I reside in Phoenix, NY about 20 minutes north of Syracuse. I have made my living as a millwright working throughout the northeast and for the last two years have moved into a project manager roll. My parents have been active members in Early American Industries Association for more than 15 years and their passion inspired me to begin exploring the doings of this wonderful organization. The focus on history and trades interested me from the beginning; however the people, the interactions, and learning experiences are what really captured my interest at my first annual meeting attendance at Bethlehem, PA. I have also taken up the interest of tool collecting which furthers my involvement and interactions within the E.A.I.A. I have become fond of collecting and researching tools that were made inside the Auburn prison during the 19th century. While not solely the pieces of my collection, a focus when available. The tool auctions have also been enjoyable within the tool community and E.A.I.A. involvement. As I retire from my profession as a millwright in the next few years, I hope to begin another apprenticeship of furniture building in historical fashion. I currently serve as the 1st vice president and look forward to working with the members of this great organization to further its mission and continue my lifelong journey of knowledge and understanding.

I live in a cabin in the woods in Warren, in south central Massachusetts. I have worked at Old Sturbridge Village, an outdoor living history museum portraying everyday life in rural New England in the 1830s, for over 40 years. During that time, I have worked in all seven of our historic trade shops and four mills, as well as many “other duties as required.” My ostensible job is as staff historian, and as the curator of mechanical arts, I am responsible for the museum’s extensive collections of tools and machinery. I have been an avid reader of the Chronicle since the 1980s, and probably a member of the EAIA since the 1990s. As a student of historic trades and industry, and a regular user of traditional tools, it is an honor to serve the EAIA membership on the board.

A mechanical engineer and international project manager by profession “anchored” in Bolton, MA, I have always had a strong interest in historic hand crafts including joinery, wooden boats, tinsmithing, and blacksmithing regardless of the many places in the world I have been stationed. I joined EAIA in 1990 on the recommendation of an amateur blacksmith who was helping me learn the craft while I forged hardware to restore our 1793 home. My first EAIA Annual Meeting was in Albany in 2008 where I was particularly attracted by the emphasis on craft demonstrations. I’ve since focused my efforts on craft and restoration trades training including demonstrations under the EAIA banner at the Bolton Fair, teaching middle school kids in our regional school system and an annual EAIA regional meeting at our blacksmith Shop in Bolton, MA. EAIA introduced me to Historic Eastfield Village through the “EAIA Sampler” program after which I joined the Board in 2012 and went on to host the Annual Meeting with my wife, Alice, at Old Sturbridge Village in 2017 where I was a trustee. Although I have inevitably collected a substantial number of hand tools, the emphasis has always been on learning and teaching about how to use them as reflected in a posted EAIA broadside at Eastfield: “The difference between learning how things are done…..and how to do them”. Now, as president of the Historic Eastfield Foundation and an EAIA director, I hope to re-establish the EAIA Sampler program which introduced so many EAIA members to early American hand crafts.

I am from Mechanicville, NY which is located about 20 minutes south of the historic city of Saratoga Springs. Growing up in a family of do-it-yourselfers, my father, a carpenter by trade, was always fixing or repairing something. I spent many hours watching him tinker while holding the flashlight. My interest in antique tools started at a young age when my father gave me a Stanley No. 4 bench plane. That was the start to what has been an enjoyable time of collecting and researching early tools and the industries they were a part of. I have a degree in Technical Education, formerly known as Industrial Arts from the State University of New York at Oswego. I have been teaching now for the past 19 years covering topics from woodworking to robotics and tossing in a few historic industries from time to time. One of my interests is early trade education which was one of my research topics that was published in the December 2019 Chronicle.

