If a Geauga County barn could share stories, the Armstrong family's barn in Claridon Township would chronicle a legacy of devotion. "It's a long line…
If a Geauga County barn could share stories, the Armstrong family’s barn in Claridon Township would chronicle a legacy of devotion.
“It’s a long line of forefathers before us we need to respect and honor,” said Burton Armstrong last Friday alongside his wife, Alice, at their 97-acre farm off of Old State Road.
The Armstrongs celebrated their heritage by adding a maple leaf-inspired barn quilt to their century old barn and joining the rising Destination Geauga’s Geauga County Quilt Trail.
The goal of the trail is to promote the historic beauty and cultural significance of quilt making through the exhibition of hand-painted historically accurate quilt squares affixed to highly visible barns and buildings in the county.
Barn quilts are painted quilt squares, usually fashioned on plywood and then mounted on a barn or other building or are freestanding, showcasing community pride.
Quilt trails have sprouted up in almost all states and Canada, with more than 7,000 quilts as part of organized trails.
Geauga County has four barn quilts so far, painted by local artist Reba Dykes. At least two more applications are in the works from Geauga County Park District and Blazin Bills restaurant in Burton.
Quilts are expected to remain mounted and maintained permanently.
“It’s beautiful,” said Lynda Nemeth, executive director of Destination Geauga. She expects to put together an official barn quilt debut tour and driving brochure next year as more and more quilts are added.
“We hope it comes up fast,” Nemeth said, adding participants need to meet regulations and complete a two-part application process.
Burton’s daughter, Dawn Farrell, who lives next door, is one of the couple’s three daughters. An avid-quilter, she initiated the idea of the family’s barn quilt.
“Mike and I saw some while we were on vacation and it just seemed like it would be a great thing for Geauga County,” Farrell said. “For years, I had hoped to start the project, but when I heard Geauga tourism was starting it, I was thrilled.”
With 17 different colors, representing the four seasons, the Armstrongs’ quilt adorns their red barn, highlighting a family rich in love, fondness for maple sugaring and respect for their forefathers.
Currently the fifth generation on the farm, the Armstrongs grow wheat and soybeans, and produce award-winning maple syrup.
Burton’s brother, Larry, and his son-in-laws help out on the farm.
“Maple is my thing,” said Burton, who was inducted into the 2007 Geauga County Maple Syrup Hall of Fame.
Burton and Larry mounted the quilt block to the barn and family members signed the back of the quilt for posterity.
The first Armstrong family settled in 1833 when Hiel Armstrong, along with his siblings, Hopestill, Pelatiah and Cheney, purchased the land.
Farrell said the following ancestor, Burton D. Armstrong, served as a trustee for Claridon Township and enlisted in the Civil War.
The family farm then transferred to Burton’s son, Ashley, who is involved in cheese making. Then it passed onto George Armstrong in 1914, who was recognized as one of the leading growers of potatoes in East Claridon, selling them to Dan-Dee Potato Chip Company.
“When I was a kid, my grandparents lived upstairs and I lived downstairs,” Burton said.
Burton E. Armstrong Sr., in 1956, took over the farm and continued to grow potatoes, adding maple syrup. He was a winner at the 1966 Geauga Maple Festival with his syrup being sent to President Johnson, and was inducted into the Maple Syrup Hall of Fame in 2001.
“It’s a (continuing) of a legacy type thing,” Burton said, as he flashed a smile to his wife of 55 years in the afternoon sun.
“Mom and Dad’s relationship is something very special,” Farrell said of her parents who met in study hall at Burton High School. “To say it has been a blessing to have them for parents is an understatement.”
“He’s the greatest thing God put on this earth,” Alice added about her husband. “Everyone should be that lucky.”
Alice has no motor skills from her waist down following surgery about 7 years ago.
“I flatlined,” Alice recalled.
Her bright and lively spirit remained.
“By the grace of God I have feeling in my arms,” she added.
Conversation quickly turned to life on the Armstrong farm.
“I’ve seen eagles fly over and when I walked back into the woods last time, I saw a buck,” Burton said, stepping back to look fixedly at his quilt and then in the direction of his soybean crops, which were days from harvesting. “It’s days like these it’s great to be alive.”
Destination Geauga is taking applications for those interested in joining the Geauga County Quilt Trail online at www.destinationgeauga.com or by calling 440-632-1538.
