Caption by photographer (Andrews): "Bill would tan fresh deer hides to use in his leather work. He made a device which would split a hide into evenly sized strips for braiding. He made belts, sashes, hat bands, watch fobs, key holders, and guitar straps. He also did harness repairs and remade worn out shoes. But the first step in this process was to pick all the flesh off the hide. If left, the bits of flesh would attract insects to eat the hide and leave uncured spots on the finished hide."
The Jesse Andrews photographs were received by the David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library as a purchase in 2003, 2006, 2007, 2008, and 2011.
This item is made available for research, scholarship, and private study. Copyright in this item has not been transferred to Duke University. For reuses of this item beyond those permitted by fair use or otherwise allowed under the Copyright Act, please consult: https://library.duke.edu/rubenstein/research/citations-and-permissions.
131 photos from several of Andrews’ projects, including portraits from North Carolina, Virginia, and New York City; and photographs of Halifax and Pittsylvania counties.