Robbers, October 22, 1863

Before I start on this weeks block from Rosemary's book, I wanted to talk about a date I have marked on my calendar, Wasioja Civil War Days.  My father-in-law shared a brochure on the event with me.  Here's a little info from the brochure....

"When the Civil War began in 1861, Minnesota was the first state to send troops to aid Union forces.  In April 1861, the newly founded, territorial stagecoach town of Wasioja, became the location for a Civil War recruiting station.  This Historical town nestled near the Zumbro River, served more than 200 men who formed the nucleus of Company C of the Second Minnesota Volunteer Infantry Regiment.  Wasioja Civil War Days commemorates the sacrifices these young men made to the Union Cause."

Wasioja Recruiting Station

So if you are looking for an opportunity to experience the past, keep June 24, 25 & 26th free.

For more information and scheduled events:

Civil War Days

Here's some more information that can be found about the Second Minnesota Volunteer Infantry Regiment;
http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~mnwabcw/2.htm

The block that I worked on this weekend is called 'Robbers' from Rosemary Youngs book, The Civil War Diary Quilt.  In Nancy Elly Moore's diary entry she wrote about how some men showed up late one night to rob their Shaker Settlement.  She writes about how the Brethren had to watch and guard the stable and house that night.

I choose fabrics that don't match exactly with the book.  I didn't have a black and cream strip fabric so my fabric is much darker than that shown in the book.  The gold and green that I choose out of my Civil War Fabric doesn't have as pronounce a contrast, but I think it will work out just fine.  We'll see....

I'm using paper printed up using the companion CD and I have marked the colors in the different sections.

I cut my fabric in strips so that it is easier to use while paper piecing.  The gold fabric was pulled from the scraps that I saved from any earlier block that I had done.

Sewing on the line....

Three sections done.... one more to go!  These blocks are not trimmed yet, so they are 'messy'.

Here is the back of the block. it shows my sewing on the lines.

My sections are ready to be sewn together.  My block looks different than that in Rosemary's book.  First, my black fabric shows up very dark compared with the finished block in the book so the 'pinwheel' center is more pronounced.  But the pinwheel on my block is spinning the opposite way than the one in the book.  Once again I have managed to make a mirror image of the block.  I think to correct this I would need to use a light board and trace the lines on the back side of the paper and flip the paper over and paper piece on that side.  Does that make sense? 

Here I am sewing the sections together on the 1/4" seam.  Almost done!

"Robbers"  October 22, 1863

Remember to post your progress on the Civil War Diary Quilt Group on Flickr

Next Saturday, June 11th, I will be working on the next block titled "Bitter Enemy" from the Civil War Dairy Quilt Book by Rosemary Youngs.  
Hope that you're able to join me in my journey. Feel free to email me any time if you have questions or comments.
 

Happy quilting and perfect stitches to you!