Arkansas Home Demonstration Clubs: A Legacy of Self Sufficient Women

Arkansas Home Demonstration Clubs have been an outlet for strong, self-sufficient women in our state for over one hundred years. This history is detailed in A Splendid Piece of Work by Elizabeth Griffin Hill, who will speak at Legacies & Lunch on Wednesday, July 2, at noon, in the Central Arkansas Library System's (CALS) Main Library's Darragh Center, 100 Rock Street. Copies of the book will be available for sale, and Hill will sign books after her talk.

Excerpts of A Splendid Piece of Work will also be included in an exhibition entitled Arkansas Homemakers, which opens at Butler Center Galleries, 401 President Clinton Ave., on Friday, July 11, from 5:00 - 8:00 p.m. as part of Second Friday Art Night. Arkansas Homemakers will also present photographs of the home demonstration clubs' history from the Arkansas History Commission and paintings by Katherine Strause.

Home demonstration clubs have worked to support and improve homemaking efforts in Arkansas since 1912, and these groups have a long history of serving their communities by providing canned foods to those in need, such as people affected by the Flood of 1927 and residents of Arkansas Children's Home and Hospital during the Great Depression. Over 350 home demonstration clubs continue their work today statewide through community service and education on topics such as health and money management.

Legacies & Lunch is the Butler Center for Arkansas Studies' monthly lecture series, held on the first Wednesday of each month. This program is free, open to the public, and sponsored in part by the Arkansas Humanities Council. Attendees are invited to bring a sack lunch; drinks and dessert are provided.

Second Friday Art Night is a free, monthly opportunity to visit downtown Little Rock's businesses, museums, and galleries for an after-hours gallery walk.

For more information, visit www.butlercenter.org or call 501-918-3033.