The exhibit I visited is called Baskets, Bonnets and Pincushions: Interpreting the Life and Work of Mary Richardson Walker in the MASC department at the Holland and Terrell Library shows the life of a woman missionary. Curator Jennifer Thigpen and Rachel Johnson both did research and developed the exhibit of Mary Richardson Walker. The objective of the exhibit is sharing the life of missionary in the west as a women missionary and how hard it was to live in the west as a missionary.
Upon entering the Mary Richardson Walker exhibit you’re greeted with a stand that holds a beginning description of her life and a timeline of her entire life. The photos of her and family are underneath in a freestanding glass case. This was setting a tone of your journey though this women’s life as a missionary in Washington State. Even though the exhibit is small and temporary this exhibit is put together in a wonderful manner. The Exhibit is set up so a visitor is can easily navigate and understand. Starting on the left hand side of the exhibit walking around clockwise gives you a glimpse of Mary Richardson Walkers life.
From Mary’s marriage to her death she was a devoted missionary for her whole life. Though the objects at the exhibit you’re able to glimpse into her life from the journals and letters to friends and family. You’re able to look at her hand writing very fine, loopy text on delicate worn paper. The writing of a lonely missionary woman who is far from her original home with a man she meet for a few days before marrying him. Then traveling across the Organ Tail to do missionary work with the native Indians she wrote about everything. Also about her regular day of doing chores, missionary work and having a baby all in a day was in her journal. Beside just these things that were preserved there was trading objects to from the Indians like baskets, little booties and holding baskets. There is also pressed flowers that are samples from the area that she lived in. Probably they were used to help the sick or to cook with. Watercolors that Mary did in her free time of local flowers, butterflies and color wheels. This was something that I never thought a missionary woman would do because they had so much work around the house that was time consuming, raising children, sewing, making clothes and working at the mission. Mary was a hard working woman in the West where there was not many other missionaries besides other white women. If there was then they were a great distance away and rarely were able to see each other which letter at the museum justify with the letters between Mary Richardson Walker and Narcissus Whitman. These women were petite in stature shown by the dresses at the exhibit. Along with the appropriate accessories of bonnets, ribbons, capes and shawls. For missionary women did dress up to fashion but in a more conservative way with more cloth and small attached capes to the dresses by the chest area. Literature is present in the missionary lives which helped the missionaries reach the native Indians. Books of all kinds were in the display cases next to her journals. Especially present was the huge bible that had little bookmarks of christen sayings and pictures. All of these objects present the missionary life in light that is over romanticized by stories and books. This was a hard life that few would choose but Mary did and that makes her extraordinary.
Overall the Mary Richardson Walker exhibit was an amazing to visit because the missionary works in Washington State is not well known. Neither is the life of a missionary where you are able to see how lonely or hard a missionary in the 19th century really was. I recommend this exhibit to anyone who is interested in the Pacific Northwest missionary work or Women missionaries.
Upon entering the Mary Richardson Walker exhibit you’re greeted with a stand that holds a beginning description of her life and a timeline of her entire life. The photos of her and family are underneath in a freestanding glass case. This was setting a tone of your journey though this women’s life as a missionary in Washington State. Even though the exhibit is small and temporary this exhibit is put together in a wonderful manner. The Exhibit is set up so a visitor is can easily navigate and understand. Starting on the left hand side of the exhibit walking around clockwise gives you a glimpse of Mary Richardson Walkers life.
From Mary’s marriage to her death she was a devoted missionary for her whole life. Though the objects at the exhibit you’re able to glimpse into her life from the journals and letters to friends and family. You’re able to look at her hand writing very fine, loopy text on delicate worn paper. The writing of a lonely missionary woman who is far from her original home with a man she meet for a few days before marrying him. Then traveling across the Organ Tail to do missionary work with the native Indians she wrote about everything. Also about her regular day of doing chores, missionary work and having a baby all in a day was in her journal. Beside just these things that were preserved there was trading objects to from the Indians like baskets, little booties and holding baskets. There is also pressed flowers that are samples from the area that she lived in. Probably they were used to help the sick or to cook with. Watercolors that Mary did in her free time of local flowers, butterflies and color wheels. This was something that I never thought a missionary woman would do because they had so much work around the house that was time consuming, raising children, sewing, making clothes and working at the mission. Mary was a hard working woman in the West where there was not many other missionaries besides other white women. If there was then they were a great distance away and rarely were able to see each other which letter at the museum justify with the letters between Mary Richardson Walker and Narcissus Whitman. These women were petite in stature shown by the dresses at the exhibit. Along with the appropriate accessories of bonnets, ribbons, capes and shawls. For missionary women did dress up to fashion but in a more conservative way with more cloth and small attached capes to the dresses by the chest area. Literature is present in the missionary lives which helped the missionaries reach the native Indians. Books of all kinds were in the display cases next to her journals. Especially present was the huge bible that had little bookmarks of christen sayings and pictures. All of these objects present the missionary life in light that is over romanticized by stories and books. This was a hard life that few would choose but Mary did and that makes her extraordinary.
Overall the Mary Richardson Walker exhibit was an amazing to visit because the missionary works in Washington State is not well known. Neither is the life of a missionary where you are able to see how lonely or hard a missionary in the 19th century really was. I recommend this exhibit to anyone who is interested in the Pacific Northwest missionary work or Women missionaries.
Image of Mary Richardson Walker link: www.historylink.org/db_images/Spokane_Walker_1933.jpg
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