Harrison County Weaver Leaves Rich Legacy

On this West Virginia Morning, it’s not every day you meet someone who’s turned their hobby into their livelihood, and that they still pursue it with passion.

But Jane Gilchrist was that person. She was a hand weaver in Harrison County who turned her love of fabrics into a business. She was able to preserve a craft that hadn’t been a necessity since the pioneer days in Appalachia.

So it was with great sadness that we learned Jane passed away March 8. We were fortunate enough to spend a day with Jane in mid-January, learning about her love and passion for those old-fashioned, wooden looms.

Our folklife reporter Caitlin Tan has the story.

And our Mountain Stage Song of the Week comes from singer-songwriter Mark Cline Bates. In his song “Ginger”, Bates weaves a heart-wrenching tale about aging, reflection, regret and loss.

West Virginia Morning is a production of West Virginia Public Broadcasting which is solely responsible for its content.

Support for our news bureaus comes from West Virginia University, Concord University, and Shepherd University.

West Virginia Morning is produced with help from Caitlin Tan, Jessica Lilly, Kara Lofton, Liz McCormick, Dave Mistich, Brittany Patterson and Roxy Todd.

Our news director is Jesse Wright, our producer is Glynis Board and our host is Teresa Wills.