By Jim McBrayer
Historic Rugby officially joined the Morgan County and Upper Cumberland quilt trails Wednesday when the first of two quilt blocks was mounted on the Harrow Road Cafe. The other is destined for the Commissary. The cafe block is a 9-patch based on a quilt made by Chip Elliott's mother in, I believe, the 1950s. The one for the Commissary will be a Crazy Quilt featuring Rugby themes and events. Other blocks included on the quilt trails are up on the Mitchell's Potter garage building (Sadie's quilt), Butch and Cheryl's Carriage House Gallery (9-patch on point), and Eric and Vi's shop building (Pennsylvania keystone). Blocks have been approved for, but not yet up on, Tom Martin's barn (Carpenters' wheel) and Jim and Dorcus's barn (Ohio Star). All of the approved quilt patterns are historic patterns and have special meanings for the community and/or individuals who erected them. Anyone wishing to have a quilt block included in the Morgan County Heritage Quilt Trail, which also includes the Upper Cumberland Quilt Trail, should contact Linda Brooks Jones, 628-5252, for an application. For more information, see the Upper Cumberland web site, http://www.uppercumberlandquilttrail/
Photos show before and after photos of the front of the Cafe. Photo on right shows Jim Meadows, Gerald Hanwright, Robin Sexton and Steve Logan installing the quilt square. Photos by George Zepp and Jim McBrayer
Editor’s Note: Several HRI volunteers and HRI staff worked hard in getting the front of the Café ready to hang the quilt. Special kudos to Steve Logan for all of his hard work and contributions in spearheading the project to clean and replace siding, repaint the front and work on other exterior maintenance issues. It is my understanding that more work is to be done. Work was also done on trimming some lower tree limbs so that the front of the Café is much more visible from the road. The quilt square also does a great job of drawing attention to the Café. Cheryl Cribbet sent this: “A very special thanks to all the volunteers who worked so hard on the exterior of the Cafe this past week. What a difference!”
By Jim McBrayer
Julian Bankston was confirmed as Mayor of Rugby in a fund-raising election conducted during Pilgrimage. Julian, who has been known as the incumbent Mayor for several years now, was hiding out in Ireland when the election took place, but still managed to raise $115 in the hotly contested voting, mainly between Julian, the Rugby resident, and a certain "carpetbagger" from Knoxville. The keys to the village, a Historic Rugby ball cap, and a certificate, all of which constituted the badges of office, were presented to him in a small ceremony Thursday evening on his front porch. Dorcus McBrayer, substituting for Chief Justice of the Rugby Supreme Court Rita Myers, who was hiding out on Amelia Island at the time, made the presentation. In a solemn ceremony, Dorcus reminded Julian that, like all good politicians, he was now "bought and paid for."
Photo shows Julian Bankston on the left, Carolyn Bankston in the background and Dorcus McBrayer on the right. Photo by Jim McBrayer
Editor’s Note: Thanks to the bidding “carpetbagger,” the donation price was appreciably higher than it would have otherwise been. Sounds like a nicely played contest, particularly for Historic Rugby. Our honorable mayors shouldn’t come cheap!
RUGBY BENEFIT FOR SENATOR YAGER SATURDAY
Sevaral Rugby folks are sponsoring a reception/political fundraiser to thank State Senator Ken Yager for his support of Rugby bypass funding and other area initiatives. Everyone is invited to join the Host Committee at Historic Ruralia in Rugby, Saturday, September 25, 2010 from 5:00 - 7:00 pm EDT.
Heavy Hors d'oeuvres ✧ Wine and Beer ✧ Non-Alcoholic Punch ✧ Casual Dress
Suggested Minimum Donation Per Person - $75. (Checks Payable to Friends of Ken Yager)
Ruralia, built in 1882, was restored by Marlee Mitchell in 2007. It is located on Hwy. 52, located on the left going west from the Rugby Village Center.
Host Committee: Mike Green, Debbie and Mike Harris, Beth Hester, Jody and Harry Hester, Allyn Lay, Jane and Steve Logan, Tom Martin, Jim Meadows, Marlee Mitchell, Sharon Samon, Kim and Michael Stagg, Barbara Stagg and John Gilliat, Carmita and Glen Wright, George Zepp and Rick Murphy
Please RSVP to Michael.Stagg@wallerlaw.com or 615-850-8876
For Mailed Contributions: Friends of Ken Yager, c/o Michael Stagg, P.O. Box 45, Rugby, TN 37733
MICHAELMAS FESTIVAL OCT. 2
By Mara Trumbo
You are cordially invited to an English Cream Tea and all the fun of the fair at our annual, Episcopal Christ Church Rugby, Michaelmas Festival, Saturday October 2, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Eastern time. Free admission to our Arts and Crafts Fair. Tea will be served at Noon and 2 p.m. for $10 per person.
For reservations please call Dorcus McBrayer at (423) 628-1282.
