My mother taught me to appreciate items of antiquity, one of those items being quilts. I own a quilt made for me by my great-grandmother, and several made for my children by their great-great-grandmother who lived to be 99 and quilted just about right up to the end.
When I was single, then while I was newly married, and before I had all five of my children and was homeschooling or teaching them full-time, I also quilted. One of my favorite creations was this Underground Railroad Quilt. I always bring it out and explain how it was used by the slaves, and what each square meant whenever I am teaching this sad part of American history.
It is believed that the quilt was sewn as a sampler (as shown above), so that they could learn and remember the steps to follow to obtain freedom.
Another interesting fact is that sometimes, the "stitching" on the backs of quilts was actually a map of the surrounding areas. Slaves who had been off the property would share what they had learned, and this was a safe way to remember and record the information.
"Q" is also for Quakers, who assisted many slaves in their flight to freedom.
And, my favorite book on this topic is Underground to Canada by Barbara Smucker. My students loved this book, and so did I.
The above quilt square was hand pieced and quilted by my great-grandmother, Mrs. Oscar Yarborough.
When I was single, then while I was newly married, and before I had all five of my children and was homeschooling or teaching them full-time, I also quilted. One of my favorite creations was this Underground Railroad Quilt. I always bring it out and explain how it was used by the slaves, and what each square meant whenever I am teaching this sad part of American history.
Another interesting fact is that sometimes, the "stitching" on the backs of quilts was actually a map of the surrounding areas. Slaves who had been off the property would share what they had learned, and this was a safe way to remember and record the information.
"Q" is also for Quakers, who assisted many slaves in their flight to freedom.
The above quilt square was hand pieced and quilted by my great-grandmother, Mrs. Oscar Yarborough.