U is for Underground Railroad Quilt

U is for Underground Railroad Quilt - spoiler alert - while there are some antique blocks called Underground Railroad - antique quilts were NOT used as part of the Underground Railroad. Quilts as signals/codes for the Underground Railroad is a MYTH. It is an engaging story but it is not history.

I will share a signature quilt/presentation quilt made before the Civil War with ties to the real Underground Railroad - this quilt was made by The Congretionational Church in Chicopee, Massachusetts. The Church was staunchly abolitionist (anti-slavery) and a stop on the Underground Railroad. The quilt was made for Reverend E. B. Clark's wife who by all accounts was a wonderful woman.

Old Italian Block dated 1848. The quilt has signatures in each block center. Some are handwritten while others are stamped.