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King-Tisdell Cottage Foundation
Stitched Legacies
Quilt Symbol Breakdown
Quilts were sewn with blocks that held symbolic instructions about escape. When hung outside or left “airing” on fences, they conveyed messages known only to those initiated in the code. It is believed to have been used in the Underground Railroad.

To learn more, please visit:
Freedom and identity in early African American quilting
https://blog.fabrics-store.com/2020/10/27/the-road-to-freedom-early-african-american-quilting/
Lists and introductions about African American quilting
https://anacostia.si.edu/collection/spotlight/african-american-quilts
Early African American Craftsman, Harriet Weavers
















