The Texas Quilt Museum is housed in two historic 1890s buildings, a fine showcase for both antique and contemporary quilt art. Exhibits change quarterly.
The Texas Quilt Museum is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit entity. It is housed in two historic 1890s buildings, which provide a fine showcase for both antique and contemporary quilt art with their high ceilings, brick walls, and original hardwood floors.
Home for the new museum is the picturesque Central Texas town of La Grange, located on the winding Colorado River between two major highways, making it within easy driving distance of the state’s major cities and airline hubs.
History in the Making • • •
The Texas Quilt Museum was a dream and a goal for decades. As its founders brought thousands of great quilts to International Quilt Festival in Houston each year since 1974, they realized many people were unable to see them because they were on view a relatively short time. They wanted a place where even more people could discover and appreciate quilts as art in a setting that showcased them for longer periods.
In La Grange, a small town in the rolling hills of Central Texas, they discovered a wonderful 19th century building that had lost its luster over time. Over two years, with the help of skilled artisans guided by an architect well-known for re-purposing historically significant buildings, that luster has been restored. During the process, an allied building was acquired, increasing exhibition space to more than 10,000 square feet in three galleries. The museum officially opened on November 13, 2011. Since then, it has received a Main Street award, was a finalist for the Texas Downtown Association's Presidents Award, and won the prestigious 2012 Preservation Texas award for transforming its two buildings in the city's historic district. It was also voted Best Museum in Fayette County.
In Texas: International Reach • • •
And while the Texas Quilt Museum may be located in Texas, it’s a museum that features great quilt art, both traditional and contemporary, from all over the world...for visitors from all over the world.
The Texas Quilt Museum instills an understanding of and respect for quilts as art; inspires the study of quilts as representative of women’s contributions to art, history, and culture; expands and disseminates quilt scholarship; achieves recognition as an important travel destination; and creates a new resource for regional economic development.
