Ranching & Quilting, A passion for the two combined

Story and Photos by Michael Pearce

Kay Caudill loves two of Texas’ most endearing traditions, and she knows them both well.

​One of those traditions is ranching. She’s married to Norman Caudill, a member of one of the most storied ranching families in the Possum Kingdom region, and her son, Clint Brown, is a longtime cowboy and horse breeder who has worked on some of the best ranches in the Lone Star State.

​The second tradition is quilting, a type of sewing in which Caudill displays her expertise. Quilting’s roots in Texas extend possibly as far back as raising cattle, and the practice largely began as a way to piece together scraps of material, including feed sacks, to keep Texans warm.

​Quilting eventually evolved into an art form, with fancy designs, and homemade quilts are treasured because of the handiwork they represent. They’re frequently passed down through generations as valued heirlooms.

​Caudill brought her two passions together by making a quilt that showcases 55 ranch brands. Many of them are from generations of Norman Caudill’s family or the places he worked cattle as a younger man. On the quilt are some of the ranches where Brown has worked as a cowboy, too. It includes nearly all of the ranches in north Texas.

​“We were just sitting down one night, and we wrote our (brand) and just started naming and doing others,†Caudill said. “We just kept on going and going, so I thought it would make a nice quilt.â€

Cattle brands are an important part of Texas’ ranching history. They began as a way to mark cattle so ownership could be determined on open range. It’s a fast way to determine who the cattle belong to should they escape from a modern pasture or get stolen.

​A brand represents much of a ranch’s identity, and ranches were far better known by their brand than the names of their owners.

​Caudill, who said she finds the brands fascinating, found that quilting came to her easily. As a teen, she worked with her mother, who was a talented seamstress in her own right who made western shirts and jackets that were in high demand.

​“She taught my sister and me to sew,†Caudill said. “She sat at her machine, and one of us would sit at the other. She’d do something like hand us a pocket to sew on a shirt. After we were done, she’d look at it and so many times say, ‘It’s not perfect. Take it off and do it again.’ I really appreciate, now, that she was like that.â€

​Caudill decided to focus her seamstress skills on making quilts about 20 years ago.

​“You can do so many different things with a quilt, really,†she said. “They’re a lot of fun. You just sit down and get started, and keep putting things together as you go.â€

​Caudill said she has no idea how many hours it took for her to make the quilt with the brands. She said that sometimes she’d sit down for just an hour after completing her work shift as a rural mail carrier. A few other times, Caudill was able to dedicate most of a day to quilting once ranch chores were done.

​Most of the work was done with a sewing machine, she said, but she added that she’s done many baby quilts by hand. All her children and grandchildren have her quilts, Caudill said, and she’s made several more for her friends.

​One of the squares isn’t actually a brand, though. The “101†stands for the “101 Ranch Wild West Show,†which Caudill’s mother ran away to join as a trick rider when she was 16. An aging Buffalo Bill Cody and several early Hollywood cowboys, such as Tom Mix, also spent time with the show through its years of existence, which spanned from 1905 to 1939.

The quilt’s background is the color of tanned cowhide, and the symbols are the color that’s left by a real branding iron.

​Historically, sewing was a craft that all moms taught their daughters, and Caudill lamented that she doesn’t hear of many new quilters anymore.

​Supplies are also hard to find, too, she said.

​“It used to be it seemed like every town had a (fabric shop),†Caudill said. “There were even some that were just western fabric stores. You don’t see those these days.â€

​Caudill said someday that the brand quilt will go to her son, the cowboy. She said it will have special meaning because it was made by his mother, but also because it represents some important parts of North Texas history.

​Brands come and go, and ranches change owners, which often brings a new brand – or no brand at all. In Palo Pinto County, dozens of houses are popping up where cattle once grazed on bygone ranches, but Caudill likes that her son can refer to the quilt to look back at history.

​“He’ll be able to look at all of those brands for years and know what they mean,†she said. “It’ll mean a lot more to him, as a cowboy, than about anybody else. He’s got kids and grandkids. He’ll pass it to someone who’ll also appreciate it.â€