Image of Miles Carpenter portrait courtesy of Myrna at "My Enchanted Home"
Carpenter Museum display case image courtesy of Myrna at "My Enchanted Home"
Image of Miles Carpenter's back porch courtesy of Myrna at "My Enchanted Home"
Background Information
Miles Carpenter (1889-1985) of
Waverly has the widest name recognition among area woodcarvers. His folk art includes birds and small
animals as well as intricate displays of moving figures, scenes, eccentric
figures, watermelons, and his self-described root monsters. As with many folk artists, Biblical
references such as Adam and Eve as well as the devil are common. A few pieces are surprisingly modern in
design.
Meeting Miles Carpenter
First introduced to Miles Carpenter
in 1980, this writer was more than impressed by his work ethic and good humor –
and especially his work. In 1981, as
sponsor of the student newspaper at Tidewater Academy, he organized a group of
students who visited and interviewed Mr. Carpenter. The man and his art fascinated the students, and it was obvious
that Mr. Carpenter thoroughly enjoyed showing his work to the group. He displayed a childish delight when
operating his interactive pieces such as the sow suckling her piglets, the
squirrel that ran up a tree, and the four-and-twenty blackbirds baked in a
pie. All were made of wood.
Early History and Arrival in Waverly
Miles Carpenter arrived in Waverly
with his mother and father (Wayne M. and Elizabeth Burkholder Carpenter) and
siblings in 1902. He was born in 1889,
the eighth of eleven children in a Mennonite family, near Brownstown in
Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. His
father raised cattle and grew corn, hay, tobacco, and wheat on his farm. As a sideline, he manufactured cigars. In 1912, his father sold many of their
possessions in preparation for a move to Virginia. Furniture, necessities, and farm equipment (including wagons and
buggies) were loaded on two boxcars for a one-day rail journey to Waverly. The train trip took them down the Eastern
Shore and then across the Chesapeake Bay on a rail ferry – during a storm. His brother Lee had the harrowing experience
of riding with the cattle in a cattle car to Waverly – a one-week trip.
Sawmill, Ice Plant, Open Air Theatre, Marriage
His father bought a sawmill to
produce lumber he would need to build a barn, outbuildings, and to expand the
house for his large family. In 1912,
Miles Carpenter felt the need to work for himself and established his own
sawmill. Ever industrious, he also ran
an ice plant in conjunction with the sawmill.
Another enterprise was operation of an open-air movie theatre in a
vacant lot across Route 460 from his house.
He married Elizabeth Stahl from Pennsylvania in 1915.
Near-fatal Accident
In 1917, Carpenter was nearly
killed about 2 p.m. one afternoon in October when a heavy piece of wood was
thrown into his face by the saw, breaking his left jaw and eye socket. Unconscious, he was accompanied by a doctor
to Richmond, but they had to wait for the 5 p.m. train. At the hospital, he was taken to the
basement where he was expected to die.
Only after he showed signs of improvement the next day was he taken to
the operating room. He was hospitalized
for five weeks.
Such tenacity accompanied him throughout life.
Long-lasting Tires
Also frugality: In 1955, he bought a set of Allstate tires
for his car from a Petersburg Sears dealer.
They lasted twenty-one years and 35,000 miles. When the dealer heard about this and inquired, Carpenter was able
to produce the original receipt. He was
given a new set of free tires by the store.
Early Woodcarvings and Roadside Stand
Note the bull, now in the Smithsonian Institution.
During idle periods at the sawmill,
Carpenter carved small animals. His
dedication to woodcarving increased around 1940 when his wife admired a bear
and encouraged him to make more. After
he retired from the sawmill in 1955, he continued to sell ice, soft drinks, and
vegetables at his roadside stand. His
wife’s death in 1966 was devastating, but after a period of mourning, he
re-devoted himself to woodcarving. As
before, some of his figures were used to attract customers. Carpenter backed his truck up to the road
and filled it with an odd assortment of his work – fanciful animals and unusual
people.
