HIDDEN IN PLAIN VIEW: A Secret Story of Quilts and the Underground Railroad. de Tobin, Jacqueline L.and Raymond G. Dobard, - (1999)

New York:: Doubleday,, (1999). Hardcover -. Very near fine in a like dustjacket.. 3rd printing. A book which offers evidence that "slaves were involved in a sophisticated network that melded African textile traditions with American quilt practices and created a potent result: African American quilts with patterns that conveyed messages that were, in fact, essential tools for escape along the Underground Railroad." Patterns like the wagon wheel, log cabin, and shoofly signaled slaves how and when to prepare for their journey. Stitching and knots created maps, showing slaves the way to safety. Forewords by Floyd Coleman, Cuesta Benberry, and Maude Southwell Wahlman. Illustrated with black and whit drawings and color photographs of quilts. Timeline, list of underground railroad quilt patterns, glossary, bibliography. x, 208 pp.