African American Settlers

African Americans hold a significant place in the history of America. In each of the fifty states, African Americans have been an integral part of history. Iowa became a state in 1846 and the first decennial census was conducted in 1850. The census tallied 333 African American residents. After the Civil War, oppression, danger, and Jim Crow laws sent many African Americans on a search for new opportunities and a better, safer life.

Some of the earliest African Americans to move to Iowa came to work as steamboat laborers, coal miners, packinghouse workers, and railroad workers. Steam boats located on the Mississippi and Missouri Rivers provided jobs as wait staff, loaders, and deck hands. African Americans also settled in areas where Iowa’s largest industry, coal mining, provided stability and income for their families. The majority of African Americans who migrated to Iowa came from the South and they brought with them many of the traditions and cultural artifacts of their families and ancestors.

African American Quilting
The majority of African Americans who migrated to Iowa were from the Southern region of the United States, affording them traditions and cultural artifacts from their southern families and ancestors.

Quilting was often a social activity for African American women and sometimes men. After working all day long, African American women would take time out of their day to enjoy the art of quilt making. Research suggests that the creativity African American women used in their quilts stemmed from an improvisational response to the chaos in their lives. The experiences that African American women faced in the fields, on plantations, and moving to a completely new place were difficult, but they still took the time to be artists. The life experiences that African American women faced provided the context for their creativity in quilting and are responsible for the differences seen in African American quilting than in quilts from other cultures.

Quilting provided an outlet for survival by creating community and kinship among African American women. Women would sit and sew with friends, as a social activity and often to help others in need. Making quilts was a free space for African American women to be creative and make their own decisions. They were able to determine how to place the pieces in the quilts and shared life experiences with other women.

The African American women were able to showcase their skills by strategically using old scraps of clothing and turning them into works of art. Quilts were often made from old coats, dresses, or pants, and even from potato or fertilizer sacks. The quilts made by African Americans have characteristics that differ from their Caucasian counterparts. They are described as chaotic, unplanned, using long stitches, unusual color combinations, and patterns that lack organization. Descriptions of the construction include strips or strings instead of patches and squares, medium sized stitches, asymmetrical designs, bold, contrasting colors, and knots, tacks, or ties to quilt layers together. These design elements ultimately showed the unique elements of African American quilts.