Barn quilt display gives visitors a Wadesboro welcome

WADESBORO — The most recent effort to add art to Wadesboro and attract tourism is in the form of a barn quilt.

The Wadesboro Barn Quilt Mural Project started in late 2018, and the creation was put up on Sept. 11, 2021. The barn quilt features a variety of quilt blocks representing Wadesboro and Anson County. In includes references to everything from the 1985 film “The Color Purple” (which was filmed in Anson) to Peaches n’ Cream’s famous peach ice cream down the road. The massive quilt’s focus is at the center which reads “Wadesboro NC Welcomes You.” The barn quilt took over 150 volunteers, 640 square feet of quilt, 12 workshops, 20 sheets of plywood, 45 2×4’s, around a 1,000 screws, more than 15 gallons of paint, more than 100 rolls of tape, and many hours of dedication and effort.

“Each board on the barn quilt mural was sponsored and painted by a person,” explained Coordinator Elizabeth Oliver. “So there’s a story behind each board, and they ranged from people’s battles with cancer, the loss of a young child, or a cousin that was deployed to Afghanistan, people that have lived here all their lives, people that just moved here. So every single board has a different story behind it, but the common thread is the people of Anson County, and they wanted to be a part of the project because they’re proud to be here.”

“It’s about looking towards the future of how we’re making the town better,” Oliver continued.

The barn quilt can be found at the old TV Tech building on 105 W. Main Street, visible from Highway 74 Eastbound.