Compton Goes to the History Museum

Saturday, July 25-- A group from Compton Heights went to the Missouri Historical Society museum in Forest Park to see the exhibit, Mary Lee Bendolph: Gee's Bend Quilts and Beyond, which continues through Sept. 12. The story of Gee's Bend, a community of former slaves in Alabama that was isolated culturally and economically until the era of the New Deal, is educational and inspiring. The women made very utilitarian quilts of discarded denim and other clothing, just to keep their families warm. But as they worked together, they evolved a style that caught the eye of an art historian, and eventually they were "discovered" in the world of art. The exhibit is free on Tuesdays to St. Louis City and County residents. The 45-minute video about the Gee's Bend Quilters is shown during the exhibit and provides a lesson in civil rights in a story not many of us have heard.