Quilts of the Underground Railroad
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[edit] Stories of the Underground Railroad
Since it was illegal to teach slaves to read and write, they relied on other means of communication, including songs and art. In Africa, storytelling and oral history were an important part of culture, as was textile production. In African art, textiles symbols are widely used to communicate complex messages.
There is a relatively new theory that slaves used their skills to communicate via the designs, fabrics, stitches, and colors of quilts. This theory purports that with different quilt blocks they were able to tell other slaves how to get ready to escape, what to do on the trip, and where to go on their quest to freedom.
The information for the theory was generated by the book, Hidden in Plain View, published in 1999, and based on the oral testimony ofOzella McDaniel Williams, a Black vendor of quilts and a graduate of Howard University, with a degree in law. She told her story about her family's secret quilt code to Jacqueline Tobin who collaborated with art historian, Raymond Dobard, Jr., Ph.D., an art historian/professor at Howard University, to write a book.
The Secret Quilt Code provided by Ozella McDaniel Williams is this:
There are five square knots on the quilt every two inches apart. They escaped on the fifth knot on the tenth pattern and went to Ontario, Canada."
"The monkey wrench turns the wagon wheel toward Canada on a bear's paw trail to the crossroads."
"Once they got to the crossroads they dug a log cabin on the ground. Shoofly told them to dress up in cotton and satin bow ties and go to the cathedral church, get married, and exchange double wedding rings."
"Flying geese stay on the drunkard's path and follow the stars."
One quilt block named in the secret quilt code is Drunkard’s Path, with its curvilinear structure. According to the theory, those lines reminded slaves to move in a staggered path to keep the slave hunters confused.
Another block, the Carpenter’s Wheel, is attached to a popular spiritual song “Steal Away.” Like the song, it was a block to remind slaves to go, with faith. The block supposedly reminded slaves, in a very stressful time, that God was with them.
The Bear's Paw block has different stories as to what it indicated. Bears are known to leave large tracks and also spend a large amount of time near water. Water was very important to slaves on such a long journey. Another version suggests that spring was the best time to leave so they could live in the bear’s den.
Such stories bring us a romanticized view and wonderful images of how quilts could have been a part of the slave's escape to freedom. We can see why people who have read Hidden in Plain View, and Ozella's secret quilt code, want to believe the stories are true.
In this way, the myth has become a part of our culture with few people realizing it has no basis in truth. Any myth, that is believed by so many members of the general public, portrays something about that culture. In part, people are rooting for the underdog, in a manner of speaking, (no racial slur intended), and wanting to see slaves as empowered, not as helpless victims, as suggested by folklorist Laurel Horton, in a talk she gave at the University of Nebraska, Lincoln (UNL).
Other secret quilt code stories, that have sprung up since the publication of Hidden in Plain View, may reflect a pride in the brave people who were active in the Underground Railroad, both as runaway slaves and those who helped them. However, we must be careful we don't teach a popular myth as historical fact.
[edit] Lack of support for this theory
This theory is not supported by any documentary evidence, such as slave memoirs, Works Progress Administration oral history interviews of escaped slaves, or abolitionist accounts of the Underground Railroad OR extant quilts. It is based solely on a one person's oral history as related in the book, Hidden in Plain View. With no supporting evidence, the secret quilt code, as described in that book, is not accepted by quilt historians as accurate.
After considering the known history of quilt blocks, and the issues regarding the Underground Railroad and runaway slaves, both Patricia Cummings and Barbara Brackman, noted quilt historians, have denounced the the "new" information as "Myth." Many other quilt historians have concurred with that assessment.
There are two articles by Patricia Cummings on her website: http://www.quiltersmuse.com/underground_railroad_and_quilts_blocks.htm and http://www.quiltersmuse.com/an-american-quilt-myth.htm, as well as an oral statement. She continues to hotly contest the issue.
Barbara Brackman has prepared a new book, Facts and Fabrications, which is due to be published in November 2006.
