Originally Posted by ncsewer
Originally Posted by raptureready
When I first joined this board there was a BIG OL' debate going on about the truth of UGRR quilts. Doesn't matter what the truth is (and we'll never know for sure) it's a matter of what you choose to believe. Make the quilt, enjoy it. To me, it's kind of like most stories, part of it was probably true but a lot of myth has probably been tossed in too. Once again, make your quilt, enjoy it, and build your own stories as you go.
I went in and searched the archives and read those comments. I had forgotten I could search on it. I also went online and did a search and read some of the different sites. Quite interesting the different points of view! I think that there is probably some truth in there and lots of add ons and embellishing as we went along. Thanks for all the thoughts. Now to pick some colors, I don't want the dark colors, so something a little brighter will catch my eye I'm sure.
My quilt chapter is going to do one of these quilts beginning after our quilt show in Jan. I don't care to use the recommended colors and according to the book, we can use any color scheme we wish as it's the symbols on the quilt that were the signs. I personally suspect the story is true. I was born and raised in north central IL and we have lived in communities where there are old homes that claim to have been part of the underground railroad system. They had to have a way to signal the runnng slaves as most couldn't read. If they did manage to learn, many were beaten severely and some even killed as the owners didn't want them to be literate. Since quilts were so common back then, using quilts sure makes a lot of sense to me.
I plan to particpate in the group project but am seriously considering making mine a scrap quilt from my stash and purchase other fabrics if needed. I love pretty colors and scrap quilts. Back then, quilts were made with old clothing and scraps. May were worn and faded but since quilts were needed, every scrap was used so I personally feel that whatever fabrics we use should be just fine. Also, those replica vintage fabrics just don't appeal to me either. My quilt can still tell the story with beautiful fabrics from our time. Although I'm not sure I can tolerate the techniques used in this book, I'm going to give it a try.