Harriet Powers (1837 - 1911)

Born in 1842, Harriet Powers began life as a slave in Georgia. Freed after the Civil War, she and her husband and their nine children were very poor but managed to buy enough land for a small farm. Using techniques handed down from her ancestors in Africa and inspired by the Bible, Harriet made "story quilts" with appliquéd fabric in bright colors. A Southern art teacher named Jennie Smith saw one of the quilts at the 1886 Clarke County Cotton Fair and offered to buy it. Harriet wanted $10 for it but Jennie Smith could only pay $5.00. Because times were hard, Harriet accepted the lower price and sadly parted with one of her favorite quilts.

Jennie Smith exhibited Harriet's quilt at the 1895 Cotton States Exposition in Atlanta, Georgia. A number of the wives of Atlanta University professors commissioned Harriet to make another quilt as a gift for a member of the Board of Trustees. While Harriet Powers probably made many more quilts, these are the only two that remain. The Bible Quilt can be seen at the Smithsonian in Washington, D.C. and the other one is on display at the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston.