On this breathtaking tour, visitors meander through some of the most beautiful countryside in Kentucky. There are many great sites to see besides the large quilt patches hung on barns and other structures. Pay attention. You'll get a good feel for local heritage and enjoy the visually stimulating look of the pastures, forests, country roads and knoblands.

   Pay attention to the livestock. You'll see quarter horses, standardbreds and thoroughbreds. Watch the cattle grazing, including Holsteins, Jerseys and Salers for milk and Angus, Charolais, Herefords and Gelbvieh for beef. You'll also see some hogs, goats and llamas, here and there.

   Crops along the route include soybean, corn and tobacco. At certain times of the year, you can see farmers cutting hay, some rolling it and some baling it into squares. There are different styles of fencing, such as barbed wire, white and black plank and woven wire. Even the fence poles are different from one place to another. Watch for round or square treated poles, iron rods or locust poles cut straight from the tree.

   Notice the architecture. There are several old homes as well as some beautiful and interesting new homes. This community dates back before the Civil War. While you are here, take the "Historic Homes & Landmarks of Lebanon, Ky." self-guided walking/driving tour.

   See beautiful wild flowers and native trees such as oak, poplar, locust, ash, dogwood, maple and pine. Notice the layers of limestone as you drive past rock hangs, keep an eye out for the Rolling Fork River and treat your nose to a cornucopia of aromas.

   This is a great motorcycle tour with its scenic views and lazy, winding roads. Come back during each season and you'll be amazed at the unique look at different times of the year.

   The Marion County Quilt Trail is a portion of the "Clothesline of Quilts" trail that runs throughout Kentucky, Ohio and Tennessee.

