Frances Fox Shambaugh, of Gatlinburg, is a fifth-generation weaver. As a child, Frances attended the Pi Beta Phi Settlement School, which later evolved into the Arrowmont School for Arts and Crafts. At 13, she worked her first job in the Arrowmont kitchen for the summer crafts workshops. While both her grandmothers and many close relatives were weavers—and she was long surrounded by looms and weaving—she did not fully acquire the skills until 1980, when her mother gave Frances her maternal grandmother’s loom, handmade by her grandfather, that had been stored in her attic for 50 years. Since none of her relatives were then still weaving, she took a class thinking she would weave a few place mats and nothing more. However, she has never stopped. In 1983, she was hired as part of Arrowmont’s cottage weaving industry program and apprenticed under master weaver Nella Hill. Together, they designed for and supervised over 80 local weavers working in their homes on their own looms. Most of the designs were based on traditional patterns.
“This traditional art form was very important to this community in the early part of the 20th century. Traditional crafts were the only cash income in this area of self-sufficient farms with a barter economy,” Frances explains. “The Arrowcraft cottage weaving program which consisted of 3rd and 4th generation weavers ended in 1992 and weaving is no longer taught within families here.”
As part of the Traditional Arts Apprenticeship Program this year, Frances is teaching her granddaughter, Jess Cox, her practice of traditional overshot weaving. “I want to learn more about Appalachian weaving practices,” Jess says “I first became familiar with them through my grandmother showing me simple cardboard loom techniques when I was about 9 years old, and I made a few small pieces at that point (bags, pillow covers). She showed me very basic plain weaving techniques on a loom in my 20s. There are a few craftspeople in my area who do it, but I don’t know of anyone else my age in Gatlinburg actively weaving.”
For Jess, this is a rare opportunity to engage with her family’s craft legacy while also developing a sense of personal expression within the tradition. “I am very proud of the fact that I come from a long line of weavers. I can look at the ways women in my family have used this skill/craft to support themselves, and I would like to continue that tradition while also incorporating some modern elements. My grandmother has made traditional style pieces but she also has her own unique style with vibrant colors and the combination of those aspects really resonates with me.”
