Photos of the Entire Friendship Quilt

Julia Delima Marcy Boatwright (1891 - 1993) - Find A Grave Memorial

Julia Delima Marcy Boatwright (1891 - 1993) - Find A Grave Memorial

The Bougher Sisters

Alta Bougher's Quilt Square

When I think about the Bougher sisters, I think about the the Baldwin sisters on "The Waltons." Like the Baldwins, the Bougher sisters (Alta "Altie" and Mary) remained single all their lives. Also, the Boughers had a secret recipe like Mamie and Emily Baldwin. People came to sample it from far and wide - only it wasn't alcoholic!

Mary Bougher's Quilt Square

Alta and Mary were both born in Iowa. Alta was born on August 14, 1905 and Mary was born on August 28, 1907. As adults, they both were active members of Mount Zion Baptist Church, along with their brother, Floyd, who served as Sunday School Superintendent. One interesting detail about these three Bougher siblings is that their farm had an apple orchard, and they made and sold apple cider there. That was their secret recipe!

Many of the members of this Bougher family, including Alta and Mary were buried at Forsyth Cemetery, in Taney County, even though they were originally from Iowa and spent many years in Christian County, Missouri. I think I have figured out why. Alta and Mary had three siblings who died in childhood while the Boughers lived in Taney County. The family apparently decided to be buried in Forsyth Cemetery along with these siblings: Gracie, Harry, and Earnest.

Does your family have a secret recipe? If so, please take time to tell us something about it here!  

Alice M. Morton Bougher and the Bougher Family of Christian County, Missouri

When taking a close look at my friendship quilt, one thing that stands out to me is that the Bougher family made three quilt square contributions! I guess there were quite a lot of Boughers at Mount Zion Baptist Church! I used Ancestry.com and Find-a-Grave to find out more about how these Boughers were related to one another, then I checked with my mom for confirmation.

Today, we will be focusing on Alice Morton Boyer. Alice was born in Iowa on March 18, 1875 by the name of Alice M. Morton. She was the daughter of James Ware Morton and Martha Young Morton. She appeared in the 1880 census, at the age of 5, living in Pleasant, Lucas County, Iowa, with her parents and four siblings (William L., Charles A., Laurence D., and Clarence A. Morton). Her dad was from New Jersey and her mother was born in Indiana.

Alice married Solomon Bougher on April 4, 1895 in Lucas County, Iowa. I know of six children they had during their marriage: Floyd, Earnest, Gladys, Clara, Alta, and Mary. Two of the daughters, Alta and Mary, also contributed squares to my quilt.

I could not find the Bougher family in the 1920 census, but in 1910, they appeared in the Jasper, Taney County, Missouri Federal Census. By the time of the 1930 census, they were living in McCracken, Christian County, Missouri. 

Alice Bougher attended Mount Zion Baptist Church in McCracken. By the time my mother was about 5 years old, Alice was in her sixties. My mother remembers her being at church, occasionally. At that time, her daughters, Alta and Mary, and her son, Floyd, were more active in the church.

Alice Morton Bougher passed away on November 26, 1956, in Christian County, but she was buried at Forsyth Cemetery, in Forsyth, Taney County, Missouri, beside her husband Solomon. Solomon passed away years earlier, in about 1941.


In the following video, my mom talks a little bit about the handiwork Alice did on her quilt square. In the next post, I will give more information about Alice's daughters, Alta and Mary, and their contributions to the friendship quilt.

Do any of you have handiwork or an heirloom passed down in your family? Please post about it in the comments section!

Until next time,

Mary

Quilting Back in the Day

It's been a busy summer! Even though I haven't posted lately, I have been thinking of this blog and making plans. Along with entries about specific women who helped create the friendship quilt, I plan on doing a series of video interviews with my mother, Beatrice, who was a child when the quilts were made. 

My mother, Beatrice, was born during the depression and grew up near McCracken in Christian County, Missouri.  Beatrice, who is 81 years old, is probably one of the oldest living people that was around when this quilt was made. In 1937, she was 5 years old. I have not found the name of anyone else on the quilt that is still living, although I am in the beginning stages of this work!

Even though my mother did not participate in making the 1937 quilt, she did participate in making the 1944 friendship quilt we own. Also, she has memories of her mother and grandmother making friendship quilts during her childhood. Quilting was a very common, practical past time during that era. Women often enjoyed quilting together with other women to enjoy social time. 

In this first video, my mother talks a little bit about how her grandmother, Julia Marcy Boatwright, organized making this quilt. She also discusses the making of friendship quilts in general. 

Until next time, enjoy your summer!

Mary

Current Day Generations Appreciate Quilt

Cousins, Shirley Jean and Beatrice, on July 6, 2010

  On July 6, 2010, my mom and I visited our cousin Shirley Jean. My mom, Beatrice, and Shirley Jean are both descendents of Julia Delima Marcy Boatwright, the creator and first owner of this friendship quilt. During that visit, Shirley Jean passed the friendship quilt down to me. She gave it to me because I am a keeper of the family history.

  On the day of that visit, I had no plans to create this website yet. I think those plans began to develop in my mind as I looked at the women's signatures and handiwork on the quilt. Some of these women were relatives of ours, but not all of them. Others were neighbors and fellow church members of Mount Zion Missionary Baptist, part of the McCracken Community of Christian County, Missouri. Looking at the names on this quilt filled my mind with questions. Who were these women? What were their lives like? How were they connected to one another? What were those days like? My heart, too, was filled. It was filled with the overpowering sense of responsibility that came to me as the current keeper of the quilt. I got the feeling that my life had been joined with those of these women from 1937 Christian County.

 I have a part. In my imagination, my hands have  joined with theirs in a circle around the quilt. I can be one of the co-storytellers, along with my mom, Shirley Jean, my other living relatives, and others whose ancestors helped in creating this wonderful piece of art and history!

    Three generations: Beatrice (mother), Judy (my sister), and Jamie (my niece)

Reviving This Blog

Hurrah! I am reviving this blog and have a good reason to commit time to it. Currently, I am in a masters of education in literacy program. One of this summer's courses is on technology. We've been given an assignment to create a blog during this course and to make regular posts on it. I've received permission from my professors to use this blog for my assignment instead of creating a new blog. They want us to blog on something we are passionate about, and this blog fits in that category perfectly!

One of my plans for this page includes interviewing my mom and posting some videos of those interviews. She was five years old when the quilt was created and she remembers many of the women who contributed to the quilt. Another step I would like to make is to post about this blog on some genealogy related sites, so I can let more  Christian County, Missouri researchers know about this blog. I would appreciate contributions from other researchers, such as photographs, Christian County related stories about the women who contributed to the quilt, facts about their families, etc.

I would love to hear your comments and get input on this blog to make it better! Keep coming back!

Mary