Quilt patch locations

• 720 Fairground Rd. - Hung on Floral Hall at the Marion County Fairgrounds, this pattern is called "Bow Basket. The Marion County Homemakers had just finished a sampler quilt to hang in the new county extension office so the organization thought it would be nice to take a block from the real quilt and make it into a barn patch. There is plenty of parking and turn-around space and it is located across the street from Graham Memorial Park GPS: 37° 33.828N, 085° 14.269W.
• 715 Hwy. 1157 - Located on the Leonard and Martha Potter farm in the Calvary area, you get a clear view of the "roosters" from either direction. Mrs. Potter, an avid quilter, didn't have a favorite pattern so she told her husband he could pick a pattern if he let her use the barn. He looked through her books and found a rooster quilt and chose it. Why? Because Mrs. Potter wouldn't let him have any chickens on the farm because they were too messy. There is plenty of parking and turn-around space. GPS: 37° 30.063N, 085° 14.546W.
• 965 Lovers Lane E - Joe and Linda Ford in one of the oldest homes in Marion County. Mr. Ford remembers his mother making many "Dutch Girl" quilts during her life. He wanted to honor her by placing the "Dutch Girl" pattern his mother favored on the black barn facing the house so he could see it from his bedroom. Since the patch faces the house, you can only see it when you pass the barn. There is parking and turn-around space across the road. GPS: 37° 30.975N, 085° 17.006W.
• 3845 Barbers Mill Rd. - Andrew and Alice Clark live near the Marion/Washington County line. Mrs. Clark's mother was a quilter so the "Lemon Star" she picked to go on their barn reminds her of her mother's quilts. The patch can be viewed for quite a distance in either direction. The two colors of blue she picked complement one another with the yellow border. There is a long lane with plenty of turn-around space. GPS: 37° 37.540N, 085° 12.428W.
• 9920 Danville Hwy. - Mary Lou Hamilton supports many projects in Marion County plus she loves the University of Kentucky Wildcats so she picked a quilt pattern to go along with these two interests. Local artist Jama Watts helped design the cat paw prints in four blocks with a Kentucky blue border. The patch is located on the barn facing U.S. 68 just outside of Gravel Switch. You can't see it traveling east but you get a very clear view of it traveling west. There is a lane next to the small barn by the road. If the gate is open, drive on back. If closed, there is comfortable parking for one vehicle. GPS: 37° 35.118N, 085° 04.466W.
• 875 Arbuckle Creek Rd. - Mike and Rita Spalding live on one of the prettiest country roads in the county. Their "Star Flower" is on a barn on the right side of the road across the creek. You can see the star about a quarter mile away but the pattern doesn't come into full focus until you get closer to it. At a certain time of the year, the patch is almost hidden by the Spalding's corn crop. There is a small lane for parking across from the barn. GPS: 37° 28.135N, 085° 13.177W.
• 1597 Hwy. 1157 - Joey Lee lives across the way from his parents. He saw a barn quilt exhibit at the Heart of Kentucky Farm, Home & Garden Show and decided to purchase a patch for his mom, Mary Edna Lee, who is a breast cancer survivor. Mrs. Lee loves the pink ribbon that symbolizes the fight against breast cancer and wears pins, bracelets, purses etc. emblazoned with the ribbon. For his Mother's Day present, he decided to surprise his mom with a quilt patch with the pink ribbon on it and place it on his barn located across the road. It cannot be seen traveling north but is very visible traveling south. There are plenty of places to pull over.  GPS: 37° 29.619N, 085° 13.860W.
• 6555 Bradfordsville Rd. - There used to be an old school house near the D.C. and Barbara May property so Mrs. May wanted a school house pattern on their barn. The "Ohio School House"pattern was chosen. There is plenty of shoulder space on the road for pulling over.  GPS: 37° 30.083N, 085° 11.501W.
• 5270 St. Rose Rd. - Located on Robert and Margaret Spalding's Spalding & Spalding Farm, established in 1964. Mrs. Spalding began quilting when Nancy Miles taught a class at the county extension office several years ago. Her first quilted piece was a Double Wedding Ring wall hanging so, when she decided to hang a barn quilt, the Double Wedding Ring was her first choice. Her favorite colors are wine and green that are dominant in the patch. A lane leads to the barn. GPS: 37° 38.483N, 085° 17.673W.
• 830 Sally Ray Pike - Joe Paul and Luanne Mattingly live on a dairy farm near Raywick. People often stop to look at their cows and all the cow art pieces in their yard. Mr. Mattingly milks Holsteins so he wanted a Holstein on his quilt block located at the end of his tool shed facing the road. Mrs. Mattingly was happy to report that, after the quilt block went up, Mr. Mattingly cleaned up the area around the tool shed. She had been after him for years to do this job. There is plenty of parking and turn-around space.  GPS: 37° 33.041N, 085° 23.550W.
• 8675 Bradfordsville Rd. - Bob and Pat Kirkland live in Bradfordsville where Mrs. Kirkland is very active in civic affairs. Many years ago, in the 1930s, the students at the old Rush Branch school made a Dresden Plate quilt to honor one of their teacher. A few years ago, Dixie Hibbs of Bardstown, who is a quilt historian, bought this old quilt at an auction in another state. After seeing the names and dates on the quilt, she wrote a letter to the editor of The Lebanon Enterprise asking if anyone wanted this quilt with its history and Mrs. Kirkland bought it. It has been on display in Bradfordsville several times and, when Mrs. Kirkland decided to get a barn patch, she picked the Dresden Plate pattern to complement the old quilt. Their barn is located where the North and South Fork meet to form the Rolling Fork River. In the fall 2007, a tornado hit the back part of the barn but it has been repaired. There is a lane beside the barn for parking. GPS: 37° 29.640N, 085° 09.728W.
• 1857 E. Calvary Rd. - Norman and Martina Spalding live on this beautiful farm that runs along KY 412. Mr. Spalding is a retired state worker so, when he decided he wanted a barn patch, he wanted a big red cardinal, our state bird. The bird represents his years with the state highway department, so he says. He also wanted a red and black border on the patch and wanted it hung where he could see it from his back porch. It seems as though Mr. Spalding is not so much a fan of the state bird as he is the state university whose mascot is the cardinal! It can only be seen when traveling north from Calvary toward Campbellsville Highway. There are few places to park or turn around. GPS: 37° 30.550N, 085° 16.129W.
• 10880 Danville Hwy. - Gene and Montrude Lanham live on the hillside near Gravel Switch. They have three daughters, two of which are professional level quilters. This year, the daughters decided to give their parents a barn patch for Mother's Day and Father's Day.  The pattern they picked is called "Farmer's Daughters." The patch is located on the white building near their house. A long lane leads to the building. GPS: 37° 35.287N, 085° 03.670W.
• 108 Main St., Raywick - This patch hangs on the very building in which it was born. The Sew-cialize Club meets in the old Raywick school where they have made hundreds of prayer blankets and quilts to raffle to benefit St. Francis Xavier Catholic Church and the community. Nancy Miles, who helped organize the group, suggested they put a patch on the school. They decided to put the pattern "God's Eye" on the school, which is next to from the church. Miles and her daughter, Tina Miles Craig, both known for their artistic talent, painted the quilt square in colors that represented church seasons. They were able to complete it before Archbishop Joseph Kurtz celebrated a Mass at St Francis Xavier in August 2008. Miles' husband, Donnie, created the frame used to hold the patch to the facade of the old school. GPS: 37° 33.697N, 085° 25.824W.
• KY 412, across from St. Joe Store - Leo and Suzi O'Daniel wanted a patch but didn't have a barn visible from the road so Mrs. O'Daniel's stepfather, Ham Spalding, allowed them to use his barn located on a hill almost directly across the road from St. Joe Store. Mrs. O'Daniel and her daughter, Sarah, a talented artist, painted the patch. Knowing they needed bright colors to show up from the hillside, they found the "Spinning Star" with different hues of four colors. GPS: 37° 31.587N, 085° 23.215W.
• 2255 Wimsatt Rd. - Located on the Doyle Downs/Mary Francis Mattingly Farm, the mothers of Doyle and Doris Downs were prolific quilters. To honor them, the Downses picked the "Bow Tie" pattern to put on their barn. This patch had to be hung on the point to get the pattern to look right. It was a difficult task for the Inter-Co. Energy employees who hung it but worth the trouble. GPS: 37° 35.192N, 085° 24.462W.
• 1330 Arbuckle Rd. - This patch was the one that almost wasn't. Brian and Renee Spalding have several barns on their farm in Calvary and one that is particularly visible from Arbuckle Road. After the patch was painted, it was discovered that entry to the barn was too narrow for the Inter-Co. Energy truck, which is used to hang the patches, to get in so, to be safe, they chose a barn that cannot be seen from the road. To see this "Fourth of July Banner," you turn up the driveway and the barn is behind the house. Visitors are welcome! GPS: 37° 27.994N, 085° 13.186W.
• 7275 Tatum Ridge Rd. - When the Tatum Ridge Farm sold, Tim "Bob" and Debbie Thomas bought a tract for pasture land. There was also a building on this tract located just off KY 208. Tim "Bob" inherited a strong passion for playing cards from his dad, Johnny Bob Thomas. Johnny Bob couldn't wait for all the family to get together to have a great meal then sit around the table playing cards. Because of the love he had for his dad and his love of cards, he turned the building on this land into a game room where he hosts friends and family in weekly games. He said there is not a hand that is dealt to him that doesn't make him think of his father and wish he was there with him. Playing cards in his son's building would have been his dad's dream come true so Tim "Bob"honored his dad with a patch on his building called "Daddy's Dream." GPS: 37° 28.590N, 085° 15.834W.
• 1360 Jessietown Rd. - Shirley Farmer became interested in a quilt patches when she read about Joe and Linda Ford's "Dutch Girl" in The Lebanon Enterprise, the local newspaper, but didn't think C.W., her husband, would agree to it. When their daughter, Debbie, said they had the perfect spot for one, he agreed. With a black barn just a bit off KY 412 W, Shirley wanted something that popped so she picked the "Snowflake" in bright red. GPS: 37° 28.749N, 085° 18.992W.
• 3555 Wimsatt Rd. - Located at the home of Danny Fenwick, well known Marion County artist Nancy Miles, Fenwick's sister, painted the Flower Garden pattern then, at a family reunion, family members painted one of the flowers on the block before dedicating it to their mother and aunts who were quilters. GPS: 37° 35.458N, 085° 25.678W.