BIRTHDAYS
Sept. 21 – Amy Barnes
Sept. 26 – Lisa Donegan
CALENDAR
September 24 -- Music at Harrow Road Café with Whitney Phillips Band (Scott High)
September 25 - Historic Rugby Board of Directors meeting - 1 p.m. at the Community Building
October 2 - Michaelmas Festival from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Eastern at Christ Church. Free Arts and Crafts Fair. English Cream Tea will be served at Noon and 2 p.m. for $10 per person. For tea reservations, call Dorcus McBrayer - (423) 628-1282.
October 2 – Community Potluck at 7 p.m.
October 16 – History Club Field Trip – tentatively planning to go to Pleasant Hill, TN, but returning in plenty of time for Book Club.
October 16 – Rugby Book Club at 7 p.m. in the home of Jessie Gully. Choose one of the Stieg Larsson books for discussion. (Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, Girl Who Played With Fire, Girl Who Kicked the Hornets’ Nest). For more information, contact Jessie Gully at 423-628-6090 or jessiegully@hotmail.com
Quilters Group - Wed. and Sat. 2-4 p.m. Eastern at the Friendly House
HRI WORKSHOP CALENDAR
For Workshop Registration, contact Historic Rugby at 888-214-3400 – or email rugbylegacy@highland.net
September 24 - White Oak Basketry Workshop - 10 a.m. - 4 p.m. Instructor: Bobby Edwards. This very popular three-day workshop teaches the art of White Oak basketry from tree selection, splits, rims and handles to weaving a beautiful traditional basket. This is an experience not to be missed even if it does require “hand strength.” Fee: $130
November 6 - Fall Gatherings Workshop - 10 a.m. - 4 p.m. Instructor: Linda Konig. Join us in the fields and roadsides to gather dried wildflowers, seedheads, berries and nuts that will be needed to create an arrangement. Learn the names of and interesting information about all your fall gatherings. Fee: $24
November 13 - Contemporary Potlatch Pouch - 9 a.m. - 5 p.m. Instructor: Judy Zugish. With design choices of twill or braid weave, simple or bold, subtle or refined, this class will engage all experience levels. Students will have a chance to explore working with cedar bark and hickory with the surprising twinkle of copper strips. In every case the results are smiles of the heart and a basket to treasure for years. Fee: $75.
By Linda Konig
Boyd Mitchell and I have been scraping the mud dauber "pan pipes" off a wall in the carport this week, preparatory to his painting. I'd scraped off some old ones before, and it had been interesting to see what looked like mathematically precise dark brown "capsules" (pupal cases) in which the mud dauber wasps had matured. The exteriors of the capsules were perfectly smooth, perfectly straight, the ends perfectly rounded--just like capsules we buy today in drugstores, only ours are more slick, shiny, and colorful.
A couple of days ago, we scraped off more recently-made "pan pipes." One of the "pipes" had just been constructed a day or two before. In fact, the female didn't seem to be through with the newest of them. She flew into the carport and tried to get back into the "pipe" even as Boyd was scraping. She made no attempt to sting either one of us, however. After the "pipes" had been scraped off, she kept returning, walking up the mud lines that were still visible, and you could almost hear her thinking, "What's happened to my wonderful pipes? I know I left them right here!" Finally she flew to another single pipe that was only a foot or so away. Well, today when I returned home after lunch, I saw she had added to the older pipe that she'd investigated two days ago. In fact, the mud at the bottom of the tube was still damp. Then I saw her rear hanging out of it. Life goes on, in spite of disasters!
The most amazing part of the whole experience of taking down the mud dauber pipes was seeing what was inside some of the pipes that were made in the last two weeks or so. Never saw so many spiders! Some of these were bigger than I'd have thought she could stuff inside the narrow pipes. Some were colorful garden spiders with bright yellow and some others had dull orange markings, etc. What really shocked me was to see how lively some of these spiders were, legs waving wildly. I'd read that mud dauber wasp females sting prey for their "nurseries" very judiciously, a little here and a little there, just enough to paralyze the spiders, not to kill them. The spiders have to remain alive long enough for the wasp larvae to eat after they hatch. (Unlike the adults wasps which live on nectar and pollen, the larvae only eat live spiders.)
I'd assumed that the spiders would be unable to move. Bear in mind, some of these spiders were probably 100 times bigger than the egg they were sealed up with. (Each egg has its own individual cell in a row of cells inside the "pipe.") Could this be one reason why wasp eggs don't always mature into adults? It seemed to me that one of those big spiders could easily overcome a tiny larva even without stinging it. We did see one tiny larva and one huge fat one that had completely filled its cell and was probably ready to pupate. It was a pale yellow. For a longer article with more information and some fascinating photos, go to http://www.hiltonpond.org/ThisWeek020401.html.
This Week’s Editors: Rick Murphy and George Zepp
