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Sewing Class at Government School
22. Sewing Class at Government School, 1896 (Wind
River Historical Center/Dubois Museum)
 With
fashion plates pinned to the wall as examples, girls found that
earning to sew was an important part of the schools program. Students
at St. Michael’s and Roberts’ Missions remember doing
cross stitch and embroidery, mending and darning socks, but those
at the Government School also made their own clothes and such practical
items as pillow cases—complete with French seams!
The sewing room—that’s where we learned to do what
they called fancy work, them different kind of stitches. It’s
just the same part of what’s going on.. some girls going
in the morning, some girls going in the afternoon. And those switched
around so that we learned how to do this and that....We made those
simple-made dresses, like I said, we wear for our everyday dresses
made out of hickory and gingham and percale. And we make pillow
cases too, we put French seams in that. We had six or seven of
them sewing machines, some White Rotary or Singer. (Lucy Bonatsie)
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