Grace McAlister
ECB Publishing, Inc.
A hanging quilt historically indicated safe houses along the Underground Railroad. The quilts were embedded with a code, and by reading the shapes and motifs sewn into the design, those escaping slavery could know the area’s immediate dangers or where to head next.
“A plantation seamstress would sew a sampler quilt containing various quilt patterns. Slaves would use the sampler to memorize the code. The seamstress then sewed 10 quilts, each composed of one of the code's patterns,” oakland.edu states. The seamstress would then hang the quilts one at a time, allowing slaves to memorize each pattern and its meaning. They would then use these meanings to find their way to the Underground Railroad.
Those who wish to learn more about the Underground Railroad are invited to check out the Jefferson County R.J. Bailar Public Library's plethora of books on the subject.
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