Woodcarvings as Companions
Throughout the Waverly area, Miles
Carpenter was well known and accepted, despite his eccentric nature. After his wife’s death, Carpenter was
accompanied in his 1951 Chevrolet Delux by Lena Wood (one of his
creations wearing his late wife’s clothes) and occasional other characters,
including Indian Woman (who also wore his wife’s clothing), an Indian
man (considered a self portrait), and a boy.
Some theorize this group represented Carpenter and his family.
Favorite Carving
His favorite carving, a sleek
greyhound accompanied a stylishly dressed woman, was patterned after a 1940s
Greyhound Bus Line advertisement. (In
1980, he offered this sculpture for sale for $400 – unfortunately out of reach
of this writer at the time. Worth many
times that price now, it is now in the permanent collection at the Carpenter
Museum in Waverly.)
Becoming Famous
A 200-pound wooden watermelon attracted
the attention of a representative of the Abby Aldrich Folk Art Museum in
Williamsburg. Later, Jeffrey Camp
became an admirer of his work and then his agent.
Even in 1981, Mr. Carpenter felt
the influence of fame. It was apparent
that his work developed a more manufactured look that was less
three-dimensional. He started making
copies of previous work, including the woman and greyhound. He began making many small birds, each
requiring four to five hours of work.
Besides watermelon slices and monkey dogs, he is also well known for his
root monsters made from twisted and gnarled tree roots.
“I just manufacture ’em, that’s
all. Those monsters just come out of my
head.”
Another apt quote: “There’s something in there, under the
surface of every piece of wood. You don’t need no design ’cause it’s right
there, you just take the bark off and if you do it good you can find
something.”
Miles Carpenter died in 1985 at the
age of ninety-six. His home is now
operated as a museum and is located near the intersection of Routes 40 and 460
in Waverly, Virginia.
His work is also exhibited in
private collections and museums across the country, including the Smithsonian
Institution. Rarely do individual
pieces become available for sale.
Sources
Ashworth, Anne. "Miles Carpenter." Tidewater Times [Wakefield, Virginia]
28 May 1981, sec. Arts: 5-8. Print.
Associated Press. "Noted Carver, Whittler Miles Carpenter
Dies." Daily Press [Newport
News, Virginia] 8 May 1985, sec. D: 3.
Print.
Brewster, Todd. "Fanciful Art of Plain Folk." LIFE June 1980: 112-122. Print.
Carpenter, Miles B. Cutting the Mustard. Tappahannock, Virginia: American Folk Art
Company, 1982. Print.
Friddell, Guy. "Woodcarver Was a Sculptor at
Heart." Virginian-Pilot
[Norfolk, Virginia] 11 May 1985, sec. B: 1, 4.
Print.
Gregson.
"Folk Art: Folk Sculpture: Devil on a Root Monster." Luce Foundation Center For American Art. Smithsonian American Art Museum, n.d. Web.
<http://americanart.si.edu/luce/object.cfm?key=338&artistmedia=0&subkey=184671>.
Hartigan, Lynda R. "Biography (Miles
Carpenter)." Smithsonian
American Art Museum. Smithsonian
Institution, n.d. Web.
<http://americanart.si.edu/collections/search/artist/?id=753>.
Malone,
Jann. "Folk Art: Folk Sculpture:
Bull's Head." Luce Foundation
Center For American Art.
Smithsonian American Art Museum, n.d.
Web.
<http://americanart.si.edu/luce/object.cfm?key=338&artistmedia=0&subkey=369>.
Mathis, James L. "Folk Art:
Folk Sculpture: Monkey Dog." Luce
Foundation Center For American Art.
Smithsonian American Art Museum, n.d.
Web.
<http://americanart.si.edu/luce/object.cfm?key=338&artistmedia=0&subkey=1483>.
Times-Dispatch Staff. "Miles Carpenter, Famous Folk Artist
from Waverly, Dies." Richmond Times-Dispatch [Richmond, Virginia] 8
May 1985, sec. Area: 2. Print.
Yancey, Shirley. Telephone conversation.
16 Feb. 2012.
