What a beautiful weekend we just experienced. Sometimes the weather in Kansas is really harsh, but Spring is just gorgeous. I always wonder how the women in covered wagons managed to withstand the elements of Kansas. I just cannot imagine seeing so much wide open land with the heat and wind with cool water and air conditioning. There were brave women for certain. To think they walked most of the way West beside the wagons, wearing long dresses with petticoats and no water except what was stored in old barrels on the side of the wagon. Yuk! Up at dawn, feed the family, move on and then stop for the evening to build a fire and start the feeding routine all over again.
I have often wondered what was in their minds when they looked out the wagon opening one day and said, "WOW, THIS is it. This is just paradise and I want to spend the rest of my life right in the same spot". Or did they wake up one morning and say, "That's it. I am not going any further, learn to live with it." Either way, I am glad as this is beautiful land.
With all that in mind, I created a new Block Of The Month. This BOM will tell the story of 12 women who moved West with their military husbands. These Frontier Army Wives helped settle the area and create a civilization where there was none. It will be a mystery series, just as they lived a mystery: never knowing what each day would bring.
Each month the participants will receive their pattern, fabric for the block and access to a DVD/video showing the piecing of that block. There will also be a history of each of these wonderful women.
Since we live in Leavenworth, we will introduce you to 12 women who helped settle Fort Leavenworth. Fort Leavenworth is the oldest continuously operating military post west of the Missouri River.
The first lady we will profile is Harriet Lovejoy Leavenworth, wife of Colonel Henry Leavenworth.
Hi, Jerry. Your post on the women traveling in covered wagons came up on my Google Alert, and I was interested to read what you said. I agree with you how hard life must have been for the women in times past. I have thought often of it. I cannot imagine their daily routines, chores, kids, baking, gardening & harvesting. Wow. So much to do. When I was very young, my grandmother sometimes talked to me about her experiences in the covered wagons. Visualizing her as a girl traveling across country made me want to be a storyteller myself. I have never done quilting before, but my mother did as did her mother before her. I like what you are doing, chronicling the history of Ft. Leavenworth. I live in Adrian Missouri, about an hour south of Kansas City, so I'm not too far from you. Keep up the good work of encouraging these beautiful skills. Susie Schade-Brewer
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