The Hunt for Barn Quilt Squares Continues
- At August 07, 2013
- By Kelly
- In Quilts
- 0
This was something of an unintentional find. I had my camera with me because we were driving out to the county fairgrounds and I wanted to get pictures there. As we were zooming along, I noticed one.
After we were done at the fair, we stopped back and took a couple pictures. This is the Andrew Peterson barn, located in Laketown Township, at 8060 Parley Lake Road, Waconia. I love this picture, and Zoe was so excited to see the horses I had to remind her to stay in the car. I’m hoping to get back there with a different lens on my camera, the one I had was not great for getting a picture of the block itself. (Or, equally likely, the camera operator is inexperienced and needs more practice!)
This quilt block is called “Swedish Apple Orchard”. It’s very fitting for this site as Andrew Peterson was a Swedish immigrant who farmed and planted apples here in the mid to late 1800s. Peterson was a horticulturist who planted over 100 varieties of apples while experimenting to determine which could best survive the harsh Minnesota winters and resist blight.
On March 8, 1873, Peterson wrote in his diary, “This winter I have grafted 404 apple trees, 13 pear trees, 30 plum trees and 12 cherry trees.” The Minnesota Historical Society published an article in their Minnesota History Magazine in the summer of 1972 about Peterson. Here’s a link if you are interested in reading more about his work.
Happy Sewing!
Kelly