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They didn't. The Quilt Code is a myth that was created in 1999. Yes, 1999. Please think about the issue logically. How would one view the patterns and stiches in the dark anyway? Why would someone hang a quilt outside when it would be needed inside to keep warm? Why create an elaborate code like this, which would take a long time to learn and spread to other over a great many miles, and take even longer to stitch together (never mind finding, and paying for, all the necessary fabric to do so), when all one had to do it tell someone which way to go and to whom they needed to seek shelter and help from. Logically the code makes no sense. And, many of the designs claimed to be used in the code were not even created until well after the Civil War and slavery had ended. And the path it supposedly suggests make no sense either. There is plenty of information abotu the Underground Railroad. Research is revealing all tehmany ways slavs escaped and who helped them (often they managed to get free without any help).

Kate Clifford Larson, Ph.D.

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Q: Why did safe houses underground railroad hang quilts outside?
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Continue Learning about General History

What role were quilts believed to have played on the Underground Railroad?

They included maps to safe houses along the route north.


What were secret signals used in the Underground Railroad?

People hung lanterns at their houses at night, and sew a blue square on their quilts that they hung to tell it was a safe house. These were some of the common ones used, but there are many others used.


Did Harriet Tubman have a secret quilt?

did herriet tubman use secret qoutes in quilts?


How did the slaves on the underground railroad know the stations were safe?

my best guess is that the teacher is wanting you to tell them about the special quilts. the home owner would put out as a sign for slaves to know they are going in the right direction and that if a particular home was a underground safe house or no. different patterns would mean different things.


How many underground railroad quilts are there?

None according to Giles R Wright, president of the Afro American history program at the New Jersey historical commission, quoted in Origins of the Specious by Patricia O'Conner. There are only a few surviving examples of quilts sewn by slaves for their own use, and none show secret codes. Wright gives three main reasons for discounting the story of secret codes sewn into slave quilts. 1) No quilts survive 2) None of the former slaves interviewed by the works progress administration in the 1930s mention the quilts 3) Not one of the diaries or memoirs from the time mentioned them The earliest mention of secret codes hidden in quilts is 1987.

Related questions

What role were quilts believed to have played on the Underground Railroad?

They included maps to safe houses along the route north.


Why were quilts important in Tennessee?

The quilts were inbedded with codes for the Underground Railroad.


How were freedom quilts used by slaves?

It helped lead them to the safe houses in the underground railroad. Different patterns meant different things.


Why did the black slaves in the underground railroad use quilts?

The quilts had pattens in them that showed the way to the North Star.


What were secret signals used in the Underground Railroad?

People hung lanterns at their houses at night, and sew a blue square on their quilts that they hung to tell it was a safe house. These were some of the common ones used, but there are many others used.


What is a good location to purchase antique quilts?

Antique quilts can be purchased from auction houses and antique dealers. There are several online sites that specialize in antique quilts, they include Antique Quilt Source, Buckboard Quilts and Rocky Mountain Quilts.


Did Harriet Tubman have a secret quilt?

did herriet tubman use secret qoutes in quilts?


How did the slaves on the underground railroad know the stations were safe?

my best guess is that the teacher is wanting you to tell them about the special quilts. the home owner would put out as a sign for slaves to know they are going in the right direction and that if a particular home was a underground safe house or no. different patterns would mean different things.


How many underground railroad quilts are there?

None according to Giles R Wright, president of the Afro American history program at the New Jersey historical commission, quoted in Origins of the Specious by Patricia O'Conner. There are only a few surviving examples of quilts sewn by slaves for their own use, and none show secret codes. Wright gives three main reasons for discounting the story of secret codes sewn into slave quilts. 1) No quilts survive 2) None of the former slaves interviewed by the works progress administration in the 1930s mention the quilts 3) Not one of the diaries or memoirs from the time mentioned them The earliest mention of secret codes hidden in quilts is 1987.


What is the quilts code?

A quilt Code is how slaves used as a secret message to go to the Undergroud Railroad and off to the Northern States.


What types of children's quilts are stocked at Pottery Barn?

There are a number of children's quilts available at Pottery Barn, including circus quilts, madras quilts, gavin quilts, mallory quilts and vienna elephant crib quilts. All of these quilts are priced at 100 dollars and below.


Where could one purchase vintage quilts?

One may purchase vintage quilts from vintage stores in their local area. One may also purchase vintage quilts from Etsy, eBay, Rocky Mountain Quilts, Tim Quilts and Shelly Quilts.