QuiltingAndPatchwork.com
The premise that quilts contained symbols and secret messages for slaves escaping along the Underground Railroad of the pre-Civil War and Civil War era is met with differing opinions.  However, research continues with some saying there definitely were quilts that aided and others who maintain it’s all a folk tale.
Diane Grenier is a quilter who spent two years researching Underground Railroad quilts and has created a reproduction.  Learn about her own fascinating journey in Heidi Kratzke’s story, “Underground Railroad Quilt” threads way to freedom.
Other stories relating to this topic:
Hidden in Plain View – A Favorite Quilt Book
The Runaway Quilt (An Undergound …read more

 QuiltingAndPatchwork.com
   I’m always on the lookout for books that relate to quilting, often those that are inspirational and evoke memories.  I discovered Quilts From Heaven , Finding Parables in the Patchwork of Life, by Lucinda Secrest McDowell at Penelope Anne’s Manic Bookworm’s Ballroom.
According to Penelope Anne, “This book was very rewarding, it shared numerous moments of truly touching personal affirmations that directly correlated to a quilt pattern in each chapter. “
Then Penelope Anne posted a poem from the book, Pieces of My Quilt, starting with “If quilts could talk…..”
Doesn’t that simply lure right into wanting to read the book? 
 Also, doesn’t it make …read more

 QuiltingAndPatchwork.com
   Civil War Era quilts provide fascination for quilters interested in history and needlework of prior eras. Much research has been done about quilts of those days and books written about them.
As I researched on this topic myself, I discovered Marcie’s Patchalot more blog and a post about the Civil War quilts she and a friend, Connie, have made…or are making.
I’m sure you’ll find Every Picture Tells a Story fascinating.  Perhaps it will provide you with ideas about a project you could undertake. 
 Stories about Civil War Quilts are somewhat related to my previous post, The Underground Quilt Controversy, since the events underlying all of them …read more

 QuiltingAndPatchwork.com
 Do you believe that escaping slaves, during the Civil War [in the United States], often used quilts and their symbols as guides to freedom? 
Are you on side of the story that maintains there isn’t enough evidence, only folklore, to justify this theory? 
Or are you trying to figure out just where you stand?
Much discussion has evolved and a number of books written about this topic, from various viewpoints.  Justifiably, the slaves made quilts during the early to mid-1800s for their owners and themselves.  Did they incorporate secret codes or symbols into the quilts and their patterns to guide fellow escaping slaves a path to freedom?
Although the …read more