Their histories convey a sense of self, a sense of dignity, and an appreciation of the significance of their work. It is important to hear these voices precisely. They do not lament the passing of a Golden Age of craftsmanship, nor declare that everything has gone downhill since steam power first drove the weaver's loom. The old tools and the old methods, they assert, sufficed for their time, but would be out of place today. The router is their preferred tool, and dressed lumber far more attractive than rough cut.
Carpenters are alert to better ways to do their work, and so inherently view it critically.
Measuring, calculating, recalculating to find the most efficient and best approach, probably saves them from the clutches of an outworn past, and guides them to creative use of new tools and techniques, all in the service of craftsmanship. Philip A. Korth joined the faculty of Michigan State University in 1967. He is currently at work on a book about the Minneapolis Teamsters' strike of 1934. He has developed oral history techniques that allow access to rank and file worker history, and that bring this history to a wider audience than conventional academic histories reach. In addition, Professor Korth writes periodically for outdoors magazines such as In-Fisherman , and Gray's Sporting Journal .