McDowell Quilt Trail

On Thursday, January 7, the McDowell Quilt Trail installed Block Numbers 16 and 17 in downtown Marion.  The morning was bitter cold and the sky was gray, but that did not deter the quilt trail committee members from their mission to install “Pickin’ and Grinnin’” on the south-facing side of the Killough’s Music building.  Woody and Freddie Killough are natives to McDowell County, with Freddie reporting that her family roots go back to the 1700s.  They appreciate that in times past “quilting wasn’t as much a craft as it was a heritage lifestyle necessity.” Upon learning of the quilt trail project, the Killoughs knew they had a wall that was perfect for a quilt block, “because when you come up Main Street, it’s so visible.  We knew from the beginning that we wanted a music theme block because of our business and my husband’s passion for music.”  

Built in 1957, Killough’s Music has occupied it since 1992.  By adding a quilt block to their building, they envisioned incorporating it into the city’s future long-term plan for making a designated walkway that connects Main Street to the Farmer’s Market and the Depot.  The addition of a beautiful quilt block on their building would be like putting into place the first piece of that walkway puzzle.

The Killoughs chose an 8 foot by 8 foot block, which pictures four guitars and four banjos in an alternating orientation, resting on a plate of beige color over a background of blue, with red picks in the four corners.  “We were looking for colors that would work well on that big expansive brick wall.” 

Upon seeing the installed quilt block, Woody Killough exclaimed, “I love it, I love it.”  That is a common refrain of many people who view the quilt blocks for the very first time.

After thawing out with a hot lunch at Bruce’s Fabulous Foods, the quilt trail committee continued its work in the cold on North Main Street by installing the Scales of Justice on the front of the building for the law office of Mayor Steve Little.  “I just loved the idea as being such a creative way to put a splash of something attractive in places that are unexpected,” said the Mayor.  “I have been in this building since May of 1983.” 

The building was previously the home of the A&P Grocery.  Mayor Little relayed the following story, as reported to him by Red Walker, who worked there as a kid bagging groceries.  Mothers would often send their children up to the A&P with a Mason jar to say, “I need a cup of vinegar for baking purposes,” the grocer would remove the cork from an old stone jug and pour out a cup of vinegar and charge a penny – “or whatever they charged.”  Little has an old jug that was unearthed some years ago during an expansion project as evidence of the story.

Attorney Tom White previously owned the building in the late sixties or early seventies.  Later it was the home of the Employment Security Commission, and after that the McDowell Express occupied the building.  Little moved to McDowell County after graduating from law school in 1977, then in May of 1983, he opened his own office, “and I have been here in this building since.  I have always wanted to do something to the front of the building, because I’ve never thought it was attractive. The quilt block is perfect.” 

Mayor Little chose the “Scales of Justice,” because that was a natural theme for a law office.  It is consistent with what he wanted to demonstrate: his philosophy of seeking the truth.  He chose colors in shades of greens and blues with a yellow pyramid balancing the scales.  After installation, a Certificate of Authenticity was presented.  The certificate is bordered by icons of blocks completed since the inception of the McDowell Quilt Trail, with the “host block” icon occupying positions at twelve, three, six, and nine o’clock.  The Certificate is matted and framed.  “Very, very classy,” said Steve Little.  “I like that very much.”

The McDowell Quilt Trail operates under the umbrella of the McDowell Arts Council Association (MACA) and has very enthusiastic committee members who are dedicated to bringing beauty, tourism, and economic development to McDowell County.   On this day, Mike Lucas had five female committee member assistants, who at any one time could be seen climbing on the scaffolding or wrestling the individual panels off the truck and hoisting them up to him for installation.  Landon Whitson, an eighth grader, at West Junior High School, was observing as part of his Career Skills Class. He is interested in art, and chose to spend the day at MACA to observe and participate in its activities.

On December 29, the committee installed “Lady of the Lake” on the boat storage building of Harriett Thomas and Bryan Harris; and “Shooting Star” on the boat dock belonging to Bob and Kathy Brendle.  “Shooting Star” can only be seen from Lake James, and is the first block to go up on what may become part of a Lake Quilt Trail.

