Jerry and River Lovenstein

In 1976, Jerry and Judy Lovenstein left their Forest Service jobs in Washington State, drawn to Stone County, Arkansas by its strong ties to a slower, simpler way of life. They settled on 59 secluded acres along Grassy Creek with their young son and a determination to make it work. Through a broom-making apprenticeship at the Ozark Folk Center, Jerry learned the old-fashioned hand-tying method, and by 1978 the family business, Grassy Creek Handcrafted Brooms, was established. Their brooms draw on both European round and Shaker flat traditions — handles shaped from native sassafras saplings, sweeps bound in broomcorn and galvanized wire, finished with a centuries-old plaiting technique using stalks and jute. Every broom is an original, made without machines, using tools from the late 1800s. The craft has now passed to a third generation, with their grandson River carrying the tradition forward. Grassy Creek Brooms are carried by the Historic Arkansas Museum and have been a fixture of the Arkansas handcraft community for nearly fifty years.