Lucy Calista Morgan

Lucy Calista Morgan (1889–1981) was an American weaver and teacher. She is known for creating the cottage industry in North Carolina that would eventually become the Penland School of Craft. Morgan is considered an important part of the American Craft Revival that flourished in the first half of the 20th century.

Biography Morgan was born on September 20, 1889, in Macon County, North Carolina, one of nine children. She attended Central Michigan Normal School and Business Institute, graduating in 1915. She went on to teach in Michigan, Illinois, and Montana.

In 1920 Morgan returned to North Carolina, where she took over supervision of the Appalachian Industrial School from her brother Rufus. She became interested in the traditional weaving in the area, inspired by a traditional Cat Track and Snail Trail pattern created by Susan Phillips.

Morgan was a successful advocate of Appalachian crafts, adding pottery to the crafts produced. The crafts enjoyed good sales through the Great Depression. In 1933 Morgan organized an exhibition and sale at the Century of Progress World's Fair in Chicago. In 1934 Morgan represented the Southern Mountain Handicraft Guild at the International Exhibition of Folk Arts in Berne, Switzerland.

Morgan retired in 1962. She died on July 3, 1981, in Webster, North Carolina.