I grew up surrounded by Early American tools and craft and the people that love them. I have a BA in History with a minor in textile conservation, and enjoyed working in Museum textile collections both large and small. I have been attending EAIA annual meetings since 2016, and though I look forward every year to seeing friends and interesting new places, I most enjoy experiencing it with my son Sam, and have been so moved by the way EAIA members have included him and nurtured his interest in history. I spent 15 years working in the non-profit sector and serving as a Peace Corps Volunteer in the Non-Profit Development Program (Morocco 2003 and Romania 2004-2006). Though my publishing background is in public health, I spent several years producing and reviewing scientific research and enjoy both academic scholarship and the peer-review process. I am very interested in the work EAIA does to support research and scholarship on the early American tools and trades. My personal tool fascination has grown as a “user” rather than a “collector”. My current trade is that of casket maker, specializing in handmade natural caskets for use in green burials. I am one of only a handful of willow casket weavers in North America, and practice using the same techniques and tools as has been used to weave willow baskets for centuries. I cultivate willow by hand on my 22-acre farm in North Carolina using traditional coppicing techniques. My business partner builds simple pine caskets, and we invite families to join us in the workshop, whether to participate hands-on, or just be present. The connection to the process of making something by hand is deeply present in many of us, and in times of transition and grief this tangible experience, holding the tools and forming the wood, can be transformative. I have been working with other casket weavers in forming a guild to promote our trade and develop programs for training and employing apprentices—the historic structures of artisan trades still have much to teach us, though we may also be writing our website content using AI technology!

I am an archivist and historian for the Library of Congress Manuscript Division. I graduated from the University of Delaware with an MA in American History and certificate from the Museum Studies program in 1992. During graduate school, I worked at the Hagley Museum and Library. I then worked as a curator at the Historical Society of Washington, D.C., the Banneker-Douglass Museum in Annapolis, and participated in the planning of the permanent exhibit at the Lewis Museum in Baltimore, Maryland. I have worked at the Library of Congress since 2002. Currently I am serving my second term on the Board of EAIA. I first learned about EAIA when I was helping my father sell his collection of antique tools and surveying instruments. My goal is to support efforts to share the EAIA’s strong tradition of scholarship more widely by building relationships with educational institutions and historical organizations. When I’m not at EAIA meetings, I love visiting historic sites and gardens.

Amanda Doggett is a public historian and former Apprentice Joiner at the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation. She is a fellow with the International Center for Jefferson Studies at Monticello where her research focused on Enslaved Cabinetmaker-Joiner, John Hemmings. She is a 5-time presenter at the Working Wood in the 18th Century conference and deeply researched women in trades in Early America during her time at CWF. She earned a degree in History from Christopher Newport University in her hometown of Newport News, Virginia. She is currently the Director of Community Engagement for Avalon Center, a domestic violence and sexual assault agency in Williamsburg, Virginia. She is also serving in a leadership role for the Hampton Roads Wartime Women, a living history group focused on the Women’s Army Corp during World War II. When not at work or reenacting, she can be found reading fantasy, trail running, or spending time with her partner Joe, her two step-children, and her little dog Rhoda Morgenstern.

I am from North Carolina currently living in Rolesville, just on the outskirts of Raleigh. I am an enthusiastic advocate for the preservation and appreciation of our historical heritage, and I am excited about the possibility of serving on the board of the Early American Industries Association. With a Master of Media Arts and Computer Science background, I bring a unique blend of creativity and analytical thinking. Currently, I serve as the Website Director at Duke University School of Nursing, managing digital platforms and engaging with diverse audiences. My professional experience has honed my strategic communication, project management, and community outreach skills. My passion for learning drives my interest in historical times, places, and tools, and I find great joy in exploring how these elements shape our understanding of the past. As an art lover and professional photographer, I have a keen eye for detail and a deep appreciation for craftsmanship, which aligns closely with the mission of the Early American Industries Association. I look forward to the opportunity to contribute my skills and passion to the continued success of the Early American Industries Association.

When I joined EAIA in 2003, I discovered that my interest in historic trades and tools as a user, collector and amateur historian meshed well with the organization’s mission. My appreciation for EAIA increased when I began to attend the annual meetings in 2010. I found that visiting historic sites with knowledgeable and interesting people and renewing friendships are great experiences. As a board member, I hope to make a positive contribution in helping EAIA fulfill its mission and provide meaningful experiences for our membership. I spent my professional career with the University of Georgia as a Research Statistician in the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences. After retiring, I moved to Lexington, KY and enjoy hiking, gardening, woodworking and volunteering at several local nature preserves doing habitat restoration activities.