There are four more blocks in various stages of completion; however, it has become necessary to raise prices for the blocks due to the increasing cost of supplies and operating expenses.  This increase will become effective February 1.  If you are interested in hosting a block on your building, or learning more about the quilt trail, you can get more information by calling MACA at (828) 652-8610 or going to www.mcdowellquilttrail.org.  The McDowell Quilt Trail committee invites you to visit the Gift Shop at MACA for a printed Trail Map, lapel pins, bookmarks, and other items related to the Quilt Trail.  You can also find information about the Quilt Trails of Western North Carolina by going to www.quilttrailswnc.org.

Contributing Author, Nora Worthen, McDowell Quilt Trail Committee

Effort gains more participants from across county

From Staff Reports

McDowell News, Published: December 15, 2009

 From Old Fort to Montford Cove to the high school, the McDowell Quilt Trail is growing in different directions and involving more people, both young and old.
The first in a series of three quilt blocks, approved by the town of Old Fort, was recently added to the Old Fort Depot. Since it got started, the McDowell Quilt Trail has taken off and made life very busy for Mike and Jill Lucas, along with other members of the committee overseeing this project.
Old Fort’s quilt committee chose a design that incorporated the railroad and the depot’s natural surroundings to offset the brightly colored yellow-and-red building. In 1881, the second depot in Old Fort was constructed after the first, Henry’s Station, burned in 1879. Because of the cooler summer months, the town had become a popular tourist destination for residents living south and east of Old Fort.
This block represents the railroad-crossing icon with the center also symbolizing the red roof of the building and the bricks purchased to assist with the depot’s restoration. Because the Pisgah National Forest surrounds Old Fort, the green sections characterize its natural beauty. The blue portions denote the Blue Ridge Mountains highlighted by the sun indicated by the yellow quilt pieces.
The depot houses a railroad museum, the Old Fort Chamber of Commerce and the McDowell Tourism Development Authority, which maintains a visitor center there.
Meanwhile, students at McDowell High School are getting involved with the quilt blocks but on a smaller scale.
Karen Hawkins, teacher of apparel and design at McDowell High, said she read the August article in The McDowell News about the quilt trail.
“After reflecting on how our students could use this community effort within our classroom, we began to create our very miniature barn quilts, or as we call them, ‘door quilts’,” she said. “We did this to enhance student interest in community and learning.”
First, Hawkins’ students researched historic quilt patterns and picked a pattern to create. The students next used graph paper to layout their door quilts and finally traced the design onto squared and sanded pieces of hardwood and plywood, each 5-inch by 5-inch in size. Students learned to identify types of wood, use proper sanding techniques, identify color schemes and mix the primary colors of red, yellow and blue to creating their own colors. They finally painted their mini-barn quilts.
On Oct. 22, the students from Hawkins’ class traveled to the home of Mike and Jill Lucas where they viewed the “North Wind” quilt hanging on the barn. Mike Lucas was kind enough to speak to the students about his quilt, telling them about the quilt trail history in both the United States and in McDowell.
Lucas also told Hawkins and their students that Principal Ben Talbert spoke with him and the McDowell Quilt Trails Committee during the Mountain Glory Festival. Talbert is interested in obtaining a barn quilt for the high school and the MHS Steering Committee has approved his proposal.
On Oct. 23, Hawkins’ class visited the Historic Carson House where curator Sara Bryant gave the group an educational and entertaining tour. “I thoroughly enjoyed your students who came to Historic Carson House on Friday,” read an email from Bryant to Hawkins. “You have done a great job with them! They were excellent listeners and their comments and questions were right on the button. I also enjoyed your interpretation of the furniture, etc. In fact, in all of your spare time, I would love to walk through the house with you and learn from your knowledge base. We have some great connections. Hope we can work with you again at some point.”
Based on Bryant’s idea, the members of the school’s Family Career and Community Leaders of America decided to adopt the Carson House as a community service project this school year. Students returned to the house to take pictures for cataloging of furniture styles as a base for research. Currently students have 99 pictures on a power-point presentation, which are to be researched, labeled with text and supporting Web-links identifying furniture styles and periods.
And on Monday, the McDowell Quilt Trail added the quilt blocks to the Spring House Farm in Montford Cove and Spencer’s Hardware in Marion.

