National Quilt Collection

"Quilt": A cover or garment made by putting wool, cotton or other substance between two cloths and sewing them together. An American Dictionary of the English Language, by Noah Webster, LL.D., New York 1828. 

The National Quilt Collection incorporates quilts from various ethnic groups and social classes, for quilts are not the domain of a specific race or class, but can be a part of anyone’s heritage and treasured as such. Whether of rich or humble fabrics, large in size or small, expertly crafted or not, well-worn or pristine, quilts in the National Quilt Collection provide a textile narrative that contributes to America’s complex and diverse history. The variety and scope of the collection provides a rich resource for researchers, artists, quilt-makers and others. 

Part of the Division of Home and Community Life textiles collection, the National Quilt Collection had its beginnings in the 1890s. Three quilts were included in a larger collection of 18th- and 19th-century household and costume items donated by John Brenton Copp of Stonington, Connecticut. From this early beginning, the collection has grown to more than 500 quilts and quilt-related items, mainly of American origin, with examples from many states, including Alaska and Hawaii. Most of the contributions have come to the Museum as gifts, and many of those are from the quilt-makers’ families. The collection illustrates needlework techniques, materials, fabric designs and processes, styles and patterns used for quilt-making in the past 250 years. The collection also documents the work of specific quilt-makers and commemorates events in American history. 

Learn more about the quilt collection and step behind the scenes with a video tour.