• 519 E. Main St., Bradfordsville - Located at the home of Garland and Faye Carol Cochran, this patch is dedicated to Alma Jean Wiser, Mrs. Cochran's mother, who passed away this year and who was a quilter for many years. Mrs. Wiser gave away many of her quilts and enjoyed the joy she spread with her quilts. She loved the Double Wedding Ring quilt but never thought she had the skill necessary to make one so Mrs. Cochran honored her with a Double Wedding Ring pattern on her barn across from her home where she can look at it and think of her mom. GPS: 37° 29.905N, 085° 08.544W.
• Liberty Rd., Hwy. 49 S - The Bradfordsville Save The School and Seniors Committee wanted to have a picture of the Bradfordsville school on their quilt patch. This would be like many of the appliqued quilts seen at the state fair and other quilt shows. The mother/daughter team of Suzi and Sarah O'Daniel painted this patch with amazing results. The O'Daniels had already painted the Spinning Star located in St. Joe. The patch is located on the left on the Jesse Purdy barn. GPS: 37° 29.299N, 085° 08.520W.
• 830 Arthur Mattingly Rd. - Steve and Peggy Downs are very active in the Marion County Cattleman's Association. Mr. Downs picked a pattern and Mrs. Downs chose the colors. Karen King and her family painted this patch. The barn where "Rolling Stone" is hung is close to the road so it is easily seen. GPS: 37° 36.148N, 085° 21.444W.
• 515 Nerinx Rd., Loretto - The Sisters of Loretto Motherhouse will celebrate its 200th Anniversary in 2012 and dedicating this quilt patch is the first part of the celebration. It is a log cabin pattern that honors the beginning of the Sisters of Loretto in a log cabin 200 years ago. Nancy Miles designed the patch by researching early fabric patterns. She was painting the patch when the terrible ice storm of February 2009 struck so she designed one log on the square to be fallen trees covered by snow. She painted by candlelight, just as our ancestors would have. Her family, Tina Miles Craig and Donnie Miles, helped. GPS: 37° 39.766N, 085° 23.751W.
• 6325 Loretto Rd. - Located at the home of Paul and Kaye Peterson, one of the Peterson family's heirlooms is an airplane quilt started by Mr. Peterson's great grandmother when his grandfather was serving in WW I. Mr. Peterson took a picture of one of the patches in this quilt and wanted it recreated to honor his great grandmother and grandfather and all veterans of war. GPS: 37° 36.721N, 085° 20.905W.
• 660 Hwy. 1157 - Angie Caldwell was interested in the Quilt Trail from the beginning but had a hard time finding a pattern on which her husband, Gary, and their two sons could agree. The boys didn't want anything "sissy" on their barn. She finally found a flag design that pleased all of them. The red, white and blue quilt looks great against their black barn. GPS: 37° 30.084N, 085° 14.657W.
• 2300 Mannsville Rd. - Tom and Caron Tucker ordered four patches, all of which were based on quilts that have been made by family members. The first block installed was made by Frances Tucker, Tom's mother, who is now in her nineties. GPS: 37° 28.293N, 085° 09.318W.
• 1250 Mannsville Rd. – Tom and Caron Tucker’s “Rose of Sharon” patch is taken from Caron’s favorite quilt, which is a family heirloom nearly 100 years old. GPS: 37° 28.749N, 085° 09.945W.
• 130 Kelch Ln. – Edd Benedict has a wonderful day lily farm and wanted a Day Lily patch that he designed himself. GPS: 37° 35.376N, 085° 10.283W.
• 106 Main St., Bradfordsville – The Art Center Committee wanted a patch with a black and red border and a depiction of their Center in the middle. This is located on Connie Rakes’ barn. Drive slowly to see it between the trees. GPS: 37° 29.669N, 085° 08.919W.
• 1215 Holy Cross Rd. – Betty Kelty was the Nerinx postmaster and fell in love with the patch there. She painted the “Royal Star of Kentucky” herself and picked the pattern because, when her husband died in 2000, she told her 9-year-old grandson told her that Pappaw would always be with her on a star in Kentucky. GPS: 37° 39.173N, 085° 24.031W.
• 2935 St. Francis Rd., Loretto KY 40037 – Tommy and Judy Blandford’s daughter, Jennifer Courtwright, decided that they needed a patch on their barn so she and her family picked the “Star of the Bluegrass” pattern in honor of Tommy’s mother, Frances Blandford, who was an avid quilter and who loved quilts with stars. They picked blue and gold colors so it would show up on the red barn. GPS: 37° 35.258N, 085° 26.161W.
• 2340 Horan Ln. – John and Mary Ann Vanderveer have been involved with Worldwide Marriage Encounter for more than 30 years. They designed the quilt patch using the WME logo. It consists of a heart symbolizing life, two circles representing husband and wife and a cross symbolizing the church. The patch can be seen as you travel east on Horan Lane. It is hung on an old tobacco barn next to their home. You can pull into the end of their driveway for a good view. GPS: 37° 36.820N, 085° 12.994W.
• 1420 Mannsville Rd., Bradfordsville KY 40009-8619 – This is the site of Tom and Caron Tucker’s third patch. This one is a Double Irish Chain, just like the one made by Frances Tucker in 1960. It is hung on the diagonal and shows up great from the road. GPS: 37° 28.751N, 085° 09.748W.
• 690 Hourigan Ln., Lebanon KY 40033-8689 – This patch showcases Kurt Mattingly’s art work on the barn of his father-in-law and uncle-in-law. At first, he wanted to paint a wedding ring for his mother-in-law but there were already two wedding ring patches on the Trail so he decided to paint two cows that compliment those on Steve and John Thompson’s S&J Farms. GPS: 37° 35.463N, 085° 06.929W.
