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.

Topic: Quilts

1900 - 1915 Amish "Garden of Eden" Quilt

Quilted in Mifflin County, Pennsylvania in the early twentieth century, this is an example of the “Garden of Eden” or “Economy Block” quilt pattern. A center of twenty pieced and plain 20-inch square blocks is framed by a “Chain Square” and two plain borders.
Description
Quilted in Mifflin County, Pennsylvania in the early twentieth century, this is an example of the “Garden of Eden” or “Economy Block” quilt pattern. A center of twenty pieced and plain 20-inch square blocks is framed by a “Chain Square” and two plain borders. Plain-colored cotton and wool fabrics and black quilting thread contribute to its quiet elegance.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1900-1915
quilter
unknown
ID Number
1985.0029.01
catalog number
1985.0029.01
accession number
1985.0029

1900 - 1925 Amish "Crazy-patch Block" Quilt

The maker of this Amish quilt, probably from Pennsylvania, effectively utilizes sixteen 8½-inch crazy-patched and embroidered blocks set diagonally to create this dramatic example.
Description
The maker of this Amish quilt, probably from Pennsylvania, effectively utilizes sixteen 8½-inch crazy-patched and embroidered blocks set diagonally to create this dramatic example. The crazy-patched blocks are contrasted with blue and framed within a 4½-inch light rose border with lavender corner squares and a 10-inch darker rose border. Pieces in the crazy-patch blocks are outlined with polychrome silk embroidery in herringbone, feather, buttonhole, thorn, cross, and double-cross stitches. The fabrics are wool and wool-and-cotton. The initials “AK” are embroidered on a corner of the lining. The controlled use of the crazy-patch aesthetic in this quilt gives it an ordered, focused appearance.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
First quarter 20th century
date made
1900-1925
quilter
unknown
ID Number
1985.0029.06
catalog number
1985.0029.06
accession number
1985.0029

1900 - 1925 Amish "Bars" Quilt

Quilted in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, in the early part of the twentieth century, this seemingly simple pattern of bars set in a contrasting color typifies Amish quilting.
Description
Quilted in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, in the early part of the twentieth century, this seemingly simple pattern of bars set in a contrasting color typifies Amish quilting. The center is composed of eleven burgundy and blue strips of wool-and-cotton fabric, which vary in width from 6 inches to 7-inches, set in a frame of blue. The corners of the border are mitered. The blue bars and borders are quilted in a cable pattern, and the burgundy bars in a chevron pattern. The skillful quilting is done with rose and blue cotton thread. It is a classic rendering of a traditional Amish pattern.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1900-1925
quilter
unknown
ID Number
1985.0029.04
catalog number
1985.0029.04
accession number
1985.0029

1900 - 1925 Amish "Hanging Diamond" Quilt

Quilted in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, in the early twentieth century, this is a beautiful example of Amish quilting utilizing a traditional pattern.
Description
Quilted in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, in the early twentieth century, this is a beautiful example of Amish quilting utilizing a traditional pattern. The dark red 25½-inch center diamond with a 3¾-inch purple border is set diagonally into a 46¼-inch square also with a 3¾-inch border. Framed by an outer 11¾-inch border, the quilt is finished with a wide contrasting binding of dark blue. The fabrics are mainly wool, wool-and-cotton, and some rayon. An 8-pointed star, feathered circles, vines, and scallops are motifs quilted with black cotton to complete this quilt.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1900-1925
quilter
unknown
ID Number
1985.0029.05
catalog number
1985.0029.05
accession number
1985.0029

1900 - 1950 Mennonite "Sawtoothed Bars" Quilt

Quilted in Ohio in the first half of the twentieth century, this is a Mennonite or possibly Amish version of the “Sawtoothed Bars” pattern. It is two-toned, made of plain-woven red and green cottons.
Description
Quilted in Ohio in the first half of the twentieth century, this is a Mennonite or possibly Amish version of the “Sawtoothed Bars” pattern. It is two-toned, made of plain-woven red and green cottons. Outline quilting was done on the sawtooth triangles, and all other areas were quilted in a diagonal grid with grey-green cotton thread.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1900-1950
quilter
unknown
ID Number
1985.0029.02
catalog number
1985.0029.02
accession number
1985.0029

