Twenty-four of The Natural State’s 75 counties are graced by Arkansas Quilt Trails. Two of these colorful art routes, in White and Perry counties, enjoy a special relationship with one electric cooperative.
Both driving trails, featuring paintings of quilt designs, are sponsored by First Electric Cooperative, headquartered in Jacksonville. First Electric is the sole sponsor of the White County trail, while sharing Perry County sponsorship with its wholly owned fiber subsidiary, Connect2First.
“First Electric and Connect2First began sponsoring the two quilt trails in 2023,” says Tonya Sexton, First Electric’s vice president of marketing. “It’s another way to invest in the communities we serve in White and Perry counties. The trail celebrates local history, art and community pride while encouraging visitors to explore our towns and support local businesses.”
Renee Rushing Carr, director of Arkansas Quilt Trails Inc., says that “sponsors like First Electric Cooperative play an important role by providing financial support to help pay for the quilt-trail brochures.” They are distributed at Arkansas Welcome Centers, Arkansas State Parks and other locations.
Arkansas Quilt Trails turn barns, businesses, homes and public buildings into roadside works of art, displaying colorful painted quilt-block designs that celebrate the culture, places and stories of their communities. Color images of the 600-plus Arkansas Quilt Trail paintings, including those in Perry and White counties, can be viewed at arkansasquilttrails.com/brochure.
White County Quilt Trail Coordinator Christie Davis says, “We were excited and grateful for the sponsorship of First Electric Cooperative. In return, they are the first names that visitors will see when using our website at ArkansasQuiltTrails.com/WhiteCounty.”
Country squares
Davis’ “American Annie” barn quilt is positioned on her mailbox post at 101 Beverly Road in Mount Vernon. She chose the geometric pattern “because our first granddaughter and my mother-in-law’s name is Annie, and we wanted to represent America. So, we used red, white and blue paint.
“There is a lot of military service in my family, and this honors them. That is how we came up with the name ‘American Annie.’ My barn quilt is not without its mistakes. That just adds character. I love quilting, and my grandmothers quilted along with my mother-in-law. They taught me what I do know about quilting.”
Ten of the Perry County designs are the work of Debbie Park at Double D Lazy Bed, Breakfast and Barn, 3109 Arkansas 60 West, Perryville.
Park describes her “Betsy Ross” flag quilt with its circle of stars as “one of my favorites, for two reasons: I love the flag pattern, and the quilt is hanging on the oldest remaining ‘barn’ on my childhood home place, where we now live.”
A former silo is painted with Park’s “Patriotic Pinwheel” pattern. She “tried, unsuccessfully, to give away the eyesore silo when we built our house. There were no takers, so I decided to make it a thing of beauty and put it to work at the same time. The former ugly, empty silo now has a new face greeting passersby on Arkansas 60 West just outside Perryville, while also serving for storage.”
Park’s “Flags and a Star” block, posted on a former horse barn converted to an overnight rental unit, reflects “the fact that we are a patriotic family. I’m drawn to all things flag-related, so this design naturally caught my eye.”
The all-American themes of some pieces on the White County and Perry County trails are in keeping with the patriotic spirit of so many households.
Scenic scenes
Quilt-block owners sign an agreement allowing visitors to stop and take photos of the art. Other counties with a quilt trail include Stone, Searcy, Van Buren, Baxter, Washington, Logan, Pike, Izard, Independence, Jefferson, Franklin, Benton, Newton, Sharp, Crawford, Saline, Montgomery, Carroll, Pope, Little River, Boone and Sebastian.
For information on organizing a county quilt trail, contact Renee Rushing Carr at rushingcarr@gmail.com.