• 1990 Hwy. 337, Bradfordsville KY 40009 – Ronnie and Karen Kirkland ordered and paid for a quilt patch early in the life of the Marion County Quilt Trail but were in the process of moving and didn't have the time to decide on a design. Karen's grandmother, Marion Rakes, quilted for many years and her favorite pattern was the flower garden. Karen was also an avid collector of all things John Deere, as evidenced by her kitchen and yard, so she combined the flower garden pattern with her John Deere colors and designed a beautiful pattern.
• 1510 Frogtown Rd., Lebanon KY 40033 – Linda Thompson and her mother live at this location. Linda's sister, Patricia, left the farm years ago but still feels a connection to the home place. In 2008, Patricia dealt with some medical issues and was feeling depressed until her daughter told her to stay busy. Patricia discovered the barn quilt project and studied the process of creating them. She designed several, including one for the family farm on Frogtown Road. It is a tobacco leaf symbolizing the many years tobacco was grown on the farm.
• 3075 St. Francis-Raywick Rd. – Local artist, Nancy Miles, created another work of art... for herself this time! Her husband, Donnie, put up a section of fence to hold her crazy quilt cut into four sections. These sections are patterened after the Victorian crazy quilts of the late 1800s and this is called the "Barnless Crazy Quilt." The blocks are painted irregular in design with embroidered stitches covering the seams and with different designs and emblems painted on them.  They tell a family story and some things on it are easy to guess their meanin while others are not. There is a block with 15 bisquits on it, each representing a sibling. Miles' grandmother told her mother not to worry about how to feed all her children because if God sent you a baby, he would also send you a bisquit.  Another block is the spider web. It was considered good luck to have a black spider in a web on your Victorian quilt. Another block has purple candles on it for the people who have had cancer. One is expecially for Donna Sue Groves, the lady that started the "Clothesline of Quilts" initiative. This is a one of a kind. To appreciate it, you must get out of the car and go up to it.
• KY 49 - The City of Bradfordsville wanted a quilt square to represent its old post office that was torn down years ago. This patch is located on Highway 49 on Rev. Delane Pinkston's barn a little past Pleasant Valley Road going toward Liberty on the left side of the road.
• 12155 Danville Hwy. - "Midnight Star" is located almost across from the Hart Mart in Gravel Switch on the Minor Harmon/Peggy Harmon Brown farm. The barn was constructed in 1949 and was recently updated with new siding. This patch is taken from a quilt made by Erman McClaskey for Mr. and Mrs. Minor Harmon's son, Allen M. Harmon III. The Harmon's had a horse named Midnight Star so they thought that would be an appropriate name for the black, gray and ivory star block.
•  6555 Bradfordsville Rd. - On the barn of Barbara and the late D.C. May, this is the second barn quilt for this farm because Barbara loves quilts. This quilt is called “The Tulip Wreath“ and is located on the right side of the road going toward Bradfordsville. You will have to look up to see this barn quilt as you travel since it is located on a high hill.
• 1838 Campbellsville Highway - At Darrell and Rose Shewmaker's, Rose’s daughter and sister had a barn quilt and she wanted one also but had no barn. She did, however, have her son’s body shop directly behind her house so that is where it is located. Rose picked the traditional Grandmother’s Flower Garden since her mother had made this pattern but Rose wanted the center block to have an “S” to personalize it. This was no problem until the men hanging it hung it upside down and were afraid to put the nails out of the metal building thinking they might damage it. They hoped it wouldn’t be too noticeable but of course it was. The body shop is a low building so it was possible to get a ladder and paint over the upside down “S” and repaint one the right side up!
• 1195 Highway 1157 - At the home of Miranda Robbins and her three children, who helped her pick out the “Twisting Star” and the perfect colors that make the block really stand out.  This makes the fourth quilt block within a half mile in that area of 1157.
• 1595 Mannsville Rd. - At the renovated home of Francis Tucker, mother of Tom Tucker, the “Tree of Life” quilt block was painted after a quilt handmade by Frances Tucker in 1960. It hangs on a barn constructed in 1880 that housed work horses and mules. The quilt block was finished in 2009 but wasn’t hung until the summer of 2010 because the Inter-County Energy bucket truck couldn’t get close enough to the barn to hang it  because of a creek that runs along side the barn. Finally, Leonard Potter, Tom Tucker and the Tucker’s farm manager got long ladders and manually carried the heavy boards up and nailed them to the barn. Caron Tucker has turned the old home place into a showplace that can be rented out for special events.
• 900 Holy Cross - At Patty Edelen’s farm in Loretto, this is a beautiful barn quilt given to Patty by her son for her birthday. This was not painted by the Marion County Quilt Committee but it is so eyecatching that it deserves to be on the quilt trail. This block is called “Patty’s Pleasure."
• Hwy. 412 headed toward Jessetown - On the shed of Richard Lawson, this patch was painted by Mrs. Lawson’s sister, who also painted “The Tobacco Leaf” block for her homeplace on Frogtown Road. This block is called the Double Astor.

