In October of 2019, Acres of Ancestry traveled to Alberta, Alabama to interview the few living legacy members of the Freedom Quilting Bee: Ms. Mensie Pettway, Ms. Patti Irby, and Ms. Fannie Etheridge. These legacy lightbearers hope that a revitalization of the Bee will serve as a community institution—propelling the next generations forward in distinct ways, in the cooperative tradition. Our Return of the Bees Project is inspired by the Freedom Quilting Bee paradigm—cooperative, community-centered, and sustainable. The Return of the Bees multimedia project documents the history and evolution of southern Black agrarian material culture, particularly textile arts and heritage quilting, and the culture bearers who carry these traditions.
