Both Union and Confederate women rallied to the war effort when the Civil War broke out in 1861. Patriotic fervor abounded, with both sides certain the war would be short and decisive. Unfortunately, the war that was supposed to "only spill a thimble-full of blood" dragged on for four long and bloody years. Shortly after the siege of Fort Sumter, it became clear there was a desperate need for blankets, clothing, linens, and bandages.
Northern and southern women, forbidden by the cultural norms and decrees of the day were "forbidden" to enlist in their respective armies. Ever resourceful, these women "fought" the war and healed its wounds in their own way...from the home.
U.S. Sanitary Commission
Northern women, accustomed to gathering and sewing for a cause, changed their focus from abolitionist causes to helping soldiers. Established in 1861, the U.S. Sanitary Commission supported the sick and wounded soldiers of the Union Army. Soon the need for bedding became apparent and the commission added the collection of donated quilts to their activities.
At first, family quilts were donated but very quickly women began to sew quilts--seven feet by four feet--specifically for a military cot. Most quilts were made from available fabric, but sometimes were made by cutting up existing quilts then sewing them into three cot quilts.
Each quilt distributed by the Sanitary Commission had a patch, similar to the one below, sewn on the back of each quilt.
Soldiers' Relief Societies
In the South, where the population was smaller and more dispersed, and loyalties were more attached to individual states rather than the Confederacy, women's aid societies were scarce, and somewhat hindered in producing bedding for soldiers because they did not have a tradition of sewing for causes. In addition, wealthy women were accustomed to having slaves do the everyday sewing. Soon, these women, too, learned to sew. With the war being fought literally in their yards and fields, and their Confederate economy devastated by the Union blockade, the arrival of all goods was severely curtailed.
Although the South grew cotton, so entwined with the causes of the war, the North manufactured the cloth. Once pre-war textiles were depleted, fabric became scarce, with calico costing as much as $25 a yard by 1865. Many rural women and slaves turned to the art of spinning and weaving, as a popular song of the times proclaimed,
"Three cheers for the homespun dress the Southern ladies wear."
Homespun, once worn only by slaves and the very poor, was now worn proudly by Southern women.
Bazaars for the Northern Cause
Bazaars were held in the North where quilts were made with expensive fabric and donated to raise funds. These bazaars had already been established to raise money for churches and various causes. Now those funds went to the war effort. Although some publicly disapproved of women "working" in any commercial venture, patriotism won the day as a great deal of money was raised for Union supplies.
Southern Gunboat Quilts
"The cause is a noble one, the effort is sublime, and the moral effect will reach far beyond the deadly projectiles which the contemplated gunboat can send. If the women take it up with a will, there is no word as fail."
The Mobile Register & Advertiser, 1862
When the war shifted to the rivers, Southern women did what they could to buy desperately needed gunboats. Enthusiasm was high as communities vied to raise funds. Some of these more elaborate quilts used cuts from printed fabric in a medallion-style floral pattern. These motifs were appliqued to fabric in a method called broderie perse (Persian embroidery), requiring very fine sewing skills. Through the women's efforts, raffles, donations, and fairs, enough money was raised to pay for three gunboats.
By the spring of 1862, when Confederate defeats appeared likely that their seaports would fall to the Union, enthusiasm for this project waned. Instead, the women's efforts went to aiding their soldiers.
Everything and Anything Went into Making the Quilts
Quilts were generally made with basic fabrics and very simple block patterns. As the war progressed, time was an issue. The quicker the quilts could be made, the better.
Men's clothing, feed and fertilizer sacks, wool, twill flannel, old uniforms, sleeves, pocket-flaps, and pant legs were all used to make quilts. They were roughly put together with large "hen tracks" stitching. Practical and functional rather than beautiful, these quilts were made for warmth and comfort.
Old mattresses were torn apart for fiber to spin. Carpets, curtains. lengths of toweling were cut up and made into blankets.
Symbols of Allegiance
During the war, quilting became a necessary source of warmth for soldiers, as well as a significant source of revenue on both sides of the war effort. "Voting with her needle" was a common practice as some women would leave clues inside their quilt designs that might reveal their political opinions.
Quilts of Gee's Bend
Confederate Silver, a basic patchwork design recalls the deprivations that started to appear in Louisiana. After a year and a half of war, even the basics were hard to come by.
Boykin, an isolated, rural community in Alabama, is home to one of the most enduring examples of post-Civil War quilting. In 1816, Joseph Gee established a cotton plantation in the area. Gee left in 1845, and the property was sold but the name and slavery remained.
In recent times, Gee's Bend quilts have gained a worldwide following for their simplistic and improvisational style. Whether it was their isolated location or being forced to use whatever materials were on hand, their creations were a stark departure from classical quilts.
Unfortunately, very few original Civil War quilts made for soldiers have survived. As most of the quilts were hastily made and poorly constructed, many were used to the point of disintegration. These quilts got a great deal of wear, and more than likely not worth saving. Added to the fact that many soldiers were buried in their quilts, it is understandable why these quilts are quite rare.
By the war's end in 1865, more than 250,000 quilts and comforters were made for the Union soldiers. While the number of Confederate quilts made was far less due to the scarcity of material, Southern women rallied, continuing to raise funds for the sick and wounded any way they could.
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