CraftWorks History

CraftWorks at Cool Spring came about through the vision of Linda Case. After a successful career as a business owner, Linda bought and brought back to life the house and landscape of Cool Spring Farm. Now she wants to share the land with the community and future generations. And she wants to share her love of craft and collaboration through the creation of CraftWorks.

Linda has done more than “fix up the house.” She got expert advice about how to be a good steward of Cool Spring Marsh, about which plants belonged there and how to get rid of the non-native ones. A biologist discovered that Cool Spring Marsh was a “Shenandoah Wet Prairie,” one of only two found in West Virginia.

Linda’s efforts to protect the entire marsh is part of the CraftWorks story. She found a way to buy the 12 acres containing the marsh, and with it came Mrs. Thornton’s Cottage, where CraftWorks classes are now held—so that her dreams of creating a craft school and protecting the marsh came together.

Now Linda can be found in summer doing the hard work of ridding the marsh of those invasive plants that threaten its fragile ecosystem. And as chair of the CraftWorks board of directors, she brings energy and vision to creating a sustaining arts organization.