1900 - 1950 Amish "Path Through the Woods" Quilt

Quilted in Topeka, Indiana, in the first half of the twentieth century, this is an example of the pattern referred to as “Path through the Woods.” Made of cottons, mainly solid colored tan and red, the blocks are framed by a 2¼-inch red inner border and a 6½-inch tan outer border
Description
Quilted in Topeka, Indiana, in the first half of the twentieth century, this is an example of the pattern referred to as “Path through the Woods.” Made of cottons, mainly solid colored tan and red, the blocks are framed by a 2¼-inch red inner border and a 6½-inch tan outer border. The quilt has a blue binding. It is both hand- and machine-pieced; the blocks are joined with machine stitching. An 8-pointed star is quilted in the center of each block. This is an instance of Amish quilting done outside of traditional Pennsylvania areas.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1900-1950
quilter
unknown
ID Number
1985.0029.03
catalog number
1985.0029.03
accession number
1985.0029

1905 Hulda and Ellen Larson's Pan-American Exposition Quilt

Hulda Larson and her daughter Ellen made this quilt to commemorate the 1901 Pan-American Exposition held in Buffalo, N. Y. Souvenir stamped muslin squares were sold at the Exposition and later in stores to be embroidered and assembled for a quilt.
Description
Hulda Larson and her daughter Ellen made this quilt to commemorate the 1901 Pan-American Exposition held in Buffalo, N. Y. Souvenir stamped muslin squares were sold at the Exposition and later in stores to be embroidered and assembled for a quilt. Referred to as “penny squares” because they were often sold in packets of 50 for 50 cents, they became popular reminders of events and sights at the Exposition. Dated “May 1, 1905” this quilt incorporates many of those souvenir blocks.
Fifty-six 7 ½-inch white blocks were outline-embroidered in red, many depicting buildings of the 1901 Pan-American Exposition. Hulda and Ellen used over 30 of these motifs for their quilt. A block labeled, “Wm McKinley Our Martyred President,” was added to the original design after his assassination at the Exposition on September 6, 1901.
The blocks also included embroidered portraits of Mrs. McKinley, , President Theodore Roosevelt, his daughter, Alice, and Mrs. Roosevelt, Edith Caro, who married the widowed president in 1886.
In the center is the official logo of the Exposition. Blocks with an American eagle, flag, and shield add a patriotic element. Two blocks with buffalo motifs, “Put Me Off at Buffalo” and “I Am A,” and other animal and floral motif blocks were used to complete the quilt. When the fair ended its buildings were demolished, except for the New York State building that later became the Buffalo and Erie Canal Historical Society.
Using a grid system of the numbers 1 to 7 across the top and A thru G along the left side the following blocks were connected to the Pan-American Exposition. The inscriptions on each block are embroidered in red.
A2 – “Indian Congress and Village”; A5 – “Stadium”; A6 – “Ohio Building”
B1 – “Trained Wild Animals”; B2 – “Ethnology Building”; B6 – “Service Building”; B7 – “Infant Incubator”
C1 – “Fair Japan”; C3 – “Johnstown Flood”; C5 – “Darkness & Dawn - Fall of Babylon”; C7 – “Government Building”
D1 – “Agriculture Building”; D2 – “Mrs. McKinley”; D3 – “President Roosevelt”; D4 (seal) “Pan-American Exposition. 1901. Buffalo. N.Y. U.S.A.” D5 – “Mrs. Roosevelt”; D6 – “Wm. McKinley-Our Martyred President” D7 – “Alaskan Building”
E2 – “Electric Tower”; E3 – “New England Building”; E5 – “Old Plantation”; E6 – “Temple of Music Where President McKinley was shot”; E7 – “Cleopatra's Temple”
F1 – “Horticulture Building”; F2 – “Aerio Cycle”; F3 – “Machinery and Transportation Building”; F4 – “Panopticon”; F5 - “Phillipine Village”; F6 – “Triumphal Bridge”; F7 – “Beautiful Orient”
G2 – “Louisiana Purchase Building”; G3 – “House Upside Down”; G4 – “Hawaiian Village & Kileaua Volcano”; G5 – “A Trip to the Moon”; G6 – “Wisconsin Building”; G7 – “Darkest Africa”
This machine-quilted example of redwork has a 3-inch white ruffle, edged with red embroidery. It has a white cotton lining and cotton filling. The blocks are machine-joined, and the lining is machine-stitched. Stem and feather stitches were used for the embroidery.
Hulda Fredricka ParsDotter was born April 21, 1858, in Vimmerby, Sweden, and married Anders James Larson on June 23, 1877. In 1882 they came to Jamestown, N. Y. Their daughter Ellen Sophia Cecilia was born in Vimmerby, Sweden, on August 11, 1879. Other daughters born in the United States were Dora (about 1889), Della (about 1891) and Arlene (about 1896). Ellen married C. Emil Swanson in 1903 in Jamestown. Ellen died on January 1, 1925. Hulda died October 4, 1949, at the age of 91. Daughter Dora married Arthur Anderson and their daughter, Alberta,married Russell Weise. It was their daughter, Judith Anderson Weise, who donated her great-grandmother and great-aunt’s Pan-American Exposition Commemorative quilt to the Museum in 1985.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1905
maker
Larson, Hulda Fredricka
Larson, Ellen Sophia Cecilia
ID Number
1986.0032.01
catalog number
1986.0032.01
accession number
1986.0032

