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Quilt Designs From the Civil War Era

Quilts made by contemporary local sewers in patterns that would have been familiar to Americans in the 1860s will be displayed in the Scranton Cultural Center lobby before and after the American Masters Lecture featuring Pulitzer Prize winning historian James McPherson.

Created by local quilters Denise Nordberg, Bonnie Pastore, Maria Simoni, and Carol Smith using traditional methods with reproduction fabrics that mimic patterns and colors of the Civil War period, the six quilts on display represent a variety of styles used in both the north and the south.

Early in the war quilts were made by women on the home front and sold to raise money for the war effort, but as the conflict dragged on, quilts were increasingly produced to send to the men in uniform. By the end of the war it is estimated that over 250,000 quilts and comforters had been made for the Union soldiers alone.

The lecture will be Thursday, Nov. 5 at 7 p.m. in the Scranton Cultural Center Theater. Stop by and visit the quilts on your way in or way out.

Prof. McPherson will be in the Ballroom after the lecture to sign copies of his books, which will also be on sale.