ARTHURDALE — When she was in her mid-20s, Mary Francis Carlson West’s mother gave her a small, white-print dress with violet flowers.
The dress, made from a feed sack, had belonged to West’s twin sister, Martha Ellen, who passed away in 1954 when she was 1 1/2 years old.
West said two years later, in 1956, her parents moved from Elkins to E Road in Arthurdale. Her mother went to work at Sterling Faucet and her father worked as a salesman for Sears.
“Occasionally Dad would take me and my older sister to work with him on Saturday. The secretary had coloring books, and we would color until the store closed at noon,” West said. “Then we would go to Biggy’s for hamburgers and fries.”
The family moved from Arthurdale in 1971.
“My mother saved the dress all those years until she gave it to me,” West said. “My aunt, Bernice Motter, made it. She made one for me and one for my sister from feed sacks.” West said her aunt was a quilter, who also made dresses and coats.
“She used to do a lot of tatting and lace making, too,” West said. “She inspired me to take sewing when I was in 4-H.”
West recently decided to loan the dress to Arthurdale Heritage. “I knew Arthurdale Heritage was putting together items made from feed sacks,” West said. “I thought the dress was so adorable, I would ask if they wanted it on loan for their feed sack exhibit.”
The New Deal Homestead Museum is a multi-building museum consisting of a fully restored Arthurdale homestead — where the dress is currently displayed — a forge filled with original tools, the Central Hall, the original federal government administration building and the Esso service station, which now houses a co-op where fresh produce, local foods and gifts can be purchased by visitors.
There is also a museum craft shop that specializes in Appalachian crafts and gifts.
“Mary’s dress is very special,” said Darlene Bolyard, executive director of Arthurdale Heritage.
Bolyard said the feed sack exhibit resonates most with people who visit the museum. “It brings back memories,” she said. “And one is of Mary and her sister and their feed sack dresses. It’s probably one of the most poignant stories we have here.”
To donate to Arthurdale Heritage, send a check to P.O. Box 850, Arthurdale, WV 26520, or on PayPal at AHI@arthurdale
heritage.org. To donate items to the museum, call 304-864-3959.
