Pioneer Homestead 2

Isabell Krouse Sherfey, grandmother of the current owner, made the all-cotton quilt from which this unknown pattern is copied. Isabell made the quilt at her homeplace, probably with the help of her three sisters, all of whom were trained by their mother, Susanna Wine Krouse, in the art of spinning, weaving, knitting and crocheting. The Krouses grew flax and cotton to use in their spinning and raised sheep for the wool to card and spin. Isabell brought the quilt to begin housekeeping when she married widower, David Preston Sherfey, in 1889. He had served with the Union Army in the Civil War and had sold his 1861 Colt revolver to purchase a wagon, mowing machine, hay rake, and a team of mules for farming 17 ½ acres and log cabin he had bought in 1886. This land was part of the original 400+ acres granted to Charles Duncan in 1777 in what was then the state of North Carolina. David Sherfey was a nurseryman, growing fruit trees for sale and farming. He and Isabell had one son, John A. Sherfey, who gave Pioneer Homestead its name in recognition of its land grant origin. The Charles Duncan log cabin, built before 1777, still stands today and was completely restored in 1995. Nearby, privately owned Knob Creek Museum houses many artifacts of the Sherfey and Krouse families, as well as those of community contributors.