Members Forum: Six Stitches Through Time – The Discovery and Journey of the Prescott Samplers

Aric Wilmunder will share the story of the unexpected discovery of several early nineteenth-century needlework samplers at a California auction house and the research that has brought their story back to Lincoln County. Created by young girls who lived at the Pownalborough Court House and were connected to the Johnson, Prescott and Canby families, these objects illuminate childhood education, family networks, and daily life in early nineteenth-century Maine and Philadelphia, and reveal ties to wider early American networks, including the family of Betsy Ross. Through genealogy, archival records, and material culture, the talk traces the samplers’ path from their creation in Maine to their rediscovery on the West Coast and their return to the community where they were made.

Aric Wilmunder is a genealogical researcher currently focused on the Prescott and Johnson families and their lives at the Pownalborough Court House in the 1830s. He rediscovered a collection of samplers made by family members and worked with the Lincoln County Historical Association to bring about their return. He previously worked in the computer and entertainment industries and is recognized as a historian of early computer game development. He is also a bluegrass fiddle player and experimental RC aircraft test pilot. He is currently writing a juvenile historical novel about the three Prescott sisters.