How to get involved

   Landowners with appropriate structures - barns, sheds, silos, etc. - can participate in this initiative by providing exhibit space and materials for an 8'x8' quilt patch. As these patches spring up all over the community, they will offer a unique experience to travelers and to local people as well.

The Marion County Quilt Trail Committee must approve the materials and the patch. Participants can have input into the design or provide a family patch to be recreated and shared with all those who pass their structure.

   The structures must be highly visible. This project is meant to get people to travel through the countryside to emphasize local agricultural heritage, preserve historic agricultural structures and create a cultural arts-based tourist attraction.

   For more information, call 270.692.0021 or e-mail info@visitlebanonky.com.

Birth of the "Clothesline of Quilts" trail

   A tri-state effort among Kentucky, Ohio and Tennessee is seeking to draw tourists off the interstates and into rural areas to experience the region's unique culture.

   Called "Clothesline of Quilts," the project involves painting quilt squares and murals of rural life on barns and other structures along roadways throughout rural areas. The project began in Ohio when Ohio Arts Council member Donna Sue Groves painted a quilt square on a barn in honor of her mother, a lifelong quilter. She raised funds to paint 20 squares in Monroe County, Ohio. Kentucky and Tennessee joined the project in hopes of creating a "Clothesline of Quilts" driving trail.

DOWNLOAD THE MARION COUNTY QUILT TRAIL APPLICATION

Quilt Block Guidelines

• Each block must be 8' x 8'.
• Must be a pieced or appliqué pattern.
• Blocks must be painted on approved signboard or other similar material.
• Quilt block must be placed on a committee approved barn, building or other location.
• The quilt block must be approved by the local committee in order to maintain continuity, refrain from excess duplication and insure quality of the project.

Start your tour at the visitor center at Centre Square in historic downtown Lebanon!

Find directions to Lebanon from your town under the Directions tab!

Centre Square is the visitor center in downtown.