Since the pioneer days of the American Midwest, quilts have been a cornerstone of Missouri culture, fashion and tradition. In honor of our great state’s 200th year anniversary, the State Historical Society of Missouri and Missouri Star Quilt Company, in partnership with the Missouri State Quilters Guild, teamed up to create the Missouri Bicentennial Quilt. Using one quilt block for each Missouri county and the independent City of St. Louis, the project features the unique characteristics of Missouri culture and style.

The Missouri Bicentennial Quilt will travel across the state between 2020 and 2021. The quilt will stop in Oregon at the Christmas on the Square Celebration. The exhibition will be open to the public 9:00 a.m. through 4:00 p.m. on Thursday, December 3, at the Holt County Courthouse. A digital exhibition also for viewing is online at https://missouri2021.org/bicentennial-quilt/.

Quilt block submissions were accepted from October 8, 2018, through September 2, 2019. The judging committee included representatives from Missouri Star Quilt Company, the State Historical Society of Missouri, and Missouri State Quilters Guild. Over the winter of 2019-2020, Missouri Star Quilt Company stitched the blocks together and gave the quilt its final look. In Holt County, Holt County quilters submitted blocks to the Holt County Missouri State Bicentennial Committee, and the citizens of Holt County selected their favorite block during the 2019 Fourth of July festivities. The remaining blocks were made into a smaller quilt, quilted by Susan Stiens of Maitland, framed and presented to the commissioners during summer 2020. This quilt will also be available for viewing during the exhibit.

The winning Holt County block was created by Cynthia Kenny of Maitland. The block features Squaw Creek National Wildlife Refuge, also known as Loess Bluffs, which was established on August 23, 1935, through Executive Order 7156 by President Franklin D. Roosevelt as a refuge feeding and breeding ground for migratory birds and other wildlife. The refuge has been a vital economic resource for Holt County, providing both employment and enjoyment. While the name of the refuge has been changed in recent years, it will always be known in the hearts of Holt Countians as “Squaw Creek.”