1905 Bonnie Blevins's Crazy-patch Parlor Throw

A town, “Bristol, Tennessee,” and a date, “Jan. 4, 1905,” were prominently embroidered on the parlor throw that Bonnie Blevins made for her family.
Description
A town, “Bristol, Tennessee,” and a date, “Jan. 4, 1905,” were prominently embroidered on the parlor throw that Bonnie Blevins made for her family. Donated by her daughter, Blanche Blevins, in 1956, it is an example of the fancy needlework popular in the late 19th century.
Twelve 19-inch crazy-patch and embroidered blocks were assembled for this parlor throw. It has no lining, just a rayon seam binding added at a later date, basted to the front edges. The embroidery motifs (butterflies, birds, animals, etc.) are typical of crazy patchwork, but would appear to be freely drawn rather than from a pattern. The embellishments were done with silk thread utilizing feather, stem, detached chain, French knot, coral knot, satin and buttonhole stitches. Several embroidered inscriptions are present: “I slept and dreamed / that life was beauty / I awoke and found / that life was duty.” It is from a poem by Ellen Sturgis Hooper (1812-1848), a transcendentalist poet who published in The Dial and whose poems appeared in anthologies. Lines from poetry, probably of special personal significance, were frequently added to needlework.
Four blocks of this parlor throw may have been specifically designed by Bonnie to acknowledge her family. The block containing the date and place also contained an embroidered name “Robt.” and the inscription “Think of me.” Robert was Bonnie’s husband, whom she married in 1892. A second block has the name “Fred” and “In God we trust” embroidered on the crazy-patches. Fred Foster was Bonnie’s eldest son, born in 1892. A third block has the embroidered inscription, “God bless our home,” and the name “Worth.” Omar Worth was Bonnie’s second son born in 1896. The fourth block contains an owl with the inscription “Whoo whoo.” It also has a small embroidered name, “Bonnie.” Another patch in the same block has a swan, a child’s head, heart, and the name “Blanche” embroidered on it. Blanche was Bonnie’s third child, born in 1898. The motifs that were used on each of the blocks may have held meaning for that person. Bonnie’s parlor throw was a personal record of her family.
Geneva Bonville Foster was born June 21, 1865, in North Carolina. Known as Bonnie, she married Robert Houston Blevins June 10, 1892. They had three children as noted above, and for a time lived in Tazewell County, Va., as well as Bristol, Tenn. It was in Bristol, Virginia, (Bristol lies on the border of Tennessee and Virginia) that Bonnie died at age 43 February, 17 1909. She and her family are memorialized on the parlor throw that is now part of the Collection as an example of crazy-patchwork.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1905
maker
Blevins, Geneva Bonville Foster
ID Number
TE.T11456
accession number
211582
catalog number
T11456