A distinctive quilt block with a thistle design is on display at the barn at Spring House Farm. It’s a design used during the early 19th century by the former residents of the Albertus Ledbetter House, now home to Spring House Farm owners Arthur and Zee Campbell.

Several years ago, the Campbells discovered the farm and learned the Ledbetter House was in danger of being destroyed. They purchased the 92-acre farm and carefully restored the Ledbetter House, which was built in 1826. Today it is included on the National Register of Historic Places and the property is known as Spring House Farm, www.springhousefarm.com, an eco-retreat with six distinctive cottages.
As they continued to restore the farm and search for salvage materials to reclaim for the construction of five of the six cabins, Arthur Campbell made an exciting discovery. One of the smaller structures on the property contained two antique blanket chests and a steel drum stuffed with various quilts, 38 in all. After consulting a textile curator at The Biltmore Estate, their dating process determined the quilts were created between the early to mid-19th century. The one-of-a-kind thistle design was used on one of the quilts.
Nancy Spencer, owner of Spencer’s Hardware, took a long time to decide on the quilt block that would adorn the outside of her business on Rutherford Road in Marion. After a great deal of thought, she chose the carpenter wheel signifying her faith. The carpenter wheel is a brightly colored block with a cross in the center. This block seems to change as you look at it.

Both blocks were added to the McDowell Quilt Trail, also a segment of the Quilt Trails of Western North Carolina on Monday. Designs are being created for new blocks to be placed in rural areas of the county along with two new additions in downtown Old Fort.

An overcast and dreary day found Mike Lucas, along with several other members of the McDowell Quilt Trail committee, installing the Shadow Star quilt block on the southern exterior wall of Marion Credit Co.

There is nothing dreary about this block. Approaching Marion from the southern end of Main Street, you notice first the smaller geometric star in shades of gold and burgundy, then you notice the shadow star, which seems to pop out in three-dimension from the dark green background. The entire block is framed in black, and some say has the illusion of spinning, as you get closer. It is a must see.

Jed Rankin, owner of Marion Credit Company, became interested in obtaining a quilt block after talking to committee members manning the McDowell Quilt Trail booth at the Mountain Glory Festival.

He confessed to “carrying around quilt block books for two or three weeks – or a month” while trying to decide which block to choose, and received plenty of help from his wife, Susan, and employees in making that choice.

This soon became a company project with employees bringing more books for Jed to study. He decided on the Shadow Star because he likes the geometric shapes and angles playing off each other.

When asked why he chose those particular colors, he said, “I just like them.”

As you approach Main Street from Catawba Avenue, at the railroad tracks, look straight ahead and you’ll see two colorful quilt blocks depicting a circular saw blade above the front door of the Old Fort Woodworking Shop that is part of the McDowell Quilt Trail.

The Historic Marion Tailgate Market’s shelter is sporting two new blocks:  on the west end visible from Main Street is a block in vivid colors of mauve, violet, and blue, depicting a “Grape Basket” to represent the farmers.  On the east is the specially designed block compatible with Marion’s slogan “Where Main Street Meets the Mountains,” representing the city’s location in the foothills of the Blue Ridge.

These brightly colored panels often resemble blocks of an old-time quilt, with each having a story to tell, which were donated to Marion arising out of a grassroots effort to help people understand the concept of a quilt trail, and to promote tourism and community pride.

The McDowell Quilt Trail Committee will quickly tell you that quilting is a part of our Appalachian Mountain Heritage.  This committee was formed in June of this year by a group of dedicated and enthusiastic volunteers, under the umbrella of the McDowell Arts Council Association (MACA) desiring to extend the Quilt Trails of Western North Carolina into McDowell County.

