Patchwork Pathways

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Patchwork Pathways
Code Quilts of the Underground Railroad
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Slaves who were running away from their masters
used quilts as signals to lead them to the
Underground Railroad, the North, and Freedom.
Here are some of the quilt patterns and their
meanings.
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Monkey Wrench
This pattern told slaves to prepare for the long
journey by gathering the tools they would need,
including spiritual and mental tools.
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Wagon Wheel
When slaves saw the Wagon Wheel pattern, they
knew it was time to pack up the wagon. Escape
time was near!
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Tumbling Blocks
The Tumbling Blocks, or boxes, meant that it was
time to be packing up and moving on. It was the
signal to escape.
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Bear Paw
The Bear Paw quilt told slaves to take the
mountain path, away from the main roads. They
were to follow the tracks of bears that would
lead them to food and water.
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Log Cabin
The Log Cabin pattern was used to indicate a safe
house, or a station on the Underground
Railroad. The center square would be black or
yellow instead of the usual red.
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Crossroads
The Crossroads stood for Cleveland, Ohio, a
destination offering several routes to freedom.
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Shoofly
The shoofly pattern was a signal that meant a
person was friendly to escaping slaves and would
help them.
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Bowtie
The Bowtie quilt told escaping slaves that they
should get rid of their slave clothing and
disguise themselves with new clothing so they
would not be noticed in towns.
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Flying Geese
The Flying Geese gave clues to directions for the
escaping slaves. It told them to follow the path
geese take on their spring migration.
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Drunkards Path
The Drunkards Path quilt warned slaves that they
needed to move in a staggering, or zig-zagging
way to avoid the slave hunters who were in the
area.
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Star
The Star pattern reminded slaves to follow the
North Star to freedom. The North Star and the
stars that make up The Drinking Gourd led
escaping slaves northward.
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In order for slaves to learn the meaning of each
pattern, or the quilt code, a sampler quilt was
made containing all of the patterns. The slaves
mistress would just think that the slave was
practicing her stitching and would not suspect
what was really being taught. Since quilts were
placed on a fence or line to be aired out
occasionally, no one but the slaves paid any
attention to them.