Interesting Insides

The other day I decided to snip apart that little quilt that I bought in the Missouri antique shop. In no time I had all those little purple ribbons snipped off . The flannel backing was brought around to the top for binding, and the stitches that held it in place came out easily, too. It didn't take me long to find out why this little quilt (34" x 42") was SO thick! MANY layers!
First of all, one half of the quilt had a double layer of flannel backing. I certainly can't figure out why. That area of the backing has a seam across it, so maybe whoever made it decided to add a second layer in case the seam came apart??? It is stitched with tiny machine stitches, though, so I don't think it ever would!
Then there's the filler. The batting appears to be cotton (and giving it the flame test, it burns like cotton). It is creamy in color and very smooth, not at all lumpy. I do not see any seeds in it. It reminds me of batting they used in the seats of early cars. It is between a layer of muslin on one side and flannel on the other, tacked in place with neat tacking stitches (short on one side and long on the other).
I have never seen batting like this in a quilt. I might have to ask one of the "experts" about it. It's little surprises like this that remind me how clever and resourceful quilters can be! :)

P.S. The quilt top is definitely feed sacks and the blocks are machine pieced. I plan to soak it in mild soap to see if it will come clean.