Document text
January 20, 1939
Frank Thomas Arthur (Woodcarver)
Tryon, North Carolina
Adyleen G. Merrick, Writer
Dudley W. Crawford, Reviser
No Names Changed
Frank Arthur was hard at work on a fine piece of
carving when I went to his well-equipped shop in the
iiiiashburnliouilding, which overlooks the town park, and
affords a view of the distant mountains. There were
beautiful pieces of carving, finished work and many
others in an incomplete stage about the shop. Patterns
hung from the walls, and a neat array of tools were
conveniently arranged over his work bench. Each piece
of Frank's work was well executed to the most minute
detail, and bore the marks of an artist. He laid down
his tool and welcomed me with a smile. "Want the story
of my life? Why, it's just started, like most of this
work; but I'll gladly tell you all I can.
"Ever since I can remember, I have been carving
away at something. I alwnys seemed to have a turn for
expression that way, just as others sing, or play some
instrument. I lake my living carving, but at the same
tine give expression to my thoughts in my work.
"Mother says I inherited the gift from grandfather
HUre, who came from Selkirk, Scotland to Manatoba,
Canada in the early eighties, and settled there on
a larre farm. Grandfather was always whittling, she said;
never sat down to rest that he didn't draw from his
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pocket a knife with smooth keen blade and a piece of
wood. He fashioned some queer looking objects, but he
carved purely for the love of carving. Perhaps, if he
had been as fortunate as I have, that is, in the training
for this work I've been given; Grandfather HUre might
have turned out to be a skilled artisan. If he has
handed this gift down to me I am grateful; I haven't
made much of a success financially in my work, but I
feel some of it has been outstanding nnd I am working
toward a name in the future. There isn't much to tell
about my life, a great deal, any way, of just what
happens to a man is chance; some find the easy road others,
like myself, just miss the chance they might have had
for fame Ynd success. I married too soon, and my first
marriage didn't turn out so well; except for the two
fine boys. They are now nine and twelve.
married again to a splendid woman, who is
wonderful to my sons. They both love her and she is
doing a real mother's part by them.
"'When I was two years old, my family came to
Biltmore, North Carolina)to make their home. Father had
secured a position as superintendent of farms on a
large estate near Asheville, North Carolina. I can't
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remember going there, or Hot Springs, North Carolina,
where I wea born; funny how you can't go back to your
childhood sometimes. About my earliest recollection is
of watching the school children who were sufficiently
well up in their studied to rate going there, work at
arts and crafts in a school owned by a wealthy norhhner
and run by the kindly women whose mission was to
develop talent in the youth of Western North Carolina.
I worked in the arts and crafts school until 1917 at
which time I volunteered and was assigned to the American
Field service in the French army, for ambulance duty,
later being transferred to the American Army. I served
two years before being invalided back to America; but,
like most of the fellows who were in the thick of it,
I don't like to talk about those two years. They were
full of havoc and suffering, and no matter how well
planned things were- war is war. There wasn't much rest
or comfort for us ambulance drivers, we certninly could
never be sure of anything. Tvery man tried do his duty
and trust his luck would hold. Well, you see mine did.
When I see the wrecks of once strong men, victims of
war, I feel I have truly been fortunate.
"After I got back to the states, and had grown
strong again, I started out looking for work. Again I
was lucky, you know what the fellows went through
looking for a job after being discharged. I found my
first one with the American Aluminum Company in New
York and stayed with them until Mhor wrote me I could
get my old job back with the arts and crafts school
in Biltmore, North Carolina. Well, you know it didn't
take me long to go back to the work I laved. I stayed
with the school, as a junior instructor until the death
of the owner. Then the industry was sold, and a drastic
change in mode of operation left the wood carver out. I
secured a position with the Sonora Phonograph Company
in Saganaw, Michigian, designing and carving cabinets
and worked for that company until the Tryon Toy Makers
Comvny was organized by the same people who had trained
me at the school in Biltmore. I came here to work for
them as head of the woodcarving department- that was
in 1928. We turned out sole beattiful work too, one of
the finest was the carved tower door for Mt. Fred
Sealey's castle on Sunset Mouutain. This was a massive
oak door with a design in carvingiworked out from old
wood cuts we found in an old fifteenth century Bible,
representing the months and years. Another fine piece
of carving is the fire board in the salon of Margaret
Culkin Bannings, home here in Tryon. There are many
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others equally noteworthy. Our boys all did good work,
we were proud of the pieces we turned out; combining
our efforts to make each as fine or finer than the last.
"There's a fascination about seeing your work
sort of come to life undr your tool, and a wonderful
feeling when it is completed. One of my biggest orders
was for the hand carving in Calvery Episcopal Church,
at Fletcher, North Carolina, called the lestminister
of the South. This work consisted of alter, pulpit cild
the hand carved eagle on the lectern. The next order
of importance was the pieces done in tha Hall of Music
at the Asheville School for boys, a mamorial hall dedicated
to the memory of Howard Bennont, its founder. During
the summer, when work at my shop was slack, I taught a
class of girls at Camp Modamin near here.
"I have been in this studio since I lost my
little home in which I had just completed a fine studio
before depression. I have pone through some pretty
tough days, since 1929, but I'm going to come out all
right. I'm beginning to get some nice orders again, and
when I have time I carve the trophies for the Tryon
Riding and Hunt Club, and work for the Tryon Toy Makers
too. I'm working all the time to improve my designs. It
was a nice surprise to be invited to be listed in Who's
Who in American Artists. I was raigq proud of that
recognization, but the thing I want to accomplish more
than any other, is to be able to 'iork otil-omo plan by
vihich a course ix woodcarving could be included in the
public school course throughout the state. I would like
to give training to gifted boys, and from this material
select the future instructors for that department. Of
course, being artisan, I feel that carving would be
a worth -while course; so much talent could be found and
developed in the schools.
"Oh well, it's nice to have a hobby, that's mine.
Someday, perhyps, I may succeed in making my plans turn
out for that work, until then I presume I'll be right
here plugging away."