Published: March 26, 2008 10:58 am         

Showcase skilled trades in restored Footer building

America has a proud heritage of craftsmanship. What better way to support, promote and preserve some of our disappearing skilled trades than to showcase them in a restored Footer Dye Works Building?

A facility dedicated to fostering the work and ethics of skilled craftsman would serve to educate our children on where we, as Americans, came from. Located in the Footer Dye Works Building, a Trades Workshops and Marketplace could provide inexpensive space for craftsmen to ply their trade while interacting with and educating the public on how their work is performed.

The emphasis on traditional hand trades would compliment both Canal Place and the C&O Canal National Park and would increase the educational value and tourist draw of the area. Tradesmen who experience sufficient success in the Footer can be encouraged to move in to shops in the downtown area serving efforts to unify Downtown Cumberland and Canal Place. While the preservation of the art and methods of the represented trades would be the principle focus, almost equally important is the lesson we can relearn about the value of pride in craftsmanship.

Examples of trades for consideration might include silversmiths, gun makers and engravers, hat makers, musical instrument makers, potters, cabinetmakers and woodworkers, tin smiths, hand book binders, weavers, machinists, shoe-makers, blacksmiths, leather workers, seamstresses and many others.

A little background: The post World War II years were responsible for many changes in the way Americans viewed their future. The 1960s saw a shift in priorities at many of our secondary schools. Students who were perceived to have "the right stuff" were steered toward academic study over manual trades. The computer age was in its infancy and science and technology were touted as the path to success. In our rush to "cash in" on evolving technology, we lost sight of the value of skilled craftsman. The result is the situation in which we currently find ourselves ... a nation experiencing a shortage of skilled craftsman and dependent on cheap goods made in other countries.

Perhaps it's time Americans rethought their priorities. While money is essential in today's world, the pride realized a job well done or a product well made should command equal importance. We built America with our hands ... and then sold our success for a few cheap, shiny trade beads. Maybe with some encouragement and a fresh look at the virtue of pride in craftsmanship, our children can help us rebuild our image of ourselves and how the world sees us.

Steve Colby
Cumberland