by DIANA LAMBDIN MEYER
In the past five years or so, Vernon Gerke has gotten used to people pulling off the road in front of his parents’ house in Pilot Grove in rural Cooper County, sometimes blocking the driveway to look and take pictures—just like my husband and I did a few months ago.
I felt guilty at being caught, knowing that, technically, we were trespassing on private property, but Vernon just smiled as he rolled down the window of his pick-up truck, offering a warm welcome.
The Gerke family is not alone in finding unannounced visitors poking around the community these days. In fact, it’s all a part of a bigger plan begun in 2010 called Barn Quilts of the Boonslick, an initiative meant to entice travelers into predominantly rural Cooper, Howard and Saline counties.
For those not familiar, the Boonslick is an area just west of Columbia dissected by I-70. It gets its name from the descendants of Daniel Boone who operated a salt lick in Howard County.
The three counties are dotted with lots of small communities, pastoral scenes and beautiful, historic family farmsteads, like the Gerkes’. But it took Connie Shay and some friends to figure out this colorful way of getting people off of I-70 and onto the backroads of the Boonslick.
“It’s a low-tech form of entertainment,” Connie says, “but we think we show people some history and a part of our state that you don’t see when you’re zooming along I-70 at 80 mph.”
Quilt barns are not necessarily unique in rural areas, although the Boonslick quilt barn trail is the only one of its kind in Missouri. An Ohio woman who wanted to honor her deceased mother’s legacy of quilting is considered ground zero for the quilt barn concept. Indeed, Maryellen McVicker of Boonville was driving through Ohio on vacation when she picked up a brochure about quilt barns. She is the one responsible for bringing the idea back to the Boonslick.
The Boonslick effort began with the goal of one quilt barn in each of the three counties, with a long-term goal of 20 in each county. This spring they will have 56 barns with quilt blocks painted on the side, and Connie has drawn each one of them herself.
“We let the barn owner choose the pattern, but with some guidance,” she says. “It’s much more difficult to create a large pattern with curving lines than it is to do squares and rectangles.”
While some of the quilt patterns look like they are painted directly on the barns, that is not the case. When the initiative began in 2010, the group was advised to use a marine grade plywood and oil based paint for each 8-foot-square pattern. Owners of very old barns were hesitant to participate for fear of what the additional weight would do to the old structures.
The cost was about $600 each and a major undertaking requiring trucks with bucket lifts to position the very heavy patterns on the sides of the barns. DC Tree Company in Marshall and Hackman Electric in Boonville volunteered their trucks for the installations. Funding from the Missouri Arts Council helps pay for the supplies.
However, thanks to advice from a local sign maker, Connie and gang learned that heavy gauge aluminum and latex paint works just as well for about half the price and a fraction of the weight. The paint job is supposed to last about 10 years.
A quilter herself, Connie likes anything with a star pattern, yet her favorite pattern on the quilt trail is one she designed herself. Located on a barn owned by Robby and Lynn Harvey just north of New Franklin on Highway 5 in Howard County, the pattern is called Prairie Flower.
“This is right on the Santa Fe Trail, and I think it’s a reflection of the pioneer spirit,” she explains. “We have a lot of early-American history in this area, which is one reason people should get off of I-70 and come see us.”
Many visitors already come to Saline County because of historic Arrow Rock, to Howard County because of adorable Rocheport and to Cooper County because of the Warm Springs Ranch, the breeding facility of the famous Anheuser-Bush Clydesdales just outside Boonville. And, of course, the Katy Trail and its many cyclists pass through all three counties.
But if you’ve never been to this area, or it’s been too long, like it was for my husband and me, make plans for a nice weekend drive as the weather warms up to find the quilt barns and other treasures in this part of the Show-Me State. Pack a picnic lunch and enjoy it while watching birds and other wildlife at the Blind Pony Lake Conservation Area in Saline County or the Overton Bottoms Conservation Area in Cooper County.
Stop in for some authentic Cajun food, including bourbon pecan pie, at Emmett’s Kitchen in Fayette, or shop for something just a little unusual at Bucksnort’s Trading Company in Blackwater.
Drive up to Malta Bend and check on the progress of the big dig for the Malta Steamboat. The Hawley Family, who dug up the Steamboat Arabia in Parkville back in 1988, have located another steamboat and will soon be digging in the fields where the Missouri River once flowed.
What you shouldn’t do is park on private property, like we did. Don’t open gates or wander around on private land. Enjoy the quilt blocks from a distance and respect the property owners who have chosen to highlight their community with this pleasant décor.
Nor should you count on your phone for directions, because, depending on your provider, the cellular service can be spotty on these backroads.
Instead, go old school with a state highway map. If you don’t have one, or even remember what a highway map is, they are available at rest stops and visitors centers along I-70. That’s where you’ll also find maps and brochures for the Quilt Barns of the Boonslick.
To preview, or download limited maps, visit BoonslickTourism.org.
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P.O. Box 53
Kennett, Missouri 63857
Toll-Free: (888) 751-6334
Local: 573-888-1100
Email: info@showmemissouri.net
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