On a recent morning, four women sat around a wooden table at a YWCA in Worcester, Massachusetts, sewing. On the table were needles, thread, colorful fabric and a pile of quilts in all shapes and sizes.
They鈥檙e part of a quilting guild called Sisters in Stitches Joined by the Cloth, a group that鈥檚 predominantly women of color.
Co-founder Christle Rawlins-Jackson held up a quilt featuring gold, brown and turquoise fabric. Sewn into the border were seashells from West Africa. The piece was inspired by her experience living in Ghana. The quilt displays a view from one coastal slave fort to another 鈥� the last stop for captured Africans before they were forced onto ships headed to the United States.
For another quilt, she used photographs from her grandmother鈥檚 photo album.
Rawlins-Jackson said quilting was not a tradition in her family.
鈥淏ut I had this idea that I wanted to tell my family genealogy through quilting,鈥� she said.
Researching a family tree can provide a feeling of belonging and a sense of identity within a larger historical narrative.
But for Americans whose ancestors were enslaved, searching for their roots can be difficult, if not impossible. Records are notoriously hard to find. Enslaved people were not included by name in the U.S. Census. African Americans were featured by first and last name starting in 1870.
Their descendants often struggle to research family lineage.
The Sisters in Stitches say they are reclaiming their ancestral history in cloth. And by making quilts, they hope their stories 鈥� and their loved ones鈥� stories 鈥� will carry on.
One member of the quilting group has a rare understanding of her family鈥檚 history. Susi Ryan is a ninth-generation descendant of Venture Smith, the first Black man to leave a first-hand account of his capture from Africa and experience as an enslaved person in the U.S. He was enslaved in New England in the mid-1700s. He eventually bought his own freedom and the freedom of his wife and children. He also purchased land in 黑料新闻.
Ryan said quilting gives her a voice to tell his story.
鈥淭his is a piece that I dedicated to Venture Smith,鈥� she said.
The quilt includes a scene featuring the first 26 acres that he had purchased in Stonington, 黑料新闻. A rock tied down with hemp is symbolic of Venture鈥檚 Rock, a large glacial erratic located in what is now the Barn Island Wildlife Management Area in Stonington. For many years, it was believed to mark the boundary of Venture Smith鈥檚 property. But in the past decade, historical researchers uncovered the original deeds for the property.
Ryan鈥檚 quilt shows a path underneath the rock.
鈥淭hat鈥檚 my way of saying I鈥檓 following in his footsteps,鈥� she said.
The Sisters in Stitches come from 黑料新闻, Massachusetts and New York and have quilted together for more than 20 years.
Donna Clark said their gatherings are a time for creative expression and friendship.
鈥淲e talk,鈥� she said. 鈥淪ometimes we鈥檒l inspire or give others ideas like 鈥榰se this color or add this to the quilt.鈥�
鈥淭hey either take it or they don鈥檛 take it,鈥� she said, laughing.
Cloth used in the quilts often comes from clothing passed down through generations. Ryan started incorporating fabric from her personal wardrobe.
鈥淚鈥檝e had a lot of medical issues this past year,鈥� she said. 鈥淎nd I decided that I鈥檓 including clothing of my own. It鈥檚 just my way of 鈥� When I鈥檓 no longer here, my story will still continue.鈥�
Kimberly Love Radcliffe has created quilts about her family in North Carolina. She held up a large one with a sepia-toned image of a dapper young man at the center. It鈥檚 her great uncle, James Love.
鈥淭his picture was taken during Jim Crow,鈥� she said. 鈥淲e don鈥檛 know what they did at that time, but they鈥檙e dressed fine. And I have old fabrics, some from that period of time. Hopefully my children will be interested and learn from the quilts.鈥�
Quilting has helped her find community.
鈥淚 came to 黑料新闻 as a Navy wife and it鈥檚 taken me forever to make friends,鈥� she said. 鈥淏ut quilting, it鈥檚 a sense of therapy, a meditation, a prayer.鈥�
Quilting is also a way to connect with the past, while wrestling with ongoing injustice today.
鈥淲hen things happen, like George Floyd, you know we make quilts about that,鈥� Love Radcliffe said 鈥淲hen loved ones pass away, we make quilts.
鈥淲e honor them with fabric that they wore.鈥�
Learn more
Sisters in Stitches Joined by the Cloth will display their quilts in East Haddam on Saturday, Sept. 9. It's , an annual gathering honoring Susi Ryan鈥檚 ancestor.
Hear more about the origins of Sisters In Stitches from this 2022 Where We Live interview with co-founder Susi Ryan. The show also features textile artist and author Jen Hewett, who talked about her recent book featuring hundreds of creators of color who were interviewed about their relationship to making.