1905 - 1910 Presbyterian Ladies Society Patriotic Banner

This is one of two banners or wall hangings made in the late 19th-early-20th century by the Ladies Society of the First Presbyterian Church, New York City, as a fundraising project.
Description
This is one of two banners or wall hangings made in the late 19th-early-20th century by the Ladies Society of the First Presbyterian Church, New York City, as a fundraising project. The donor referred to them as “Autograph Quilts” as they contain many signatures of prominent political personages of the period. The banners belonged to her husband’s grandmother, Margaret Clarke Goodall Bradley, and were donated in her memory. This banner, made about 10 years after a similarly designed banner, was also raffled as a fundraiser, possibly for a 1919 addition of a chancel to the church. Although she did not win the raffle, it was presented to Margaret Bradley because of “her efforts for the projects.”
Similar in design to an earlier (about 1890) banner made by the same group, it has a black satin ground with an appliquéd American flag made of red silk and white satin ribbon and a printed 46-star flag. Inked signatures of Theodore Roosevelt (president 1901-1909) and his cabinet members are on the flag. The center 6 ¾-inch blue silk circle is embroidered "E PLURIBUS UNUM.” It is surrounded by 47 rays representing 46 states (one ray is empty). Utah and New Mexico had joined the Union since the earlier banner had been made. Made of red and white silks, each ray has the name of a state and inked signature of the governor at that time.
The patriotic center is enhanced with appliquéd and embroidered flags of many nations. Some of these have pencil or ink signatures, over 300 in total. Seven metal rings are sewn to the banner's top edge, an indication that it was meant to be hung. It does not have a lining.
The donor recalled in a letter that she remembered hearing that the quilts and banners were “a money-making project, and all the ladies of the church participated in the assembling of the ‘Autograph-Swatches’ and the stitching and embroidery. The signatures on the flags were probably by members and friends of the congregation, (and possibly charged a small fee for the privilege) and when the quilts were completed they were raffled off.”
Margaret J. Clarke was born December 1858 to John and Matilda McKinney Clarke in New York City. Her parents were born in Ireland. She married Edward F. Goodall on September 18, 1877. He was killed by a train in 1880 and she married Samuel Bradley on February 25, 1885. She died November 21, 1929, in New York.
Margaret's daughter Louise, from her first marriage, married John Gordon Noakes. Their son, Donald Gordon Noakes, married Emilie, the donor. He died in 1948 and Emilie later married John Manley. In 1979 Emilie Noakes Manley gave the quilts to the Museum in honor of the family and Margaret Clarke Goodall Bradley. Another granddaughter, Marjorie Blampied, wrote that the quilts “. . . most certainly are where they belong . . . where they will be treasured and appreciated.”
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1905-1910
maker
unknown
ID Number
1979.1019.02
catalog number
1979.1019.02
accession number
1979.1019

1906 Sarah Butler's "Log Cabin" Pieced Quilt

The central inscription on this variaton of a “Log Cabin”quilt states that it was “Presented by Mrs. Sarah Butler, February the fourteenth One Thousand nine hundred and six,” followed by the names of four ministers.
Description
The central inscription on this variaton of a “Log Cabin”quilt states that it was “Presented by Mrs. Sarah Butler, February the fourteenth One Thousand nine hundred and six,” followed by the names of four ministers. No occasion, church, or place was indicated in the inscription, but the “Log Cabin” quilt included nearly 400 names written on the “logs”.
Research indicates that three of the ministers, Rev. L.D. Bragg, Rev. F.D. Tyler, and Rev. R. J. Honeywell were at various times pastors of the Methodist Episcopal Church in Hudson, N. H. The fourth, Rev. Van Buskirk, was the pastor of a nearby Methodist church in Antrim, N. H. In 1931 the Methodist Episcopal Church (Hudson) merged with the Congregational Church and is now called the Hudson Community Church.
The Methodist Episcopal Church in Hudson organized in 1840. On August 3, 1879, a fire destroyed the church, parsonage, and a connecting stable. A new meeting house was built in 1880. In December 1905 ceremonies were held to commemorate the 25th anniversary of this church building. In January 1906, the auditorium and vestry were furnished with electric lights. It is assumed that the quilt was a fund raiser and the names on the quilt were donors. The February 1906 date might indicate either the beginning or ending of the fund raising effort, as some of the signatures are names of individuals born after 1906. One of the pastors, Rev. Roy John Honeywell, did not come to the church until 1916; although he did not marry until 1922, his wife’s name is on the quilt. The majority of the names are of people who resided in either Hudson or nearby Nashua, which was connected by trolley to Hudson.
The quilt consists of 18-inch blocks pieced in the “Log Cabin” (also known as “Pineapple,” “Chestnut Burr,” or “Church Steps”) pattern. Printed and plain cottons were used with a red triangle at each corner of the block and a red square in the center. Three hundred eighty-three names are inscribed in ink on the plain tan “logs” as well the inscriptions, “Church built in 1888” and “Alta Theresa House.” The inscriptions and names appear to have been done by the same person. Mainly plain-and twill-weave, roller-printed cottons are used for the pieced blocks, each print repeated on each block. It is lined with a roller-printed cotton.
Names on a quilt are always of interest to a researcher. This particular quilt has many. Often the names are of couples or in some instances whole families. I.e., “Lyman Bragg, Sarah Bragg, Laura Bragg, Earnest Bragg, and Barbara Bragg” are inscribed on adjacent “logs.” Reverend L. D. Bragg was one of the people mentioned in the central inscription. He and Sarah were married in 1880, and their three children were born in 1881, 1885, and 1886 (the last in Medford, Mass.). One daughter, Laura, went to South Carolina, and was the first woman to be named the director of a major American museum (Charleston Museum) in 1920. She was instrumental in advocating education in the museum setting, and also helped to establish other museums in the South. Laura’s career was long and illustrious. She died in 1978, and she is known for her innovative educational ideas and strength of character.
Though of a later date, this “Log Cabin” quilt was part of a larger collection, more than 2,000 objects, donated by Edna Greenwood in the 1950s. The late 18th- and early 19th-century textiles, furniture, ceramics, glass, tools, and implements in the collection are mainly from rural New England farms and villages and provide insight into the lives and environment of ordinary Americans. This quilt, with its many names, had no information about when or where it was collected. Through research, the many inscriptions penned on it were clues to the origins of this quilt, perhaps a community project to provide moneys to either upgrade an existing church or purchase an organ.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1906
maker
unknown
ID Number
TE.E388877
accession number
182022
catalog number
E388877

