On March 18, 2026, Mainspring Conservation Trust hosted members of its Cultural Heritage Committee, as well as potters Levi West and Bonnie Claxton, at the Siler-Jones House. The house, which is also known as the Jesse R. Siler House, was built circa 1821 and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Mainspring is currently restoring the structure.

 In 2024, the house was added to the Trail of Tears National Historic Trail Buildings/Structures Database. According to Middle Tennessee State University’s Center for Historic Preservation, the Siler-Jones House is located directly on a Roundup Route and is the first building with a documented connection to the Trail of Tears in North Carolina added to the database. 

 Mainspring’s Communication Director, Molly Phillips, provided a presentation on the Siler-Jones House and then gave visitors a tour of the property. Phillips is spearheading the restoration of the Siler-Jones House. After the tour, West and Claxton investigated possible clay deposits on the property that could be used to make pottery in the future.

Artist Biographies:

Levi West (EBCI)

West is a potter who begins with the ground itself—the earth. He has been researching sites around Cherokee towns where his ancestors would have harvested clay for pottery. But even when he knows where to look, he often doesn’t have access to those places, to dig up the ground. 

Bonnie Claxton(Chickasaw Nation)

Using traditional techniques (hand building with pinch pots, slabs, and coils) and contemporary techniques (wheel throwing), Claxton fires in electric kilns, gas kilns, and with pit-firing. Claxton finds the medium freeing–giving her permission to be an artist with few restrictions.