Jessie Little

The People

Jessie Little

← People of the Society · on record 1957–2000

This is the Society’s own record of Jessie Little. A biography: Who’s Who in Leathercraft · Spring 1980 →

The Society’s records

Everything the Society’s own records say of Jessie Little: the offices held, the standings conferred, and the awards won. Where the records are silent, so is this part of the page.

In memoriam · 26 October 2005

A longtime champion of the Society: Fellow and Honorary Life Member, longtime Toronto Branch member and executive, judge at Exhibitions and Annuals, and a contributor to the Newsletter.

From Autumn 2005, page 4.

Also recorded as J. Little

Standing

Toronto Branch Member 1979 · Life Member 1989 · Honourary Life Member 1997

Branch

Toronto · listed as a member in 1979

Certification

Associate of the CSCL 1957
The election notice prints the town as “Snelgrove, Ont.”.
Fellow of the CSCL 1972
The register had her Fellowship undated; the Annual Meeting report of 1972 dates it.

An early member of the Society. She showed four pieces at Leather '74, the Society's exhibition at the Toronto Public Libraries' Learning Resources Centre, 666 Eglinton Avenue West, Toronto, 3-28 June 1974; three pieces in the Society's exhibition at the Craft Gallery and Resource Centre of the Ontario Crafts Council, 346 Dundas Street West, Toronto, 2-28 March 1976; and four pieces at Leather '78, the Society's exhibition at the Etobicoke Civic Centre, 550 Burnhamthorpe Road, November 1978. The printed list of the 1980 Executive Council gives her as Mrs. J. Little. She showed five pieces at Leather '82, the Society's exhibition at the City of Brampton Library and Art Gallery, Bramalea, 3 July to 1 August 1982, whose catalogue prints her name as Jessie M. Little. Her Life Membership was presented along with those of Dorothy Muma and Helen Wheaton. One piece was chosen for the Society’s 1985 Travelling Exhibition, from about sixty entries, by the judges Robert Muma, Paul Williams and Alison Parsons: a wallet with a pine cone design. She showed four pieces in the Society's exhibition at the Etobicoke Art Gallery, 4-29 September 1992. She made a square for the CSCL Leather Quilt. A former member of the I.A.L.C. and a long-standing member of the Society, she held a Type A Teaching Certificate.

From Winter 2012–2013, page 8; Leather ’74: exhibition catalogue, Toronto Public Libraries, page 5; Exhibition catalogue 1976: Craft Gallery of the Ontario Crafts Council, Toronto, page 6; Leather ’78: exhibition catalogue, Etobicoke Civic Centre, page 6; Autumn 1980, page 10; Leather ’82: exhibition catalogue, Brampton Public Library and Art Gallery, page 5; 33rd Annual Meeting 1983: programme, The Royal Resort, Fenelon Falls, page 5; Fall 1985, page 4; Etobicoke Art Gallery exhibition 1992: catalogue, page 13; Fall 1998, page 2; and Spring 1980, page 10.

Held the Society's professional stamp No. XI, issued in 1957.

From Register of professional stamps, May 2012.

Served the Society as

Librarian 1980
Executive Council 1958–1980
Members at Large 1959
Council 1962–1988
11th Assembly Demonstrator 1965
Publicity 1972
25th Annual Demonstrator 1975
Council of Fellows Secretary 1975
Library Committee Chairman 1975–1977
27th Annual Demonstrator 1977
Director 1981–1992
Director (withdrew at own request) 1993

Honours

Ontario Volunteer Service Award
Named on the Society's roll of Ontario Volunteer Service Award recipients.
Life Membership 1982
One of three Life Memberships presented at the 32nd Annual Meeting, Toronto, 1 May 1982.
Ontario Volunteer Service Award 2000
One of 6 CSCL members inducted as Ontario Volunteer Service Award recipients at the 50th Annual Meeting for long-time commitment to CSCL, honoured with a short biography read by Membership Chair Madeleine Mitchell.

