No Gambling at this Fundraiser

 

In 1885 women raised money for Union veterans with two quilts

at a fundraising event according to the National Tribune, the

Grand Army of the Republic veterans' newspaper.

The common way to raise funds was to make a quilt and raffle it

off to the highest bidder---but many pious women believed the raffle---

no matter how good the cause---was not an option. Gambling---anathema.

1911, Women's Relief Corps members

(I think we still have a law in Kansas that you cannot raffle a quilt or anything

else even for charity.)

So the ladies in the clipping used two other methods to dispose of their quilts. They had a silk crazy quilt of many pieces and the speculator guessing the correct number won the quilt after paying a fee to guess. In this case 3 winners agreed to give the quilt to a public figure.

They also had a quilt or a set of blocks for a Grand Army quilt.

Each block had a Maltese Cross, the G.A.R.'s symbol and

two crescents---used often for army corps badges.

The G.A.R. symbols were popular in commemorative quilts.

The procedure to raise money here was to enlist 20 women to mingle with the crowd of men and ask them to donate to the cause. One guest who offered $20 won the quilt.

The way that many women's groups got around the anti-gambling edict was varied.

It probably would have been a lot easier to just raffle their work but

NO!