Lee Pulaski, lpulaski@wolfrivermedia.com
Leader Photo by Lee Pulaski Dan and Mary Clausen traveled from New Holstein to meet barn quilt author Suzi Parron on Friday at The Gathering. Parron sold and signed copies of her latest book “Following the Barn Quilt Trail” and gave a presentation on barn quilts all over the country.
Leader Photo by Lee Pulaski A barn quilt hangs behind audience members reading barn quilt books authored by Suzi Parron prior to her presentation Friday at The Gathering.
Much of Suzi Parron’s life over the last eight years has centered around barn quilts, and the author of two books on the subject shared her knowledge during a presentation Friday at The Gathering in Shawano.
Parron, who lives in Stone Mountain, Georgia, said she was pleased at the turnout, noting that “I expected nothing less from Shawano, because they do everything in a big way here.”
Shawano County’s barn quilt project is part of her latest book, “Following the Barn Quilt Trail,” and the largest in the country.
Parron saw her first barn quilt in 2008 during a trip to Yellowstone National Park. She said she was on the “wrong road” in Kentucky when she saw a barn quilt with trees on it and realized it was a quilt pattern.
She talked with the farm owner and found out the barn quilt was part of a trail in the state. After seeing a number of quilts that day, she decided to go online and find a book on the subject, but she discovered there wasn’t one.
That prompted her to write her first book, and once she got the bug, she went out of her way to find barn quilts, even getting stuck in ditches a couple of times during her travels.
“If I see something in the distance — it could be a little rusted barn that everybody would pass by and not even notice — I have to go and find it and take a picture of it,” Parron said.
Her research found that the idea of a barn quilt trail originated in Ohio with what was called a “clothesline of quilts,” according to Parron. The first quilts were actually painted on the barn by artists, but concerns over stormy weather led to quilts being painted on wood panels and then put on the barns.
The barn quilt movement has exploded over the last 20 years, with 9,000 quilts installed on barns in every state except Nevada and Rhode Island, she said. Parron also found a trail in Canada, “First Nations Trail,” dedicated to the country’s indigenous people.
Parron shared a number of stories showing the hidden meaning behind barn quilts across the country, noting she’s found them on gas stations, floral shops and covered bridges.
One quilt trail in western Iowa was started by a 4-H member looking for “the 4-H project to end all 4-H projects,” according to Parron. His efforts netted him a national 4-H award and a full college scholarship.
Parron uncovered another story in the mountains of North Carolina. She found a barn with a blue flower pattern on it called “Texas Blue Bonnets” and learned the farm owner wanted it in honor of first lady Lady Bird Johnson, who was an advocate for wildflower preservation in Texas.
Wisconsin became part of the barn quilt movement in 2005, Parron said, with most of them in southern counties.
Parron was in awe when she saw Shawano County’s barn quilt program, now at 314 and counting. She said she went around the county for two days and “barely made a dent” in seeing all of them.
“Shawano County is America’s largest barn quilt trail — actually the world’s largest,” Parron said. “I’m not sure how many days it would take to see them all.”