Heritage Quilt Show organizer Brenda Wentzel started placing ribbons on some of the 57 quilts that will be featured in the 20th Annual Heritage Quilt Show at the Blennerhassett Museum in Parkersburg. The winners will be announced during the opening of the show Saturday. (Photo by Brett Dunlap)

PARKERSBURG — The detailed work of a lot of area quilters will be on display over the next week during the 20th Annual Heritage Quilt Show at the Blennerhassett Museum in Parkersburg.

The show opens at 10 a.m. Saturday and will feature 57 quilts from many local quilters from West Virginia, Ohio and elsewhere. The show will run through Nov. 17.

“We have gotten a good response and we will be featuring numerous quilts,” said show organizer Brenda Wentzel. “The quality is really good. People have put their hearts into doing these. Many of these were made for somebody specifically, others were made because people wanted to sew.”

Categories in the show also include large quilts, small quilts, miniature quilts and antique quilts (not judged).

The main theme for this year’s show is “Patriotism” because the election was recently held and they hope people can get back to appreciating all of the freedoms this country offers.

“Beautiful Hearts” made by Pearl Mize and quilted by Beth Sellers is one of the quilts featured in the 20th Annual Heritage Quilt Show at the Blennerhassett Museum in Parkersburg. (Photo by Brett Dunlap)

“We have all of these quilts that have an Americana theme to them,” Wentzel said.

Other quilts featured in the show have other themes as well.

Prizes will be awarded for Overall Best of Show, Best of Show-Hand Quilted, Best of Show-Machine Quilted-Manual, Best of Show Machine Quilted-Computerized, People’s Choice Award, Superintendent’s Choice Award and Best of Theme Award.

Many of the quilts have intricate designs and the quilters put a lot of time into creating their works, Wentzel said.

“Fabric is not cheap any more,” she said. “The time they put into it and seeing how it all turns out makes it worthwhile.

“It’s Just Triangles” made and quilted by Jeanie Brown is one of the quilts featured in the 20th Annual Heritage Quilt Show at the Blennerhassett Museum in Parkersburg. (Photo by Brett Dunlap)

“The show highlights the talent that is in this area. It can also bring back memories of quilts their grandmother made for them years ago, knowing the warmth and love going into each quilt being made.”

Awards to the winning quilts will be made during the opening of the show Saturday.

Also on display is a “wooden quilt” carved and assembled by members of the local Geppetto Woodcarvers Club. This particular framed “quilt” is made up of a number of 3-4-inch square blocks members carved various designs for. Members of the club will be at the museum Saturday doing a wood carving demonstration, starting around 11 a.m.

On Saturday, Nov. 16, at 1 p.m. there will be a program featuring a Quilts of Valor presentation.

The museum is located at 137 Juliana St., Parkersburg.

“Small Town USA” made by Beverly Neff and quilted by Mike Powell is one of the quilts featured in the 20th Annual Heritage Quilt Show at the Blennerhassett Museum in Parkersburg. (Photo by Brett Dunlap)

The hours for the show are 11 a.m.-5 p.m. each day. Admission to the museum is $4 for adults and $2 for children ages 4-12. With the admission, visitors can enjoy the historical artifacts in the museum as well as all the beautiful quilts on display.

Brett Dunlap can be reached at bdunlap@newsandsentinel.com

“We The People” made and quilted by Roger Wyke is one of the quilts featured in the 20th Annual Heritage Quilt Show at the Blennerhassett Museum in Parkersburg. The theme for this year’s show is “Patriotism.” (Photo by Brett Dunlap)

“Dear Jane 1863-2023” made and quilted by Pearl Mize is one of the quilts featured in the 20th Annual Heritage Quilt Show at the Blennerhassett Museum in Parkersburg. (Photo by Brett Dunlap)