From March to October 2003, the Jackson House featured a special exhibit of four Jackson family quilts in the Heffelfinger Changing Exhibit room. The quilts represent different quilting styles including appliqué, trapunto, piecing, and a crazy quilt.

The first quilt is a hand-sewn cotton quilt made of joined squares of appliqué and trapunto. It is decorated with a flower pattern called “The Rose of Sharon.” The quilt is said to have been made by Erixene Morrison Alexander. She was the aunt of Mary Anna Morrison Jackson who was the wife of Thomas Jonathan “Stonewall” Jackson.

The second quilt is a patchwork crazy quilt, which means it lacks an overall pieced pattern. Jackson’s daughter, Julia, married William Edmund Christian in 1885. According to family tradition, the crazy quilt was made by William’s stepmother out of scraps from Julia’s trousseau.

The third piece is a friendship quilt, also known as a signature quilt. This quilt is said to have been a wedding present for Laura Jackson Arnold, Jackson’s sister.

The fourth item is a quilt hand-sewn in cotton. The donor identified the pattern as “Confederate Star,” but it is more commonly known as “Ohio Star” or Bethlehem Star.” The donor of this quilt, Isabel Arnold, was Jackson’s great-niece.