--- title: "February 18 – 20, 1997" date: 2026-08-31 author: "QuiltAdmin" featured_image: "https://quilthistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/Quilt-Treasures-of-Great-Britain.webp" categories: - name: "Quilt History List Archive" url: "/category/quilt-history-list-archive.md" tags: - name: "Quilt Block History" url: "/tag/quilt-block-history.md" --- # February 18 – 20, 1997 These restored messages come from the Quilt History List, an online forum where quilt historians, collectors, researchers, appraisers, and enthusiasts discussed antique quilts and related textiles. The archive dates from 1996 through approximately 2016 and is being restored gradually. Sign up in the form at the bottom of the page if you want to know when a new page is added. Original spelling, opinions, formatting, and inactive links may remain unchanged. **Primary Topics:** - Featherweight sewing machines - an extended, candid discussion of the swastika as a historic quilt-block symbol versus its Nazi association (with a parallel drawn to the Confederate flag) - a directory for quilt history teachers. **Date: Tue, 18 Feb 1997 22:27:00 -0500 | From: Post msudv \[at\] pilot \[dot\] msu \[dot\] edu** Nancy – You surely did hit the jackpot with your Featherweight & a table too!! They are very hard to come by. Quilters like the FW for piecing because the stitch is second to none and that 11 lbs. is a lot easier to haul to workshops than the bigger machines. Not to mention it is too cute for words.!! Word of their worth has spread & now people are collecting them as an investment. You would enjoy learning more about that little beauty on FWFanatics. Once you get used to using it for your piecing you are going to love it. I am new to QHL & enjoying it very much. Good to know there are others that love old quilts like I do. Thank you for all the good information. Ruby **Date: Wed, 19 Feb 1997 01:24:03 -0500 (EST) | From: RLHlink3 \[at\] aol \[dot\] com** Alan, Thank you for that perspective. Altho, I want to be sensitive to the feelings/pain of others, still I am feeling a bit uncomfortable with the thought that Hitler might still have some tentacles of control out there. You said it well. Hitler had his chance. Now let us regain control of a valid and beautiful design. And yes, I am old enough to well remember the hated nazi symbol. Thanks again. Linda/Redding **Date: Wed, 19 Feb 1997 05:52:36 -0500 | From: quiltmag \[at\] mindspring \[dot\] com (Jean Ann)** About the swastika….like it or not, the evil done by Hitler against not only the Jews, but the gypsies, the handicapped, the poor, anyone who had the courage to speak up against him, anyone who helped any of the groups he was determined to annihilate…etc was too vast to ever redeem the swastika. This symbol has been forever changed to be a symbol for evil. A small group of quilters (small when you think of the world population) cannot every change the swastika and its meaning. It is rather presumptuious and puffed up to think so….. I have too many Jewish friends that I love dearly, I have raised two handicapped children who would have been the first to die in Hitler’s regime. (You do know Hitler practiced mass killing of handicapped children and adults to perfect his evil killing methods with gas before implemented the plan full scale against the Jews). IMHO this subject is too sensitive for a group discussion. Let’s change the thread. I, for one am hurt deeply for the Jewish people on this list who may be hurting at the mention of the swastika. BTW… I live in Georgia, I love living here, but I am deeply ashamed and embarrassed by our state flag with the Confederate Flag as the primary symbol. White people in the south may say it stands for state’s rights. But to the African Americans here, many of them descended from slaves, it is an affront. The confederate flag symbolizes slavery and oppression to them. It has been almost 150 years since they were finally set free from slavery, but oppression and discrimination is not over yet. Truth is, the Confederate flag became a big part of the Georgia state flag in 1964 when integration was finally forced upon the south. Before that, it was NOT a part of the state flag. So guess what it really stands for, no matter what the official line of rhetoric may be. And yes, the Ku Klux Klan is still active in Georgia…a hate group that is an embarrassment to all caring people. As swastika quilts and the confederate flag…yes, there is an appropriate way to display them in a museum setting dealing with history, which would include an explanation of what they NOW stand for, how symbols change, etc. But the meaning that these symbols have assumed through their use cannot be changed. They symbolize historic events that are bigger than any one person or group. Through particular use the meaning of symbols and words can change….these have changed. As an individual I have adopted several “life rules” or standards by which I live my life and make my decisions. Right at the top of the list is: “I will preserve the dignity of every human being.” To preserve the dignity of Jewish people, handicapped people, people with the courage to stand against evil when they could be safe by keeping quiet… the swastika is what it has become, a symbol of evil. A small group of quilters cannot reclaim this symbol and change its meaning. Like it or not it needs to stand as that symbol to remind us all of what happened so we can say, with our Jewish brothers and sisters, “Never Again” Jean Ann Eitel Editor, QUILT magazine http://www.quiltmag.com **Date: Wed, 19 Feb 1997 09:36:33 -0500 | From: Ricki Maietta** Hi everyone! Just had to let you know that I have 2 “new” additions to my collection, & it was (nearly) painless. I had a meeting last week, so couldn’t attend the auction down the road. Their newspaper ad said “crazy quilt”, & I need (not want) one as an example for when I do my little lectures around the area. They aren’t as easy to find as you might think! So, I stopped in the auction hall the afternoon of, & turns out they had 3 crazy quilts & one unfinished crazy (9 squares sewn together, already embroidered). I put a written bid on the unfinished one & the better of the others & went on with my life. Imagine my surprise when a note came in the mail that I got BOTH of them!! Just finished looking them over really good, & I’m quite pleased. The unfinished one has one painted section, decent