1922 Clarkesville Reformed Church Embroidered Counterpane

This redwork embroidered counterpane was most likely made as a fund raiser for the Clarksville Reformed Church. It is dedicated to “Rev. Boyce Pastor.
Description
This redwork embroidered counterpane was most likely made as a fund raiser for the Clarksville Reformed Church. It is dedicated to “Rev. Boyce Pastor. Peggy His wife, Rex Their dog.” According to further inscriptions on the quilt, the occasion was the “Clarksville Reformed Church Fair Dec. 8th 1922.”
A twelve-petal daisy is the motif of the forty-eight blocks, the petals providing spaces for over 500 embroidered names. First, the names were written in pencil, and then embroidered with red cotton. In a few instances, a different name is embroidered over the original penciled name. One block utilized the spaces for advertising: “Priced / Lowest / The / Transportation / Economical / Motor Cars / Chevrolet / Wright / Gardner / Automobile / Equipped / Fully.” Presumably a small donation, maybe ten or twenty-five cents, assured one’s name embroidered on the counterpane. Further funds may have been secured by a raffle at the December fair. Or it may have been given to Pastor Boyce as a token of appreciation. Quilts or counterpanes such as this are still used, as they have been for more than 150 years, to raise funds for worthy causes.
The Clarksville Reformed Church was established in 1853, when a building was erected to serve the congregation. Sadly, this church was destroyed by fire on a cold February Sunday in 1912. The congregation rallied to rebuild and less then a year later, in January 1913, they were able to hold services in a new church. Clarksville in the 1920s, when this counterpane was made, was a small village in Albany County, New York. Reverend Boyce was the pastor for the Clarksville Reformed Church from 1919 to 1926 and also the Reformed Church in Westerlo, New York. In the 1950s Clarksville was still a small village and it became increasingly difficult to support the church. Another church in Clarksville, the Methodist Episcopal Church, also faced similar problems, and the solution was to merge the two. By the mid-1960s, a new church was dedicated whose sign incorporates the two bells from the older churches, symbolizing the origins of the new Clarksville Community Church.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1922
maker
unknown
ID Number
1995.0011.02
accession number
1995.0011
catalog number
1995.0011.02

