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Ideas for Teaching
Many quilt shops and public
school teachers are using the idea of quilts and the Underground
Railroad as a way to teach the history of slavery. Numerous books
for both children and adults suggest making quilt blocks that were
code or signals for runaway slaves. The major problem is that the
link between quilts and the underground railroad is false. The tale
makes a great story but by perpetuating the story we are teaching
our children false history.
Facts & Fabrications: Unraveling the History
of Quilts and Slavery offers an effective and accurate
history of the topic. Teachers using the blocks and the stories in
the book can be confident that they can use quilts to present an
honest account of this important chapter in America's story.
Using Facts &
Fabrications in a Grade School Curriculum
Chapter 5 in the book, "Adapting The Sampler For Children,"
contains many ideas for using the blocks and stories with children
as young as 5. It gives advice for choosing the simplest blocks and
also offers step-by-step instructions for making an Underground
Railroad doll quilt that can be used to teach young children to sew.
Discussion Questions outline open-ended ideas for talking about
quilts and history.
Using Facts &
Fabrications in Quilt Shops
The book contains 20 blocks but gives complete instructions for
sampler quilts made with 4, 5 or 12 blocks. Using twelve blocks,
quilt teachers can offer a Block-of-the Month program in which
quilters can learn about little-known aspects of American History.
Using the 5-block setting, shops can offer a one-day workshop
offering the book with packaged kits. Class time could also include
instructions on choosing historically accurate fabrics. Here's a
class description:
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Quilts & Slavery: Unraveling the Story
Use
quilt blocks to symbolize chapters in the story of
slavery as we spend the day piecing blocks for a small
sampler and talking about the this important chapter in
American history. Class text will be historian Barbara
Brackman's new book Facts & Fabrications: Unraveling the
History of Quilts and Slavery. |
You'll want to kit a Block of
the Month, so pick 12 blocks and kit them up in one or more of these
fabric themes:
- Woven plaids, stripes &
other "checkedy" cloths—the fabric of slavery.
- Civil War reproductions
such as Civil War Anthem from Moda.
- Black, red and natural-tan
prints to symbolize black history, the passion and pain of the
era, and cotton---slavery's economic foundation.
A description for your
Block of the Month Program:
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Quilts & Slavery:
Unraveling the Story
Piece a series of 12 traditional quilt blocks for a
sampler that tells an accurate history of American
slavery. Blocks like Underground Railroad, Catch Me
if You Can and Slave Chain symbolize chapters in the
story. Kits link to patterns in historian Barbara
Brackman's new book
Facts & Fabrications:
Unraveling the History of Quilts and Slavery.
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Additional Teaching
Ideas
Teachers may want to go beyond the stories and the quilt
blocks in the book and add other ideas to the class. One easy
way to obtain more information is to use the recommended web
pages as resources.
Use the quilt code
controversy to create interest and clear the air.
Nearly every quilter has heard the story. Build your
class promotion around the idea that you will look at both sides
of the issue and give your reasons for disputing the code/map
link. A suggested description:
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The Quilt Code:
Unraveling the Story of Quilts and the Underground
Railroad
Have you heard
the story of quilts as code on the Underground
Railroad, slavery's path to freedom? How accurate
are those tales? We'll spend the class stitching
quilt blocks that we can use to symbolize the story
of quilts and slavery while we discuss the myths and
the facts. Class text will be historian Barbara
Brackman's new book
Facts & Fabrications:
Unraveling the History of Quilts and Slavery. |
Use local history to
create interest in the true stories.
While not every town has a link to the underground railroad,
there are many, many local stories about slavery. With a little
digging and a little help from your local historical society you
can shape the class to reflect local history. A sample
description:
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Quilts and
Slavery: Using Quilts to Tell an Ohio Story
(or a Michigan story etc.)
We'll use quilt
blocks to symbolize some accurate stories about
slavery in XX. While we stitch, we'll hear tales
about how people used their wits and their courage
to overcome slavery. Along with your sewing
supplies, bring any stories you've heard about
slavery and the underground railroad in our area.
Class text will be historian Barbara Brackman's new
book
Facts & Fabrications:
Unraveling the History of Quilts and Slavery. |
Sources on the Web for
Discussion of
the Underground Railroad and Quilts Controversy
Leigh Fellner has developed an extensive web page on the topic.
http://www.ugrrquilt.hartcottagequilts.com/
or do a web search for: Hart Cottage Quilts.
Dr. Kimberly Wulfert's comprehensive quilt history web page has
an impressive section.
www.antiquequiltdating.com/ugrr.html
Librarian Deborah Foley has written a paper summarizing
the problems. Find "Young Readers at Risk: Quilt Patterns and
the Underground Railroad" at
www.culver.org/academics/infolit/Faculty/foleyd/Teacher_files/craftingfreedom/diatribe110304.pdf
or do a web search for the three words: "Deborah
Foley" readers
If you feel compelled to make an underground railroad map quilt
go to:
www.ohioundergroundrailroad.org/quilt.htm.
The Columbus Metropolitan Quilters (CMQ) Guild created a
fabulous quilt rendition of an old Underground Railroad map
indicating counties, trails and stations. The quilt was
presented to the Friends of Freedom in 1997. Now that's a
historically accurate underground railroad quilt.
Sources for Accurate Information about the Underground
Railroad
The National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom is a
web page maintained by the National Park Department. Try this
address:
http://209.10.16.21/Template/FrontEnd/index.cfm
or do a search for the words: Underground Railroad Network
Freedom
Documenting the South: North American Slave Narratives. A
good site for first hand documents about slavery. Try this
address:
http://docsouth.unc.edu/neh/index.html
or do a search for the words: Documenting Slave Narratives
American Memory is the Library of Congress web page. Go
to the home page at the following address
http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/index.html
or search for the words: American Memory. Once you're
there you'll see a search box at the top. Type in the words:
Slavery Florida or try Life History Kansas
(substituting your state). One of the great things about the
Library of Congress is that you may use their pictures, stories
etc. Print the pictures and the stories and use them as
handouts.
Reprinted with permission from Barbara Brackman
Fact
Sheet on The "Quilt Code"
More
on the book by Barbara Brackman:
"Facts & Fabrications:
Unraveling the Story of Quilts & Slavery"
Other articles on the
Underground Railroad on
my site. |