The idea of a quilt block adorning an old barn originally began in Ohio in 2001 in an effort to bring beauty to a barn located on family property in honor of the mother of the family who had been a quilter.  As the interest in the quilt trail has spread across the country, dilapidated old barns have been refurbished and saved, vacant buildings with some history have “come alive” and are being utilized by businesses and private property owners to draw attention to the building while showcasing a traditional quilt block art form.

More than 200 brightly painted quilt blocks are part of The Quilt Trails of Western North Carolina along the country roads of six counties including Ashe, Avery, Mitchell, Madison, Yancey, Watauga, and now McDowell.  It is reported that tourism has grown steadily each year.   These quilt blocks remind us of our childhood when our mothers and grandmothers would sew quilts from scraps of cloth and feed sack material that we once wore as a garment, or material from curtains long forgotten.  This flood of memories make people want to stop and inquire about the blocks, then remain to have lunch, and spend dollars in the local marketplace.

An individual wishing to host a block usually does so for a variety of reasons.  Sometimes it is to honor a family member, who loved quilting, or to highlight your business or historical structure, or to tell a story about the building site and support community public art.  These quilt block panels are built to specific guidelines, from using a specified exterior wood to the painting process using a high quality exterior paint.  If you are interested in hosting a quilt block for your building, you can contact MACA for an application; members of the committee will work with you to choose the perfect block for your building, and the colors that will complement the block best suited for you.   The application process is a way to reduce duplication of blocks and color, as well as recording other pertinent information.

The blocks range in size from 2 feet by 2 feet up to as large as 8 feet by 8 feet, with the cost beginning at $125.00, depending on the size you choose.  The life of the block is approximately eight to ten years. The committee will supervise any refurbishing that may need to be done.  As each panel is installed, it is added to the Quilt Trail pamphlet, showing a picture and title of the block, its location, and the story about why this specific block was chosen, thus preserving the history of someone or something that is important to you.

The McDowell Quilt Trail Committee is looking for volunteers to help with the building and painting of the quilt block panels, thus making this a community project and increasing awareness of the program.   The committee already has interest in 12 new blocks in McDowell County.  It is part of the county’s effort to bring tourists into the county.

The McDowell Quilt Trail hung its first two blocks today, Friday, September 11, 2009,  at the Farmer’s Market on West Henderson Street in downtown Marion.  The blocks “Where Main Street Meets The Mountains” and the “Grape Basket” were hung with the help of City Staff, Charles Stockton and volunteer Mike Lucas while committee members and other spectators watched the process unfold.  Watch the slideshow below to see how a quilt block is hung.

Jill & Mike Lucas have had dreams of extending the Quilt Trail of Western North Carolina into McDowell County since its inception in 2006.  They were interested in hosting their own quilt block, but with no trail program in in the county at the time, they turned to Barbara Webster of the Quilt Trail program for advice. With Barbara’s advice, Mike and Jill have created their own quilt block the “North Wind” which hangs proudly on their barn. Since then they have been advocates for extending the Quilt Trail program into the McDowell County.

Now, with a newly formed program established, Jill and Mike have been hard at work creating a design for a quilt block that will represent the official kick off of the McDowell Quilt Trail. The design they have chosen was inspired by  the City of Marion’s Main Street logo “Where Main St. Meets the Mountains”.  They hope to donate the block to the City of Marion who will hang the block in a suitable location in downtown Marion.  Below is  an image of the design that they have created.

“Where Main Street Meets The Mountains” Quilt Block

The block’s black and white border represents Main St. as the road, while  the three shades of blue of the foremost mountains are the colors used in the original “Where Main Street Meets The Mountains” logo as seen below.

Marion's Logo

The Quilt Trail Committee will unveil the design to the City Council when they make a presentation about the program at the Tuesday, August 18th meeting.

Published By: Heather Cotton