embroidery, plus you can see the sewing technique! The finished one has even better embroidery, initials, a spider web & some interesting fabric – & a printed sateen back, kinda gold in color. I think I did good! Anyone else out there with a new find? Ricki in PA – running out of storage space! **Date: Wed, 19 Feb 1997 08:11:22 -0800 | From: lrobins \[at\] cclink \[dot\] fhcrc \[dot\] org (laurarm)** Content-Description: cc:Mail note part I’m sorry to add more traffic on this but since we’re all interested in the Internet, it is relevant. Delete here if you’re not interested. I don’t know where the “rumor” first came from but there actually was news in the Seattle Times and on the local NPR station about a week ago that US West, the local phone company, wants to request higher rates for Internet phone users. (Mary Lou’s friend who works at the FCC was right that it is NOT an FCC proposal. But he/she might not be able to know of all local requests that are in very early stages. He/she had an interesting point about detecting what type of call is being made, and I don’t know US West’s answer to that.) The reason for the request is that recently people have had problems making local calls. They sometimes can’t place calls because there aren’t enough open lines with the massive proliferation of cell phones, faxes, Internet, etc. US WEST hasn’t added enough new lines to keep up with demand and this is one of their \*solutions\*. So far, I believe this is only a local issue. I don’t know if they have formally petitioned the FCC yet. Such proposals take quite a while for approval, and approval is only on a local level even if given. Also, Bill Gates is on record as being agin it! I don’t know how far it will go. So no need to panic yet, but it doesn’t hurt to keep our ears to the ground. Laura in Seattle **Date: Fri, 14 Feb 1997 23:14:46 -0800 | From: “Arlene G. Goldberg”** > Kris suggested a rating system for quilts, starting with “soft” for > those in the worst shape. Surprises me…would never have thought of > using that word. Is that antiquers’ jargon? “Soft” means a worse shape quilt? Two of my favorite old quilts, including one I bought from Kris, are soft – to the touch, that is. I love soft, well worn (not necessarily worn-out) quilts. Couldn’t another word be used for quilts in bad shape? Arlene in Miami arlenegg \[at\] icanect \[dot\] net **Date: Wed, 19 Feb 1997 18:20:25 -0500 | From: Cathy Hooley** Just a short note on an experience a friend and I had with a “swastika” quilt. We were in a craft show in Lenox, Mass one year & the first day – Saturday, our sales were really, really bad. No explanation, it was a nice day, good crowd, etc. On our main display table we used an old quilt top that my friend had as a table cover. We never used it before & never thought much of the design. On Sunday morning while trying to figure out what we did wrong the previous day, it dawned on us that the quilt was a “swastika” pattern. We decided to replace it with a solid cloth to see if it was bad luck & surprisingly(?) sales on Sunday were 3 times those on Saturday. Nobody commented on the quilt top & maybe it was just a coincidence, but it does make you wonder. We’ve never used it again! Cathy Cathy Hooley **Date: Wed, 19 Feb 1997 21:41:09 -0500 (EST) | From: QuiltLine \[at\] aol \[dot\] com** To those who have indicated interest in being on the quilt history teacher web page: Thank you for the inquiries regarding the page, it is really great to know how many people are ‘experts’ in their field. Remember, I need a bio, a list of subjects taught and $5.00 for one year. I have e-mailed each person who asked, my snail mail address for the $5.00. I have received many bios, some class lists, but only one person’s class list and bio. I would like to get this page going, so if you are still interested, please send me your complete information asap. Debbie Roberts **Date: Wed, 19 Feb 1997 23:44:42 -0500 (EST) | From: MiamiQuilt \[at\] aol \[dot\] com** Hi from Miami. Alan, are you the one from the QRS conference in Albany? This is MiamiQuilt???? Swastika is a very old symbol and the Nazi’ turned it around. It originally meant good luck. **Date: Wed, 19 Feb 1997 23:54:28 +0000 | From: gilsons \[at\] voicenet \[dot\] com** Last year the New York Metropolitan Museum featured an exhibit called “Treasures of Imperial China”. In the collection is a 13th century bowl with many intricately carved designs, including the swastika. That design certainly has been around a long time. Peg G. **Date: Thu, 20 Feb 1997 12:02:10 -0500 (EST) | From: MHerron4 \[at\] aol \[dot\] com** Dear Jean Ann, Your letter re: the swastika quilts was very articulate and did an excellent job of saying what I felt reading the postings re: this symbol in the digest these past few days. How brave of you to say it too! I also have a handicapped child and had not known that they were the first to die in Hitler’s regime. So I learned alot from your letter. A museum, as you say, with historical background would be the only way I would want to see a quilt top with a swastica even knowing the reversed sign means life and is/was used in Buddhism long befor WWII. To the person who said our young people don’t remember WW11 and it’s time to get on– well I’m 35 and I know that’s know longer young yooung, but I’m horrified to think this tragedy would be dropped or forgotten from history–it needs to be learned about in Highschool and should never be allowed to be forgotten from our mass conciousness or it will happen again and clearly did happen again in Bosnia. Well now that I’ve managed to get all worked up I best sign off. By the way Jean Anne, I just recieved my first copy of your magazine and enjoyed it thoroughly! I noticed you had made two of the quilts for it as well as writing the editoral! Any time managent tips you could pass along to me would be appreciated as clearly you are a very busy organized and creative person and a mom too! WOW! Thanks again for your wonderful strong letter and I hope you are truly heard by others. Mary a quilter in CT **Date: Thu, 20 Feb 97 16:35:13 PST | From: John & Cinda Cawley** We were talking about the wave quilting design a week or so ago. There are drawings of the wave on pp. 125-6 of [Quilt Treasures of Great Britain](https://amzn.to/3SaEInp). I think I would call it a chevron. It really is hard to describe such things in words. Check it out. Cinda in Scranton.