1926 James Cunningham's Appliqued Bedcover

This bedcovering and two matching pillowcases were made in China in the 1920s. Rev. Alexander Cunningham, a Presbyterian minister in China at the time, sent them to the United States on the birth of his nephew, James Cunningham, in 1926.
Description
This bedcovering and two matching pillowcases were made in China in the 1920s. Rev. Alexander Cunningham, a Presbyterian minister in China at the time, sent them to the United States on the birth of his nephew, James Cunningham, in 1926. Twenty 7¾-inch square blocks of white and blue cottons are framed by a white border. The white squares have appliquéd figures depicting various childhood activities such as fishing, juggling, leaping, and ball play. The animated appliquéd figures are made of overlapping blue circles, and all wear hats.
Alexander Cunningham was born March 13, 1861, in Murrayville, Illinois. He graduated from Illinois State Normal University in 1887 and McCormick Theological Seminary in 1890. In that same year he married Mary E. Neely, and they left for China to become missionaries. Assigned to the Presbyterian North China Mission, they were active missionaries in China from 1890 to 1933, and after retirement continued to live in China until 1940. After fifty years as missionaries, they returned to California on the eve of World War II. Alexander Cunningham died in Los Angeles, California, on September 20, 1943. This appliquéd bedcovering with matching pillowcases may be the product of a mission where Rev. Alexander Cunningham served.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1926
quilter
unknown
ID Number
1986.0676.01
catalog number
1986.0676.01
accession number
1986.0676

1926 James Cunningham's Appliqued Pillowcases

This is one of two matching appliqued pillowcases and a bedcover that were made in China in the 1920s. Rev. Alexander Cunningham, a Presbyterian minister in China at the time, sent them to the United States on the birth of his nephew, James Cunningham, in 1926.
Description
This is one of two matching appliqued pillowcases and a bedcover that were made in China in the 1920s. Rev. Alexander Cunningham, a Presbyterian minister in China at the time, sent them to the United States on the birth of his nephew, James Cunningham, in 1926. Both pillowcases are white with a single blue square at each end. On either side of each blue square is a figure of a boy with a ball, a bird, a cat, and a dog; all are made of overlapping blue circles.
Alexander Cunningham was born March 13, 1861, in Murrayville, Illinois. He graduated from Illinois State Normal University in 1887 and McCormick Theological Seminary in 1890. In that same year he married Mary E. Neely, and they left for China to become missionaries. Assigned to the Presbyterian North China Mission, they were active missionaries in China from 1890 to 1933, and after retirement continued to live in China until 1940. After fifty years as missionaries, they returned to California on the eve of World War II. Alexander Cunningham died in Los Angeles, California, on September 20, 1943. This appliquéd pillowcase with the matching bedcover may be the product of a mission where Rev. Alexander Cunningham served.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1926
quilter
unknown
ID Number
1986.0676.02
catalog number
1986.0676.02
accession number
1986.0676

1934 Ada Chitwood Jones's "Sock Top" Quilt

This twentieth-century-quilt, made in 1934 by Ada Jones of Fyffe, Alabama is unique in many ways. The top is pieced of machine-knitted sock tops that were made as separate items to be sewn onto women’s socks.
Description
This twentieth-century-quilt, made in 1934 by Ada Jones of Fyffe, Alabama is unique in many ways. The top is pieced of machine-knitted sock tops that were made as separate items to be sewn onto women’s socks. The designs in the sock tops are composed of dots, squares, diamonds, and other shapes.
W. B. Davis, the oldest hosiery factory in Fort Payne, Alabama, made sock tops and sold them by the pound. The factory survived the Depression and tried to make Fort Payne the sock capital of the world. Ada’s sister-in-law, Ruby Mae Jacoway Chitwood, worked at the factory and acquired the tops after they were no longer needed in the mill’s showroom. Ada assembled and then hand-stitched the sock tops into strips to create a delightfully designed top for her quilt.
The lining of the quilt is printed cotton from fabrics distributed by the Agricultural Extension Office, Auburn, Alabama, in a New Deal self-help program to aid farm women. The filling is ginned cotton from cotton grown on the family farm. In 1963, one of the donors, Jimmie Sibert Jones, added a printed cotton border to protect the quilt's fraying edges. This fabric was from unused fertilizer sacks that were given to her by the E. Brooks Gin and Fertilizer Company of Fyffe, Alabama. On a fabric label stitched to the lining is printed in ink, “MADE BY / ADA CHITWOOD JONES / DONATED BY / JIMMIE SIBERT JONES.”
In 1994 when the quilt was given to the Smithsonian, the donor wrote: “The quilt was made in 1934 under the New Deal a government organized form of self help. . . . the government issued surplus cotton fabric to be used in the homes for bed linen and other items. . . . top part is made from ladies sock tops of new material with stylish colors and designs of the thirties. . . . in this era the tops were knitted and then sewn to the sock . . . . My mother-in-law, who is now ninety years of age, received two pieces of the fabric and made two quilts. She gave the quilts to me when I married in 1945. The other quilt is now in the State of Alabama Department of Archives and History.” Ada Chitwood Jones, born in 1903, died in 1997 a few years after the donation. She is buried in Mountain View Memory Gardens, DeKalb, Alabama.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1934
maker
Jones, Ada Chitwood
ID Number
1994.0169.01
accession number
1994.0169
catalog number
1994.0169.01

