Barn quilts
A painted quilt square hung on the gable.
How to know it
A large painted quilt block, usually on wood, hung high on a barn wall where the road can see it.[1]
Where it came from
Donna Sue Groves of Adams County, Ohio, wanted a quilt square on her family barn to honor her mother, a quilter. It grew into a trail of 20, and the first was dedicated on October 12, 2001.[1] Indiana picked it up: LaGrange County's trail map shows more than 80 barn quilts,[2] and Lawrence County's trail along US 50 and SR 37 was an Indiana Bicentennial Legacy Project.[3]
The Flatland Farms plate for this eraPlate XVII · Barn QuiltSong: “Quilt Square on the Gable”
Is there a barn like this in your family?
Barn of the Month opens January 1, 2027. Tell us about it now, free, and we will email you the day entries open.
Nominate a barn Record its storyWhere these facts come from
- Ohio Magazine, Barn Quilts
- Visit Shipshewana, Barn Quilt Trail
- Indiana Bicentennial Commission, Legacy Project: Lawrence County Barn Quilt Trail
Facts checked October 2026 and written in our own words. If something here is wrong or out of date, tell us through the Barn Letter form and we will fix it. The engraved plates are Flatland Farms artwork, not historic photographs.