Make Your Own Memory Jug at the Litchfield Historical Society
The Litchfield Historical Society added its first memory jug to the collection in late 2023, according to a Facebook post that said the donation sent Curator Alex Dubois on a research path that began in Litchfield, moved to the American South, and ended in Central Africa.The Decorative Arts Trust calls memory jugs folk art with a compelling international origin and says in a blog post, “As a cultural artifact of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, memory jugs possess an intersectional history as a form of domestic craft with ties to African and African-American burial practices. Traditionally created by the Bakongo people in Central and West Africa as grave markers, memory jugs migrated to the Americas through the importation of slaves and became prevalent in the African-American communities of the South, subsequently merging with the craft pursuits of the Victorian period.“
Read more about memory jugs in a Litchfield Historical Society blog post, and then make plans to attend the Make Your Own Memory Jug workshop on Thursday, Jan. 25, from 5:30 to 7 p.m. at the Litchfield History Museum.
Jugs and base materials will be provided, and participants are encouraged to bring small trinkets, such as buttons, pieces of pottery, beads, keys, etc. to add to their own memory jug.
This program is $15 for Litchfield Historical Society Members, $20 for non-Members. Registration is required. Find more information and sign up online.
The Litchfield Historical Society is located at 7 South Street, Litchfield, CT. The Litchfield History Museum and the Tapping Reeve House and Litchfield Law School are closed for the season, but programs take place year-round. Learn more online at www.litchfieldhistoricalsociety.org.