration in the Tar Heel State during the Depression. Participants learned how to read photographs and discover stories captured by the camera.
The day also included a delicious lunch served by Gardner’s Barbecue of Rocky Mount. Those who had reserved lunch tickets enjoyed barbecue sandwiches, coleslaw, chips, a drink, and cookies.
In the afternoon, everyone convened in the museum lobby. Dr. Jeffrey Crow, deputy secretary of the state Office of Archives and History, talked to the junior historians about the importance of their historical research and documentation. Everyone was eager to learn who would win the top prizes in the 2010 THJHA contests.
Click on the headings above for descriptions and images from the 2010 convention!
