Cuesta Benberry - The Anyone Can Fly Foundation, Inc.

Cuesta: Yes. These are slave made quilts. This Broderie Perse, the cut-out chintz.http://www.quiltindex.org/fulldisplay.php?pbd=kentuckytest-a0a2q1-a This is theLiberian. The American Colonization Society had an effort during slavery time to pay theslave owners for their slaves and then they repatriate them to Liberia and Sierra Leone.But in later years, the churches, especially the Baptist Church, sent missionaries,American missionaries, to Liberia.Faith: Abyssinian Baptist Church did that.Cuesta: Did they? And this is one. The Liberians made this quilt for this missionaryfamily. Some of these children were even born in Africa because they stayed there solong and this was the most wonderful. And about 1922 when he was getting ready tocome back to the States and bring his family, the Liberian community…Faith: Could you talk a little briefly about those embroidery quilts?Cuesta: Both of these quilts were slave made quilts. I think this one is from Missouri.The slaves made two of these. Twin. After Emancipation then this was handed down inthe slave owner’s family. I found a number of them like that. When the slaves left thoseplantations, they didn’t take the quilts with them, they were considered the property ofthe slave-owners. And so they were handed down. And strange as it may seem, andproblematic as it may sound, it may be the cause that they were preserved. Becausewhen the slaves left with nothing almost. If they had had any quilts they would haveused them. But by them staying in the slave owner’s home they were preserved.Faith: They would have used them. We used ours. We would get a trunk from theSouth. When my Great-Great Grandmother died. We used everything that came in thattrunk. And consequently we don’t have it anymore.Barbara: May I ask about the term twin?Cuesta: Twin. There were two quilts just alike. So there were two of these. One waspreserved by this lady in Arrow Rock, Missouri. Mrs. Miller. She’s since passed. Faith,did you ever hear about 1970, Hallmark and Woman’s Day had a nationwide travelingexhibition of needlework, some of it was to the Queen, a big rug, Andy Warhol had apiece in it. It was called “Stitched in Time”? This quilt was in it. It traveled from oneend of the country to the other. It came to St. Louis. It had some quilts, I think, fromthe show.Barbara: So the pattern is embroidered onto it?Cuesta: This one, this is pieced. This is appliqué. This part here is pieced together thenit’s sewn down on top of that. Now this one has appliqué and embroidery. See theembroidery there? This one is a wig rose?Barbara: Turn that around. Which, the green?page 16