Quilts tell unique stories

Nov. 20--MILLEDGEVILLE -- Georgia's Old Capital Museum is currently displaying four antique quilts that showcase how fabric can encapsulate someone's life from a particular time and place.

"Quilts of Consequence: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly," a temporary exhibit at the museum that will run from now until May, gives visitors a chance to look at the handiwork of four strikingly dissimilar women who lived in radically different circumstances.

The exhibit's title is a play on the unique history of the quilts themselves, said Grant Gerlich, executive director of the museum.

The "good" quilt is so-named because it exhibits the highest level of craftsmanship, while the "bad" was made by female prisoners. Where the "ugly" quilt gets its name from is fairly obvious to anyone who sees its color scheme. A fourth quilt, given as a wedding gift, also is in the display.

The "good" quilt was made in Hancock County by an unknown slave of the Baugh family in the years prior to the Civil War. Its pattern is that of the Star of Bethlehem, a common motif of the time.

What makes it even more interesting is the fact James Elem Baugh carried it with him when he joined Georgia's 49th Regiment and marched off to fight in the Civil War. Wounded a total of three times during various battles, Baugh -- who survived the war -- bled on various parts of the quilt, the stains of which can still be seen today.

"It sort of humanizes it," said Gerlich, who noted how well the quilt held up through its years of service in the war. "It lets you know the quilt did belong to someone."

The "bad" quilt was named not for any deficiency in its construction, but rather because it was stitched by women who were incarcerated in Milledgeville at the state prison farm.

"One did not become a guest of the Georgia penal system for doing good deeds," the museum's flier notes.

Stitched in so-called Crazy Quilt pattern, a style which essentially utilizes small scraps of various fabrics to make a quilt that resembles a melting pot of fabric, the quilt was presented to the warden of the prison and his wife circa 1900.

The "ugly" quilt was made sometime in the late 19th century by Annie Elizabeth Byington Bateman, a middle-class Baldwin County native whose family lived near Camp Creek. It picked up its unflattering moniker because of an arresting color scheme that includes a bright pink background.

"Nobody in the family wanted it, so they called it the ugly quilt," Gerlich said, looking it over. "You either hate it or you love it. People have different emotions about it."

In addition to its more eye-catching colors, the "ugly" quilt has a prevalent red, white and blue scheme common to what are known as Democratic Quilts, which were made in patriotic celebration.

The "ugly" quilt has held up well through the years because it wasn't used much, Gerlich said. The family members who donated it to the museum said it spent much of its life in storage because nobody wanted to look at it.

The fourth and final quilt is a tulip quilt that was given as a wedding present about 1890. Not much is known about who made it, but Gerlich said the fact it was a gift at such a big occasion shows the value people in those days placed on quilting.

"People made quilts back then out of necessity. It was very common. Now, of course, it's a hobby. ... Nowadays, we take indoor heating for granted. They didn't have it, so you needed something like this to keep you warm. But these are more than just blankets. They truly are pieces of art."

To contact writer Keich Whicker, call 744-4494 or e-mail kwhicker@macontel.com [mailto:kwhicker@macontel.com].

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Copyright (c) 2006, The Macon Telegraph, Ga.

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