I am a purveyor of antique tools, a partner in a remodeling business, a fiber artist, and former executive director of a nonprofit school. I have been a member of EAIA for 16 years and have served as Secretary for the past four years. I joined the Board when I volunteered to be Regional Meetings coordinator and still organize special events for various organizations. Eighteen years ago we moved to southern NH from the Washington, DC, area and delight in the congenial rural life combined with a rich cultural landscape. I especially enjoy winter hiking, the musical events in beautiful antique churches and exploring the many historic sites of New England.

When I joined EAIA in 2003, I discovered that my interest in historic trades and tools as a user, collector and amateur historian meshed well with the organization’s mission. My appreciation for EAIA increased when I began to attend the annual meetings in 2010. I found that visiting historic sites with knowledgeable and interesting people and renewing friendships are great experiences. As a board member, I hope to make a positive contribution in helping EAIA fulfill its mission and provide meaningful experiences for our membership. I spent my professional career with the University of Georgia as a Research Statistician in the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences. After retiring, I moved to Lexington, KY and enjoy hiking, gardening, woodworking and volunteering at several local nature preserves doing habitat restoration activities.

I am a tailor by trade, an historian of early America by training, and the Senior Historian at the Old Barracks Museum in Trenton, NJ by profession. I have also practiced the trade of 18th century tailoring since 2010, and in recent years I’ve branched into practicing elements of carpentry, joinery, turning, shoemaking, blacksmithing, and hatting, and I’m hoping to expand that list yet. I have a great love for 18th century things, and learning how they work, how they were used, and how they were made. To that end I’ve striven for accuracy in recreating construction methods, endeavoring as much as possible to use the original tools, materials, and techniques. Some projects of mine of the last few years include six suits of regimental clothing of the Royal Regiment as they may have appeared in 1760, a set of bench planes based on early originals I either own or have studied, and my shoemaking tools, including my bench. Much of my work can be seen on my Instagram page, @davidthemechanick, which I use as a kind of running log and portfolio of the things I make and study. I studied at Rutgers, University-Camden between 2008-2015, earning my BA in History and MA in American History. I have presented my work, both written and otherwise, at Historic Deerfield, for The Colonial Dames of America, the Museum of the American Revolution, and the Society of American Period Furniture Makers, among others.

Originally from West Virginia, I serve as the curator and site administrator of the Eric Sloane Museum & Kent Iron Furnace in Kent Connecticut. My experience includes working at public history sites like Harper’s Ferry National Historical Park, South Mountain State Battlefield, and Henricus Historical Park, managing the recreation of a 17th century Virginia tobacco farm. I also serves as a director for TradesUp a Connecticut based nonprofit devoted to promoting craft and trade opportunities for learners of all ages. I am a dedicated student and avid supporter of all historic trades and crafts, a Cordwainer by trade Imay even be found working aboard tall ships in my spare time. My wife Lara and I are thrilled to be living in New England in a small timber-framed farmhouse with our two pups and cat. I am honored to be contributing to the fantastic work done by EAIA to study and preserve the tools, trades, and crafts that built America while working together to create new opportunities for the organization in the future.

I’m a retired advertising photographer and lab owner with a BFA in photography from the Rochester Institute of Technology. I’ve been an avid woodworker for over 40 years, and by way of that interest and my dad’s overstocked inventory, a bit of a collector as well. Raised in central Connecticut, we relocated to south Florida for 14 years prior to moving to Cape Cod, Massachusetts with my wife Judi. Most of my time there is spent on woodworking and woodturning projects, Hobbies include photography, cooking,and travel.

Several years ago, my brother Tom—a longtime EAIA member—called to tell me that the EAIA was starting a Fiber Arts Interest Group and he thought I might be interested. I’m a longtime quilter, knitter, and rug hooker, and enjoy visiting historical areas, so agreed that EAIA might be a good fit for me. I attended the annual meeting at the Shaker Village, Pleasant Hill, Kentucky, and was immediately impressed with EAIA’s dedication to the preservation of historical trades and crafts through education, hands-on participation, and financial support. I have attended every annual meeting since. Meeting and learning from EAIA members has been very enjoyable, and reading the information provided in the organization’s excellent publications has been informative. I retired several years ago after spending fifty years in health care, as an RN, Nurse Practitioner, and in the final years of my career focused on administration in hospital and community sites. I welcome and appreciate the opportunity to contribute to the operation of EAIA through participation on the board, and am particularly interested in furthering the activities of the Fiber Arts Interest Group.