Awards

1992 Biennial Exhibition: C.S.C.L. Executive Award for Most Functional Piece 1992
Anne Hook Memorial Award 1980, 1987
Bramalea Ribbon, Leather '82 1982
C.N.E. Competitions 1962 - Leathercraft 1962
Canadian National Exhibition Leathercraft Prize (Women's Division) 1974
Canadian National Exhibition Leathercraft Prize (Women's Division): Chatelaine Award 1974
Canadian National Exhibition Women's Division 1972
Craftsman Ribbon 1977, 1978, 1980, 1981, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1990, 1991, 1993
International Assembly Salon Ribbon 1963
Leather '74 Honourable Mention 1974
Leather '76 Craftsman Award 1976
Leather '76 Honourable Mention 1976
Leather '76 Salon Award 1976
Leather '82 Honourable Mention 1982
Michigan Leather Artisans Award for Best Leather Article 1986
Moore-Pearsall Award for Best Carving and/or Toolin, Original Design 1986
Robert Muma Award 1993
Salon Award 1986
Salon Ribbon 1983, 1987, 1990, 1991, 1993
Special Table 1985

Demonstrations given

Braided Belts 1963
13th Annual
From Autumn 1963, page 2.
Her technique of dyeing leather 1965
Toronto Branch meetings, 1964-65 season
From Spring 1965, page 4.
Dyeing Techniques 1975
25th Annual
From Summer 1975, page 2.
Her dry brush dye technique (Belleville Branch workshop) 1980
Branch meetings, autumn 1980
From Autumn 1980, page 8.
Belts 1983
33rd Annual
From 33rd Annual Meeting 1983: programme, The Royal Resort, Fenelon Falls.
Trays, at St. Martin-in-the-Fields Church, Toronto 1988
CSCL Workshop, Toronto, 14 April 1988
From Winter 1987–88, page 13.
Colour techniques 1992
1992 Annual
From Spring 1992, page 4.

Where this comes from

Life and work

From the "Who's Who in Leathercraft" profile of her printed in the Society's newsletter in Spring 1980, and from her obituary as quoted in the newsletter in 2005. The lines “In the press” are from the Toronto Star.

Background: Jessie Little grew up in the Brampton area of Southern Ontario. As a girl, her interests included horseback riding, baseball, canoeing and other outdoor sports, and many of her summers were spent counselling at youth camps.
From the biography “Who’s Who in Leathercraft · Spring 1980”.
Family: She and her husband, Neil, had a son and a daughter, and two grandchildren. The profile recorded the loss of her husband on Palm Sunday.
From the biography “Who’s Who in Leathercraft · Spring 1980”.; She died in Orillia, survived by her son and daughter.
From Autumn 2005, page 4.
Work: She taught for some years in the Toronto school system, then left teaching and, with her husband, Neil, farmed just north of Brampton. When they later moved to Snelgrove she returned to teaching, retiring from the staff of Bramalea Secondary School in 1971.
From the biography “Who’s Who in Leathercraft · Spring 1980”.
Study: She studied leathercraft under Jack MacDougall, Robert Muma and Isobel Joyce, and went on to attend many related courses and workshops in design and leathercraft sponsored by community colleges and branches.
From the biography “Who’s Who in Leathercraft · Spring 1980”.
Teaching: She taught leathercraft on long and short courses: from her home, at night school at Central Peel and Bramalea Secondary Schools, in schools in Acton and Caledon East, and for Sheridan Community College in Brampton and at Belfountain. She gave a weekend workshop in colouring at Mohawk College, and was in demand for talks and demonstrations to other groups.
From the biography “Who’s Who in Leathercraft · Spring 1980”.
In the press: A death notice printed the day after she died gives her age as 96 and calls her “a gifted teacher and a master leathercraft artisan.”
From her death notice in the Toronto Star, 27 October 2005, p. 34.

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