Fans, butterflies, flowers, and many other motifs typical of the crazy-patch quilt era adorn this parlor throw. A wide array of fabrics available in the late 19th century for crazy-patch needlework is represented.
Description
Fans, butterflies, flowers, and many other motifs typical of the crazy-patch quilt era adorn this parlor throw. A wide array of fabrics available in the late 19th century for crazy-patch needlework is represented. Silks that are plain, printed, ribbed, pattern-woven, striped, brocaded, and plaid, as well as satins, velvet, taffeta, and ribbon are all combined to create this vivid example. Fancy stitches (herringbone, feather, detached chain, satin, French knot, stem) secure the patches. Originally an unfinished top, it was backed over a half century later with a machine-quilted gold satin, and a silk border was added to complete it.
Elizabeth Fenton was born in 1830 in Pennsylvania. She later moved to Washington D.C., and in 1851 married Benjamin Franklin Darley (1826-1884). They had four children. Elizabeth Darley died in 1890 and is buried in Congressional Cemetery, Washington D.C.
The donor of the parlor throw finished it in the 1960s as a favor to her friend, Mrs. Mae Glover of Norwalk, Conn. Mrs. Glover, born about 1890, noted that the quilt top was made by her grandmother, Mrs. Benjamin Franklin Darley, and “regretted that the quilt had never been finished.” As it remained unfinished and unused for so many years the crazy-patch fabrics are in excellent condition.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1880-1890
maker
Darley, Mrs. Benjamin Franklin
ID Number
TE.T12913
accession number
246196
catalog number
T12913
The initials “G.W.B.” decorated with devils are embroidered on this parlor throw which also has naval and patriotic motifs. It was the gift of Mrs.
Description
The initials “G.W.B.” decorated with devils are embroidered on this parlor throw which also has naval and patriotic motifs. It was the gift of Mrs. George Washington Baird to the Collection in 1926, through George Washington Baird, Rear Admiral, U.S.N., as the executor of his wife’s will.
The silk and velvet parlor throw is heavily embroidered with many painted and embroidered patches. Flowers, birds, butterflies, and fans are typical of motifs found on similar crazy-patchwork of the period. It is the choice and use of the motifs that makes each quilt unique. A printed picture of a sailor, American flags, and commemorative ribbons make this particular one special.
The silk, satin, and ribbon crazy-patchwork is framed by an 8-inch blue velvet border. Detached chain, French knot, satin, chain, buttonhole, feather, couched herringbone, stem, straight, and cross stitches embellish the parlor throw. It is lined with a maroon silk.
The ribbons incorporated into the crazy-patchwork possibly came from events that had significance for the Bairds. One silk ribbon, produced in 1876 at the time of the Philadelphia Centennial Exposition, has the image of George Washington and the inscription: “THESE UNITED COLONIES ARE AND OF RIGHT OUGHT TO BE FREE & INDEPENDENT STATES / IN COMMEMORATION of the Centennial of AMERICAN INDEPENDENCE.” These souvenir ribbons or bookmarks were produced by B. B. Tilt & Son of New Jersey, who had an exhibit of their work in the Machinery Hall at the Centennial. Benjamin B. Tilt, an English immigrant, established the Phoenix Manufacturing Company, specializing in silk products.
Another silk ribbon, “Souvenir of THE WORLD”S INDUSTRIAL AND COTTON Centennial EXPOSITION / NEW ORLEANS / 1884 1885” may have come from a visit to that event. In 1884 the World’s Fair that was held in New Orleans, Louisiana, focused on the role New Orleans played in the handling and export of cotton. The centennial marked the anniversary of the earliest known record (1784) of a shipment of cotton from Louisiana to England. The ribbon has images of a cotton plant, the American eagle, flags, and a pelican feeding her young. It was also a product of the Phoenix Manufacturing Company of Paterson, N. J.
A black silk ribbon with “U.S.S. ALBATROSS” on it may have had particular significance as George W. Baird supervised the construction of the steamship USS Albatross in the 1880s. It was commissioned in 1882. The steamship was designed for marine research and was assigned to the U.S. Fish Commission. George Baird contributed to various designs for interior appliances, ventilation, and other engineering innovations that contributed to the USS Albatross’s use as a floating scientific research station until the 1920s. A patch near the "U.S.S. ALBATROSS" ribbon is a printed-on-silk picture of a sailor climbing a mast, further honoring naval connections.
George W. Baird, according to a letter he wrote to Burke McCarty in 1921, was an acquaintance of John Wilkes Booth. His letter is cited in The Suppressed Truth about the Assassination of Abraham Lincoln. He wrote: “My acquaintance with John Wilkes Booth was not at all intimate. I met him in New Orleans in the winter of ’63 and ’64, when he was playing in the theatre there in ‘Marble Hearts” and he was splendid in his part. My acquaintance was what may be called a bar-room acquaintance. Was introduced to him by a young officer of my ship the ‘Pensacola’ . . . . Booth seemed to be a congenial fellow with a sense of humor and I thought was very temperate in his habits. . . . I admired him, his voice, power of declaiming. I took drinks with him at the Franklin House, Custom House Street, a place frequented by army and navy officers. He seemed to me to have no interest in the [Civil] war. It was hard to understand. I had not seen him but once in Washington and that about three weeks before the murder of the President.”
George goes on to write of his experiences of the night Lincoln was shot, April 14, 1865. When told of the incident while calling on a young lady he “. . . left at once; saw policeman at the corner whom I interrogated and he confirmed the story. I inquired as to the appearance of the assassin and he not only gave a description that fitted but said he resembled me, and I thought that I had better hurry to my boarding house. . . . nothing could induce me to appear on the streets again that night.” Later George’s involvement with Booth continued: “I was detailed to make a series of experiments in the Navy Yard, and after Booth’s body was brought to the Navy Yard and lay on board the ‘Montauk’ this happened. I was called on board the Montauk by Lieut. W. Crowninshield, to identify the body of John Wilkes Booth, which I did.”