[edit] Internet information by quilt historians
After having read the book, Hidden in Plain View, by Raymond Dobard, Ph.D. and Jacqueline Tobin, when it was first published in 1999, Patricia Cummings began writing on the topic, following a lecture given by art quilter, L'Merchie Frazier at the New Hampshire Historical Society. The first article, with more than 4,000 words, was published, in February 2004, in Unravel the Gavel, a newspaper that is circulated to antique dealers and customers in New Hampshire.
A ten page reprint of the article appeared in the June 2004 issue of Needlearts magazine, published by the Embroiderers' Guild of America.
A four page, follow-up article, appeared in The Quilter magazine, in September 2004.
In addition, an essay entitled,"The Underground Railroad and the Question of Quilt Blocks: The Roots and Impact of a New American Myth," can be read online at the Quilter's Muse Publications/Virtual Museum site: http://www.quiltersmuse.com/underground_railroad_and_quilts_blocks.htm.
Kris Driessen, quilt historian, and owner of Hickory Hill Quilts, The Quilt Bug Quilt Shop, and the person who owns the Quilt History list, has written an article entitled "Putting it in Perspective; the Symbolism of Underground Railroad Quilts," which explores the possibility of quilts being used as communication devices in the context of the time period. http://www.quilthistory.com/ugrrquilts.htm
Another online resource is professional folklorist Laurel Horton's talk at the International Quilt Study Center. This can be found at: http://www.quiltstudy.org/education/public_programs.html To view the podcast, scroll down to “The Underground Railroad Quilt Controversy: Looking for the 'Truth'." There Horton explores the recently introduced myth in terms of "belief systems."
An additional link of particular note is that to Leigh Fellner's site with its many-faceted article: The Underground Railroad Quilt "Code": Betsy Ross redux. She is an independent researcher who has spent a tremendous amount of time and energy in trying to verify the genealogy of Ozella McDaniel Williams' family, through letters with Ozella's relative, Teresa Kemp. By the way, Kemp has started the Underground Railroad Museum, in Atlanta, Georgia and she travels with her family to provide talks to many groups.
Giles Wright, an historian and authority on the Underground Railroad in New Jersey,(who wrote a book on the subject, that is now out of print), was one of the first to actively debunk the notion of the secret quilt code. You can read his critique at Kimberly Wulfert's website: Hidden in Plain View:The Secret Story of Quilts and the Underground Railroad.
Wright has critiqued the flawed research of the book, Hidden in Plain View, upon which the current, disputed, information is based. Please see: Quilts and the Underground Railroad Revisited: Interview with Historian Giles R. Wright.
Kimberly Wulfert, Ph.D., was instrumental in bringing the ideas of Mr. Wright to the public, via her website. See The Underground Railroad and the Use of Quilts as Messengers for Fleeing Slaves.
To date, there have been a number of quilt historians who have posted information to their websites, written to newspapers, given talks to guilds, and or attended public meetings. They have challenged the statements being made. Much more work needs to be done in correcting the record, but it is an uphill grind due to popular quilt books and children's books that tout the secret quilt code idea as a possibility.
Xenia Cord, a prominent quilt historian and antiques dealer, was successful in publishing an article about the Underground Railroad and Quilts, in the U.K. She is among those of us who have actively taken issue with the "code." She holds a master's degree in both English and in History, and thus brings a lot of credibility to this discussion. Read an article by Xenia Cord at "Underground Railroad" Quilts - Another View
[edit] Stories of Underground Railroad continue
The mystery of a possible secret code, rendered in cloth, is an appealing theory that has gained much acceptance in popular culture, but the evidence simply is not there. Whenever the public has been told that something is true, even if there is no basis in fact, it seems to be an almost impossible task to convince people otherwise.
[edit] Resources
- 2006: Barbara Brackman "Facts & Fabrications: Unraveling the History of Quilts And Slavery: 9 Projects, 20 Blocks, First-person Accounts ISBN 1571203648
- 1997: Barbara Brackman "Quilts from the Civil War: Nine Projects, Historic Notes, Diary Entries' ISBN 1571200339
