Episode 41: The Freedom Quilting Bee & the Gee's Bend Quilters

Chances are you have heard of Gee's Bend and its famous quilters. Maybe you've even been to the Airing of the Quilts Festival that takes place in Gee's Bend every October (if so, we are jealous!!). But did you know that a quilting co-op was formed with quilters from Gee's Bend and other communities in Wilcox County in 1966? The Freedom Quilting Bee is the story of how Minder Coleman, a community leader and quilter, formed a co-op with other quilters in the area to capitalize on an auction of local quilts in New York City. The Freedom Quilting Bee, formed one year to the day after the end of the March on Selma, had close ties to the Civil Rights Movement and created economic opportunities for its members and their families. In just one year, the Bee doubled the going rate of a quilt and increased the average family's income by 25%. They also created beautiful quilts. Using patterns made in the community for over 100 years, quilters such as Lucy Mingo, Estelle Witherspoon, Nettie Young, and Willie Abrams made quilts for tastemakers like Babe Paley, Sister Parish, and others, and created contracts with Saks, Bonwit Teller, and more. They were covered by the New York Times; Diana Vreeland wrote them up in Vogue. They created a storefront-sized quilt for Sakowitz Department Store in Houston. And then, they were virtually excluded from the Gee's Bend fever that swept the nation. Listen in as we celebrate the hard-working, "odds-beating" (to quote the Freedom Quilting Bee Legacy) women of this inspiring organization. 🪡Learn about Georgia's unique three-dimensional state quilt block 🪡Find out the real story behind Bill Arnett's "discovery" of the Gee's Bend quilters (spoiler alert: it has to do with the FQB!) 🪡Find out how corduroy, Liberty fabrics, and daishiki prints came to be in Gee's Bend museum quilts We hope you will join us for this very special episode. Show notes and sources here: https://tinyurl.com/HHepisode41 Sponsored by our Patreon Patrons. Thank you for your support! Visit patreon.com/handmadehistorypodcast to learn more and sign up to get our posts in your inbox. Have a question, comment, or idea for a future episode? Email us at handmadehistoryhosts@gmail.com . Or visit our website at handmadehistorypodcast.com for more information.