Handcrafted in the Ozarks

African Americans who stayed in the Ozarks often made their livings doing odd jobs or working as craftsmen. Fine wooden furniture produced by local artisans both graced the homes of local families and served to provide financial support.

Furniture was not the only good crafted by Ozarks African Americans in the era before factory manufactured goods were widespread. Exactingly stitched textiles were sewn for the trousseaus of young brides and would become functional family heirlooms, valued and used for generations.