The Horry County Museum and South Carolina Humanities present a program by “The Gullah Lady”, Sharon Cooper-Murray, on Friday, March 6^th, on the history of rag quilting in the Gullah community.

This entertaining and educational program explores the history of rag quilting, a tradition dating to the antebellum period, when feed and grain sacks were combined with rag strips to make unique quilts. Traditionally passed from generation to generation, Cooper-Murray was taught the process by Gullah women from Wadmalaw and Johns Island. She has since set out on a mission to preserve this disappearing art form.

Sharon Cooper-Murray is a native of South Carolina raised in Florence County. After attending college in Tennessee, she returned to South Carolina and has resided Charleston County, South Carolina. When she arrived on Wadmalaw Island, SC, it was the first time she heard the Gullah language, and she was fascinated by the tone and rhythm of this Creole language. That was the beginning of what has become her life-long passion: the Gullah culture, their stories, folk music, crafts, food ways, religious folkways … their way of life. She has traveled throughout the east coast of the United States as an advocate of the preservation, conservation and development of the culture through workshops, lectures, storytelling, special events and artist in residency programs.

The program, sponsored by South Carolina Humanities, will begin at 1:00 pm in the McCown Auditorium located at 805 Main Street, Conway SC. This event is free and open to the public. For more information, call 843-915-5320 or email hcgmuseum@horrycounty.org. To view a full list of programs, visit our website at www.horrycountymuseum.org.

The mission of South Carolina Humanities is to enrich the cultural and intellectual lives of all South Carolinians. This not-for-profit organization presents and/or supports literary initiatives, lectures, exhibits, festivals, publications, oral history projects, videos and other humanities-based experiences that reach more than 250,000 citizens annually. South Carolina Humanities receives funding from the National Endowment for the Humanities as well as corporate, foundation and individual donors. It is governed by a volunteer Board of Directors comprised of community leaders throughout the state.