For more than a century, the women of the Swan Creek Sewing Circle have gathered on the first Wednesday of the month for friendship and good works. Several members have been in the club for more than fifty years, all descendents of original club members.
Rural women from Fitchburg and Dunn townships started the sewing circle on December 1, 1915. The women met at the home of Amanda Culp and decided to form a social club founded on the idea of “neighborliness.” They called themselves Swan Creek Sewing Circle for the school district in which they lived.
The club started with fifteen women and soon grew to more than thirty. The women met at each other’s homes to chat, share stories, and mend clothing, and during wartime, to make quilts, blankets, and bandages for soldiers. The members kept careful notes, recording minutes and collecting photos. The club has narratives from every meeting dating back to the club’s founding.
The Swan Creek Sewing Circle continues to meet faithfully on the first Wednesday of the month. They don’t sew so much now as have programs and go on field trips but the founding spirit of neighborliness remains integral to club identity.
