Kentucky Classic #8: Kentucky Paw Paw for Louise West Jackman

 

Kentucky Classic #8: Kentucky Paw-Paw by Elsie Ridgley

Kentucky Paw-Paw remembers Kentucky native Louisa West Jackman of Garrard County.

Denver Art Museum

The fruit or buds in this Rose Tree are classic American applique given a variety of names such as pomegranate and love-apple (tomato.) As Louisa was a native Kentuckian we'll call it a Paw-Paw for a Kentucky fruit tree that produces the largest native American fruit (Asimina triloba.)

The WPA writer recording Garrard County lore in the late 1930s noted the paw-paw

was called a Kentucky Banana.

Louisa West Jackman (1831-1908) in her later years.

Louisa was 30 when the Civil War began, living in Garrard County, married to

physician Houston Jackman. In 1863 she had three children 7, 6 and 5.

She had an adventure that year when friend Margaret Vaughn requested her help. Margaret had heard Confederate raiders bragging about fooling Union soldiers into believing Southern forces were larger than they were. These young housewives decided to ride 20 miles to the Union headquarters across the Kentucky River to inform the Yankees of their findings.

I know this is hard to believe but the account is from an 1894 book by Union veteran Eastham Tarrant who said he heard the whole story from Louisa herself. Louisa is also described as a Civil War nurse, a commonly used description in the post war years. With 3 young children it's hard to believe she had time to work as a nurse, but she may have helped Dr. Jackman in his clinic.

Tarrant wrote a chapter on the wild ride.

"During the war she and her husband were ardent unionists and she served in the greater part of the war as a hospital nurse. It was largely through information given by her to the Union army that the Confederates were defeated at the engagement at Dunton Hill."     From her 1908 obituary

We do not know if Louisa made quilts---but her Uncle Lysander West's wife did. Louisa was niece to Lucy Kemper West whose Garrard County quilt is in the collection of the DAR Museum. We'll look at Lucy West next month.

The Block

Pattern #6 is based on a quilt in the collection of Kent State University's Museum.

The Rose Tree (pattern #5  here) is prominent in applique

and stuffed quilting.

Initials and a date in the border vase:

"L T? D June 23rd 1859"

Although attributed to Cadiz in eastern Ohio with an Ohio look to it, the quilt has a few Kentucky characteristics, particularly the speckled fruit, next month's block. The donor thought the family might be Dennen.

No medallion set this month.

Side-by-side set for 14"/15" finished blocks.

Becky Brown has her medallion top done. A few fruit here.

Next month more medallion.

The eight-lobed, layered rose is quite common in American applique. Here's a version in a quilt Barb Eikmeier found in Missouri that does include some more distinctive regional patterns but the floral and the bud/fruit here are really no clues at all to Kentucky.