Lyle J. Baird, the donor, was born in 1852 to Joseph and Martha Prather of Washington, D.C. She married George Washington Baird in 1873. On both the 1900 and 1910 censuses, they were living in Washington, D.C. No children were indicated on either census. Lyle was a member of the D.A.R. She died on Jan. 6, 1926.
George (1843-1930), who was born and educated in Washington, D.C., entered the navy in 1862 as an assistant engineer, serving in Louisiana during the Civil War. He is known both as an inventor and author of several articles related to ship design. He is also credited with supervising the installation of electric lighting in the White House in 1891. George retired in 1905 with the rank of rear admiral. Lyle died January 6, 1926, and George on October 4, 1930, in Washington, D.C. Lyle noted in her will that her parlor throw with the G.W.B. initials should go to the Museum, and George honored that request.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1885-1890
ID Number
TE.E377368
accession number
90658
catalog number
E377368
This crazy-patch piano cover or runner was constructed of two rows of 12 ½-inch blocks pieced of silks, satins, velvet, and ribbon. The patches were embellished with embroidered, painted, and beadwork motifs.
Description
This crazy-patch piano cover or runner was constructed of two rows of 12 ½-inch blocks pieced of silks, satins, velvet, and ribbon. The patches were embellished with embroidered, painted, and beadwork motifs. Among the decorations are painted flowers, a painted frog, printed and painted "Kate Greenaway" figures, and silk ribbon flowers. The blocks are constructed on muslin squares and held in place by embroidered fancy stitches. The lining is a loose-weave cotton, roller-printed with a floral and scroll design. The embroidered initials “E.S.” probably refer to Eva Gibbs Shaw, who made the piano cover.
Eva Gibbs was born in Iowa in 1859. She married William Shaw in 1885. They had two daughters and lived in Washington, D.C.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1880-1890
maker
Shaw, Eva Gibbs
ID Number
1990.0092.01
accession number
1990.0092
catalog number
1990.0092.01
Susan Adel Esputa embroidered this elegant counterpane in the style of album quilts of the period.
Description
Susan Adel Esputa embroidered this elegant counterpane in the style of album quilts of the period. She used a tambour hook--a sharp-pointed, hook-shaped needle--to create tiny chain stitches on the surface of the fabric by pulling thread through the fabric from a continuous supply below it. The fine crewel yarns used were from colorful braids widely used at the time for decorating clothing.
The overall layout is of patterned blocks with decorative sashing and borders. Susan copied the designs for the blocks from favorite illustrations, and drew her own patterns for the borders.
Susan Adel Esputa and her husband, Francis, both were born in Spain. Susan, an accomplished guitarist, and Francis, a musician, came to Washington in about 1839. Francis taught music. One of their children, John (1830-1882) performed with U.S. Navy and Marine bands and taught music. One of his students was John Phillip Sousa.
When their granddaughter, Josephine Esputa Daly, donated this bedcover in 1901, she wrote, “. . . it was worked by my grandmother, a Spanish woman. My father’s mother . . . did it more than fifty years ago. My grandmother had only one perfect hand, her left being two thumbs . . . . The quilt was my story book when we were children, my mother and father taking great pride in describing all the pictures worked on it, the flowers on the curtains of my mother’s bridal parlor shades . . . the title page of ‘Jakey Polka’ . . . the ‘Lover’s Quarrel’ and many other pictures . . . . The borders are all original designs.”
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1840-1860
maker
Esputa, Susan Adel
ID Number
TE.E209971
catalog number
E209971
accession number
37898
Forty-nine blocks make up this mid-19th-century example of an album quilt. According to the family information it was made in Washington, D.C., for Margaret Day when she moved to Baltimore, Maryland.
Description
Forty-nine blocks make up this mid-19th-century example of an album quilt. According to the family information it was made in Washington, D.C., for Margaret Day when she moved to Baltimore, Maryland. The blocks are appliquéd mainly with floral motifs, but there are also a few patriotic blocks with American flags and an eagle. Seven blocks have initials. The quilt is cotton-filled, lined, and quilted.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1850-1860
maker
unknown
ID Number
TE.T12658
accession number
237129
catalog number
T12658
An unknown maker crafted this example of contained crazy-patchwork. Twenty 12 ¼-inch blocks are elaborately embroidered and surrounded by a 2-inch black ruffled border. The center of each block has a larger design, either floral or other motif such as a fan or a horseshoe.
Description
An unknown maker crafted this example of contained crazy-patchwork. Twenty 12 ¼-inch blocks are elaborately embroidered and surrounded by a 2-inch black ruffled border. The center of each block has a larger design, either floral or other motif such as a fan or a horseshoe. Birds, ceramics, and Kate Greenaway motifs typical of the era also adorn the throw. Silk, satin, velvet, and ribbon were used for the patchwork, which was lined with black pattern-woven silk. Chenille and silk embroidery threads were used for the many fancy stitches that embellish the throw.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1880-1900
maker
unknown
ID Number
TE.T13108
accession number
250072
catalog number
T13108
Five 24-inch pieced 8-Pointed Star blocks and four Railroad Crossing blocks were constructed using 27 different printed cottons. This quilt top was made about 1879 by Betty West, who was employed by Leonides C.
Description
Five 24-inch pieced 8-Pointed Star blocks and four Railroad Crossing blocks were constructed using 27 different printed cottons. This quilt top was made about 1879 by Betty West, who was employed by Leonides C. Campbell and his wife, Mary, as a nurse for their children.
One of the children, Mary C. Watkins, wrote in 1939: “Betty West, our Negro nurse, made this quilt for my brother Kennedy and me. The many stitches made by stiff old fingers showes the real love she had for the two white children entrusted to her care. I treasured the quilt & have kept it all these years in loving memory of her.”
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1870-1880
maker
West, Betty
ID Number
TE.T17773.00A
accession number
315496
catalog number
T17773A

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