Islanders unravel the mystery behind the P.E.I. quilt in England

The story behind a P.E.I. quilt that wound up in Englandroughly 50 years ago just got a bit more interesting.

The quilt is currently owned by a Reading, U.K. family who purchased it at a second-hand shop in the 1960s.

After CBC News published the story about theIsland-madesignature quilt, readers came out in drovesto help unravel the mystery behind how the quilt which bears the names of hundreds of people from P.E.I. ever got there.

• Decades-old P.E.I. quilt ends up in Reading, U.K.

Many Islanders, hailing mostly from West Prince, spotted the names of family members on the quilt and shared the story on social media.

And they had to get to the bottom of it.

Oh for crying out loud, we'd wondered if there'd be a connection like that. Jock Rix

"I think everybody's quite surprised and the chatter is all on Facebook trying to figure out how this quilt got to where it is," said Lori Gallant.

Gallant and many of her family members speculated how it got there and spent hours theorizinghow it may have ended up in Reading.

It was ofparticular interest to them because many names from their family were on the quilt. Itwas a delight to see some of thenamesstitched into its surface, Gallant said.

"To see my grandmother's writing last night just touched my heart," she said "I just think this is so neat."

'My mother won the quilt'

Jock Rixresides in Miminegash, P.E.I., and afterreading the story hespotted his own name onthe quilt's fabric.

"When I started to pull the picture up closer on my computer, I started to read on the foot of the bed and lo and behold my own name was there," he said.

"It was very surprising to me, in fact a little chill went up and down my back," he laughed.

Edward Rix, an ex-pat Islander who reached out to the CBC from Philadelphia had a similar reaction after seeing his family members' names on the quilt.

"Wait a second, I know all the people in these photographs,"he recalled thinking when he first read the story.

"So I reposted it to Facebook immediately everyone started talking last night, bandying names around."

Summerside's Alan Murray helped pinpoint the family behind the traveling quilt, signaling that it was sent to England courtesy of the family of Christine MacEachern from St. Lawrence, P.E.I.

Now living in Coleman, P.E.I., she's thedaughter ofwar bride Elizabeth (Betty) Smith.MacEachernsaid her family emigrated to Canada from England in the early1950s, settlingin St. Lawrence.

Hermotherhad a passion for sewing and "loved going with the ladies," she said, which led Smith totake part in thelocal women's institute's signature quilt creation.

The quilt was signed with names of people across P.E.I. and the world, and was raffled off as a fundraiser.

"My mother won the quilt so she sent it to my cousin, Susan Cannings, of Reading, England," MacEachernsaid.

'Isn't itwonderful that it's been cared for?'

Cannings'name, as well as MacEachern and her father Alfred'snames, are embroidered into the fabric of the quilt. MacEachernhasa photo of Canningswith the quilt, shortly after it arrived from Canada.

"I would never have dreamed this would come up, I wondered sometimes where the quilt went after Sue passed awaybut I didn't have a clue," MacEachern said.

CBCbroke the news to the Rixfamily.

"Oh for crying out loud, we'd wondered if there'd be a connection like that," Jock Rix said.

"Chrissy is older than I am so she could very well remember the ins and outs of it," he said. "For heaven's sakes, that is very nice."

Edward Rix said even getting a glimpse at at the quilt through the photos online brought a smile to his face.

"Isn't it wonderful that it's been cared for?" he asked.

"People in westernPrince Edward Island, their names, preserved in this lovingly constructed textile is still warming people as a quilt is meant to do."

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