Dee Wolfe of Holden demonstrates the use of a small spinning wheel in the Osage Spinners and Weavers Guild booth at the Arrow Rock Heritage Craft Festival Saturday, Oct. 13. (Eric Crump/Democrat-News) [Click to enlarge]

It wasn't that organizers of the 39th annual Arrow Rock Heritage Craft Festival were opposed to a good soaking rain. They would have welcomed it -- on Monday.

As it happened, the rain arrived and settled in Saturday morning, Oct. 13, and saturated the artisans, merchants and patrons who attended the festival in spite of the dreary weather.

Organizers might have fretted a bit, but the artisans generally seemed to take the weather in stride. One weaver even noted that it helped underscore the purpose of the festival, which is to keep alive old ways of doing and making.

Ed Burks demonstrates one of the key ingredients of apple butter: elbow grease. Burks was one of several volunteers from St. Paul Lutheran Church who took turns stirring the apple-water mixture while it bubbled in its old copper kettle. (Eric Crump/Democrat-News) [Click to enlarge]

"We're doing this for fun -- if we didn't want to come out in the rain we wouldn't have to," said Saundra Lunsford of Oak Grove, who helped demonstrate 19th- century Tunisian crochet patterns in the Osage Spinners and Weavers Guild booth. "But 150 years ago, people didn't have that choice. When the sheep were sheared you had to get busy."

The weavers joined wood carvers, quilters, musicians, dancers, blacksmiths and others who demonstrated skills that flourished in days long gone by.

Sandy Selby, chairperson of the Historic Arrow Rock Council and coordinator of this year's festival, said the festival was bigger and better than ever this year thanks to the artisans and the many volunteers.

"The crafters are the best we've ever had," she said. "And we've had an army of volunteers. Those folks have been tireless."

The crowds were smaller than usual because of the rain, according to several merchants and artisans, but quite a few people attended despite the weather, though attendance numbers were not yet available.

Sunday, Oct. 14, the weather provided ample compensation, with a bright sky and warm temperatures.

The event continues to provide a showcase for skills that only a few practice these days, and that's important according to Thomas Hooper of ASL Pewter, who displayed a wide range of items he made.

"There are kids who don't know hamburger comes from cows. They say, 'You mean it was alive?'" he said. "It's important that people see the things we make by hand."

Hooper even continues the old apprenticeship tradition, taking on students of his craft who are willing to take the time to learn it.

He acknowledges that few people these days have the patience required to master a craft.

"It used to take seven years just to get confident enough to do a whole piece from start to finish," he said.

The festival also provided a glimpse at old activities that didn't require quite as long to learn, like dancing.

Musicians from Old Missouri Town provided the old time tunes and the Village Dancers twirled and reeled across the muddy lawn outside the Huston Tavern.

Contact Eric Crump at

marshalleditor@socket.net