the Civil War. face each other against a
background of dark corduroy Ken¬
tucky hills in the lower left block. SVil-
dernes
л
Road, a Civil War musical
drama, was first produced in Berea.
Kentucky, in 1955.
Centered on the bottom row is
silhouetted a banjo picker, logo of The
Stephen hosier Story, performed in
Bardstown. Kentucky, since 1959.
The square is exquisitely executed on
black and white, applique and em¬
broidery.
Bottom right is the musical drama.
Texas. Inexpert machine applique, the
play's narrator is pictured against a
background of the Palo Hum Canyon,
where he has been narrating the story
on summer evenings since 1966.
Planning for the quilt began in
January. 1979. when Mrs. Wynn asked
persons connected with each of the
dramas to design and execute a block
to represent that drama. Miraculously,
by mid-February all blocks had been
completed and sent to Mrs. Wynn —
each one as different as the persons
involved and the plays represented.
The nine blocks were converted into
a quilt top. joined together and bor¬
dered by strips of bright green which
was declared to be "Paul" green.
(What other color could be considered
for a man named Green who was born
on St. Patrick's Day?» The quill top
was basted to batting and backing,
edges turned under to simulate a quilt
so it would be ready to be presented to
Mr. Green for his birthday.
In the summer of 1979. with the help
of quilting friends. I undertook the
quilting. Each block was quilted to en¬
hance its own design, and borders
were quilted with straight lines inter¬
rupted by five-pointed stars. Stars for
the Stars and Stripes; stars for the stars
overhead when these dramas are per¬
formed: stars for the stars who act in
the dramas.
In addition to Mrs. Wynn and me.
other persons participated in this final
phase of the quilt. Jeanne Dunphey.
Mary Scroggs. and Nancy Garcia
Peres are responsible for the design
and embroidery of the date of the first
performance on each block. Durham
quilters Kathy Kunst and Kuth Rober¬
son. Chapel Mill quilters. Marion
Woods. Jane Joyner, and Janie Joyner
helped design and execute the border
quilling. Each of us fell well rewarded
when we received hand written notes
from Mr. Green. "I take my hat off to
у
mi and would do so in the fiercest
Siberian winter for the work you have
done i*n that lovely quilt! It is truly a
work of art!", he wrote to me. "Oh.
26
you ladies, you ladies! What wonders
you arc! Sometimes I think perhaps the
most wonderful part of your wonder-
fulness is that you find us men neces¬
sary. I kiss your clever hand!"
Although Mrs. Wynn had no thought
It doesn’t matter if gasoline prices
hit fivcdoP irs a gallon, there is one bit
of Americana from a half century ago
that will not reappear. I'm talking
about the unique vehicle that bore the
name of "Hoover Cart." which
showed up in fairly large numbers
during the early 1930’ s in North Caro¬
lina and most other parts of the nation.
The Hoover cart was unique both
from its appearance and from its an¬
cestry. Horses and mules were plenti¬
ful during those years, but the standard
wagon had a wooden box body and
four sturdy wheels, each with wooden
spokes and an iron rim which was a
masterpiece of the blacksmith’s art.
The Hoover cart had only two
w heels, not four. But it had a curiously
"modern" appearance because the
w heels w ere generally made of iron or
steel, and a heavy-duty metal axle
housing stretched between them. They
even had inflated rubber tires. This
told a sad story. The standard model
Hoover cart was made from the rear
wheels of a defunct automobile.
Since times were haid. lots of fann¬
ers and other folks could not afford to
repair their motorcars once they fell on
evil days. So when the old Ford or
Chevrolet conked out. the owner had
to give up automobiling and go back to
the horse or mule that was still on the
place.
Some sort of cargo bed. usually
smaller than a standard wagon, would
be superimposed on the remnants of
the auto's running gear. Next came the
tackle to hitch up a horse or mule.
(Usually only one would be used.» The
standard bit and bridle would complete
the hitch-up. and in those days of light
traffic you had a means to drive to
town, however slowly, and carry a fair
load.
At five miles an hour, even old tires
with a fair amount of remaining rubber
would give a good many miles of wear
beyond its use as a put-on-the-bed- and
sleep-under quilt, it has developed into
a quilted wall hanging. It now hangs in
Mr. Green’s home library, and eventu¬
ally may be hung with some collection
of Paul Green's memorabilia.
— and when they finally blew out.
you’d substitute the other tires from
what had been the family flivver.
The Hoover cart, of course, was
named for President Herbert Hoover,
who was in office during the slock
market crash of 1929 and the "plain
hard times" (as someone put it) that
followed during the 1930’s.
This was a time when brand-new
cars could be purchased for $600 or so.
and some folks bought used cars in
good working order for less than a
hundred. If you had a dollar to spare,
you could gel five gallons of gasoline.
(If you were hard up. and could only
afford two or three gallons, you had to
pay 21 or 22 cents a gallon.)
So when you say that somebody had
to dismantle his car because he
couldn't afford to repair it. you are
making a comment on hard times.
The Hoover cart was not the only
two-wheeled vehicle around, of
course. For years the racetracks where
the trotters performed had used racing
sulkys with two spidery wheels that
resembled oversized bicycles. And of
course some city youngsters had
brightly painted goal carts — actually
pulled by a big goat - which also had
two.
But the Hoover carl W as unmistaka¬
ble. It was the only vehicle with iron
underpinnings that still had a bulge for
the differential gear.
Such wagons will not return. Traffic
is too fast and furious, and where
would you get a horse or mule — and
w here would you keep the beast if you
had one?
So we may long for some means of
transportation that could use your
front lawn as part of its "fuel" and
keep the grass out at the same time.
But we won’t see them again. Since I
was around for the first time. I'm just
as glad. — Frank Jeter. Jr.
Hoover Carts
Won't Be Back
«I/
IKWk JFTFIt. jk.
THE STATE. April 1980
