30
Wednesday, July 13, 2016 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon
HEIRLOOMS: Quilts
offer a link to the past
for Sisters woman
Continued from page 1
my aunt Mary passed away in
2004 when she was 100 years
old,” Childress said. “Mother
and Daddy had some of
Grandmother’s quilts, but just
not the prettiest ones. Aunt
Mary had the nicest quilts,
and she kept them rolled up
in muslin bags for years in a
drawer.”
But there are two very
fragile utilitarian quilts made
mostly of wool that Childress
inherited from her dad that
she keeps at home.
“The quilts are not in great
shape and must have been
used over and over to keep
the family warm,” Childress
said. “I remember Daddy
(who died in 1987) telling me
about life on the mountain
when he was a young boy.”
Childress never had the
pleasure of meeting her
grandmother, since she was
born after her grandmother
died. But she found out
details about her grandmother
and grandfather’s life through
her dad and aunt Mary.
Her grandfather Josie
Jackson Johnston was born
in 1868. He was next to the
youngest of 13 children, and
he grew up out in the country
on a farm and had a very keen
interest in medicine.
There were two doctors
in the area that encouraged
his interest, so he enrolled
in the Atlanta Medical
College, which is now Emory
University Medical School.
While Johnston attended col-
lege he worked hard to pay
for his tuition.
“He and my grandmother
were childhood sweethearts,
but (he) would not marry
her until he finished medical
school and had a practice,”
said Childress.
They married in 1898 and
lived at Lookout Mountain,
Georgia, a mountain ridge
located in the northwest cor-
ner of Georgia.
“Then once he set himself
up with his practice, which
my aunt Mary referred to
as saddle-bag medicine, he
was either in a buggy or on
his horse going from farm
to farm treating people and
delivering babies,” Childress
said.
Childress’ grandmother
took care of the home, and
she also took care of the
farm with help from her son
Joseph. She had a garden,
raised chickens, quilted, knit-
ted and crocheted.
“She worked very hard
and made utilitarian quilts
from scraps of wool or cot-
ton that were available,”
said Childress. “My daddy
recalled that they slept under
those quilts because they
were warm, and Aunt Mary
remembered that she created
designs that she found in the
farmers publications.”
Childress took up quilting
as a hobby when she moved
to Sisters in 2005. Childress’s
quilting is influenced by her
grandmother’s designs and
choice of color.
Childress’ heirloom quilts
on display date from the turn
of the 20th century up until
1934.
“All of these incredible
quilts were going on display
without names, so Jeanette
Pilak, SOQS director, and my
quilter friend Cathy Moen
and I came up with the names
for the quilts based on their
design and history,” Childress
noted.
Childress has seen her
inherited quilts up close, but
never hung from a distance
like they were during the
exhibit. She is amazed by her
grandmother’s ability to bring
together colors and designs.
“We all noticed that my
grandmother really had an
eye for color, whatever she
would piece together looked
great.”
Two of the quilts, “Tulip”
and “New York Beauty,” are
documented by the Quilt
See What All
The Buzz Is About...
CAR SHOW: Portion
of Main Avenue will
be closed July 16
Continued from page 1
photo by Jodi schneider mcnamee
Catherine Childress displayed family heirloom quilts.
Project of Georgia. New York
Beauty, quilted in 1934, was
the last quilt that Johnston
made.
“Some of these quilts were
hand-pieced and hand-quilted
in her lap,” Childress said. “I
have so much more respect
for quilting, knowing what I
know now.”
Childress remembers that
during the 1970s she used
one of the utilitarian quilts as
a tablecloth.
“It was the thing to do at
the time,” Childress said,
laughing.
She also had the
“Cherokee Rose” and
“Butterflies” quilt on her twin
beds when she lived on the
Oregon Coast.
“All of these quilts have
been washed at one time or
another, but most are still in
great shape,” Childress said.
One of Childress’ favor-
ites is the Butterflies quilt, a
colorful quilt with multiple
embroidery stitches in each
butterfly.
Childress explained that
her grandmother cut out one
butterfly pattern that was
used over the entire quilt. She
then needle-turn appliquéd
the pattern onto the fabric
and then blanket-stitched all
of the butterflies on to give
them a border.
“Then for the finishing
touch, she stitched decorative
embroidery to define them
better.”
Street closed to traffic —
will make for a safer, more
enjoyable viewing experi-
ence for the public. Vehicle
owners are asked to park any
vehicle that usually parks
on Main overnight to park
off on a side street Friday
night.
Glory Daze has become
one of Sisters’ signature sum-
mer events, growing into
one of the region’s premier
showing opportunities for car
enthusiasts of all stripes.
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