This collection includes extensive photos, interviews, writings, and related material documenting Adirondack packbasket maker, storyteller, musician, and North Country woodsman Bill Smith. Bill Smith of Colton is widely known throughout the Adirondacks and beyond as a master of many traditional arts of the region. In recent years he has also been performing for a variety of audiences with a wide repertoire of stories and songs about local life. At home he learned stories of woodsmen and the woods from his logger father and songs and poems from his mother. In recent years, he has concentrated on retelling traditional stories and creating new ones. He has been written about in numerous articles and books, including his own 1994 collection of stories called Tales from the Featherbed, and has produced several recordings of his stories and songs.
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