1935 - 1945 Olive Bender's "Water Lily " Quilt

Olive Bender made this quilt for her son and daughter-in-law as a Christmas gift in the 1940s. Her grandson, David Bender, later donated the quilt.
Description
Olive Bender made this quilt for her son and daughter-in-law as a Christmas gift in the 1940s. Her grandson, David Bender, later donated the quilt. He recalled that his grandmother would work on quilt patches during the warm months, and then, in the winter, quilt on frames she would set up in the dining room of her Ohio farmhouse.
Nine 16”-inch blocks, appliquéd and embroidered in the “Water Lily” pattern, are set in pink and white sashing. The lily buds, leaves, water, lily pad, and flower details are embroidered. Various patterns quilted at 7 stitches per inch and scalloped edges complete the overall quilt design.
Popular in the 1920s to 1940s, the “Water Lily” motif was available in kit form or as a paper pattern. Quilt historian, Cuesta Benberry, traced this pattern to the Rainbow Quilt Block Company owned by William Pinch. His company perfected a printing process that stamped colors on muslin squares indicating the color of embroidery threads needed to complete the motif and gave the company its name, Rainbow. William Pinch (1880-1972), a professional photographer, created as many as 1,000 designs for his company. Advertised in flyers, newsletters and catalogs, the kits and patterns could be purchased by mail or in retail stores making them available to small towns and rural areas.
Olive Mae (nee Fairall) Bender was born February 13, 1892, in Frazeysburg, Ohio. She died April 18, 1971, in East Sparta, Ohio. Her quilt is an example of mid-20th-century quilting and of a design available from the Rainbow Quilt Block Company, one of many companies that promoted quilting from the 1920s on by publishing patterns and providing quilting kits.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1935-1945
maker
Bender, Olive Mae Fairall
ID Number
1996.0223.01
accession number
1996.0223
catalog number
1996.0223.01

1950 - 1969 Dorothy Overall's Flour-Sack Bassinet Quilt

This bassinet quilt with a framed center design is made of high-quality plain blue and white cotton feed sack fabrics.
Description
This bassinet quilt with a framed center design is made of high-quality plain blue and white cotton feed sack fabrics. Dorothy Overall of Caldwell, Kansas, a contestant in many sewing events in the 1950s and 1960s, pieced and appliquéd this quilt on a Pfaff sewing machine she had won in a contest. In 1959 she won the National Cotton Bag Sewing Contest that included a vacation trip to Hollywood as part of the prize.
According to Dorothy, cotton feed sack fabric was light enough for summer, almost as nice as percale and the colors didn’t fade. Cotton sacks for flour, animal feed and other commodities were produced in many colors and prints. Flour and feed companies found that their sales were often influenced by the popularity of their sacks which were used for clothes and household items.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1950-1969
quilter
Overall, Dorothy
ID Number
1992.0102.07
accession number
1992.0102
catalog number
1992.0102.07

