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Granny's Tied Quilt
by Bertie Newsom Hudgeons (c. 1964)
Watching Lonesome Dove this past week (the mini-series based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel by Larry McMurtry), There was a scene with a quilt that was very similar to this quilt made by my Granny. I remember Granny making this quilt from trousers, corduroy, suitings, and other heavy fabrics. It has a wool army blanket inside, and flannel back. I helped her tie it. I’m sure I only tied four or five ties, but still, it's part of my memory. The quilt is heavy. I tell folks that as a child when Granny put me to bed…she PUT ME TO BED. I wasn’t moving until morning when she would peel off this heavy quilt off of me.
This is the kind of quilt we don’t necessarily critically notice when it's on a bed. It’s just comfortable, ‘country living’... old-fashioned. But when you put it on a wall and take a photo, you see the construction and assembly. It’s super easy and very practical. It uses up scraps and in the end, there is minimal waste. Granny was a product of the Great Depression. It’s a heartwarming quilt and brings back wonderful memories of my childhood.
Larry McMurtry grew up in Archer City, TX (a few miles south of my hometown, Wichita Falls, TX) and was a contemporary of my mother. In 1955 when my mother’s younger sixteen year old brother was killed in a car accident (1955), Larry McMurtry wrote a memorial/tribute about him.
It was that tragedy that led Granny to purchase the 1955 Sears Kenmore sewing machine to help her through a time of grief. The machine eventually came to me, which led to an unexpected quilting career. Crazy huh? I have a connection to Lonesome Dove! Follow your own dots - you might just be surprised how they connect.
TRY THE JIGSAW PUZZLE
Choose your own difficulty. Click the 9-patch grid to change number of pieces. Click the circle arrow to make the puzzle pieces rotating instead of stable orientation. Also, there are tips under the "?" on the upper right of the puzzle. If you'd like a full screen version, click the button below. Have fun!
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