What The Heck Do Quilts On Minnesota Barns Mean?

Have you ever driven through Minnesota and seen barns with big colorful quilts on the front and wondered...what the heck does that mean?

I've driven a lot of back roads throughout Minnesota, Iowa, and South Dakota.

And it seems like on any trip I notice things that are unique and I'm maybe not quite sure why they are there.

Like the big colorful quilts that hang on the fronts of barns.

Many times the giant quilts of varying colors and patterns hang high on the barn's haymow door.

So what do these big barn quilts mean?

Apparently, they exist in farming states across the nation.

According to the Southwestern Indiana Master Gardener Association the meaning behind these works of art links back to the Revolutionary War...

“It is believed that this style of painting quilt patterns directly onto the wood and then hung onto barns originated in Pennsylvania and spread to the other colonies.

During the Revolutionary War, “Barn Quilts” were used to show American forces that an area was safe, secure, and supplies were available”