1965 - 1975 Welthea Thoday's World War II Friendship Quilt

In the early 1940s Welthea B. Thoday sent squares of white cotton fabric to friends, family members, and coworkers and asked that each make a block for a World War II quilt.
Description
In the early 1940s Welthea B. Thoday sent squares of white cotton fabric to friends, family members, and coworkers and asked that each make a block for a World War II quilt. Many of the blocks she collected contain significant dates and slogans that were popular during the period, such as “Keep em Flying” or “AMERICA IN THE AIR ON LAND ON SEA” or “Save Paper – Tin – Grease.” Other quilt blocks depict the Four Freedoms, flags, and other iconic symbols.
In a small booklet, “Record of World War II Historical Quilt,” Welthea Thoday identified and sketched each of the quilt square contributions and noted the significance and symbolism of the designs. The World War II Friendship Quilt was exhibited at several 1976 Bicentennial events.
The colors red, white, and blue dominate on this patriotic commemorative quilt. First planned in the early 1940s, the quilt was completed in the 1970s. Welthea made the central panel, copying the design from a three-cent postage stamp that was introduced on July 4, 1942. It depicts an American eagle with its wings outstretched to form a large “V” (for Victory). The eagle is surrounded by thirteen stars and a “Win the War” banner is unfurled across its breast. Around this central panel, Welthea arranged thirty-two of the pieced, appliquéd, and embroidered blocks that she had received from friends and family. Placement of the four red-and-white symbolic squares in the corners (the cross, feather, “V” and star) gives a sense of order to the other twenty-eight individually designed blocks.
Born in 1896 in Scituate, Massachusetts, Welthea B. Thoday began her career as a stenographer for a Boston automobile insurance company in 1914. In 1928 she entered the field of advertising and was one of the first women to do announcing and writing for a radio sales program. She retired at the age of 74, after twenty years as a textile editor for a Boston textile publishing company.
When Welthea was 100 years old, she was interviewed by her niece, Susan McKanna. In the taped interview, she discussed the original idea for the quilt, recalling the many government programs that were being promoted during World War II and the idea that it would be “nice to make a record of them.” In 1998, at the age of 102, Welthea Thoday died. Preserved in needle and thread, pen and ink, her World War II Friendship Quilt and the booklet “Record of World War II Historical Quilt,” together provide a vivid commentary on the period.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1965-1975
quilter
Thoday, Welthea B.
ID Number
1996.0148.01
accession number
1996.0148
catalog number
1996.0148.01

1975 - 1995 "Snow White and the Seven Dwarves" Child's Quilt

The popularity of the 1937 Walt Disney movie, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, based on a German fairy tale, inspired this quilt pattern. The movie has been re-released many times.
Description
The popularity of the 1937 Walt Disney movie, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, based on a German fairy tale, inspired this quilt pattern. The movie has been re-released many times. In 1972 Lehman Brothers published a pattern, “Snow White and the Seven Dwarves,” that is very similar to this quilt. It was advertised as “a perfect quilt for your favorite child. White bearded dwarves [sic] dressed in bright suits, and colorful trees and flowers surround Snow White and the cottage.”
From the early 20th century, kit quilts have been available in the market to save time and/or provide the quilter with assistance in design or color choices. This quilt was made from a kit as evidenced by stamped lines that are still visible along some edges.
The quilt is appliquéd with motifs that include a stylized cottage, trees, and dwarfs, and, of course, Snow White. All of the dwarfs have coral-colored caps and boots, blue tights, yellow shirts, green vests, and white beards. Details are embroidered with satin, outline, daisy, and French knot stitches. The figures are outlined in quilting stitches, 4 stitches per inch. The 7 ½-inch border is quilted with flowers and diagonal lines. The “Snow White and the Seven Dwarves” pattern, based on a well-known children’s story and animated movie, made a special quilt to brighten a child’s room.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1975-1995
ID Number
1996.0013.01
accession number
1996.0013
catalog number
1996.0013.01

1849 Elspeth Duigan's White-work Quilted Counterpane

Elspeth Duigan crafted this fine example of a white-work quilt in 1849. She divided the center into 8 large and 4 small squares each enclosing stuffed floral motifs.
Description
Elspeth Duigan crafted this fine example of a white-work quilt in 1849. She divided the center into 8 large and 4 small squares each enclosing stuffed floral motifs. According to family information, she quilted the initials “E.D.” in one of the corner squares and it incorporates the date “1849” with the edge of the square a “1”, the “E” is also an “8,” the “4” is represented by the “D” (the fourth letter of the alphabet), and “9” is the top part of the “D”. The lining is a very thin cotton layer, and the motif stuffing is cotton and cotton cord. All the motifs are outlined in quilting. The background is quilted with parallel diagonal lines 3/16-inch apart, 13-14 stitches per inch.
Elspeth Duigan was born in Jamestown, Virginia, in 1831. She married Mr. Thompson in Jamestown and later they moved to Lexington, Kentucky. During the Civil War they moved further West to Lexington, Missouri. Elspeth died in 1894.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1849
maker
Duigan, Elspeth
ID Number
1981.0682.01
catalog number
1981.0682.01
accession number
1981.0682

1890 - 1891 Elizabeth Smedley's Silk Quilt

Elizabeth Smedley made this silk quilt for the trousseau of her niece, Elizabeth Webster Smedley. She married Walter Brinton at Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in 1891. Off white, grey, and tan are used to set off the simple design.
Description
Elizabeth Smedley made this silk quilt for the trousseau of her niece, Elizabeth Webster Smedley. She married Walter Brinton at Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in 1891. Off white, grey, and tan are used to set off the simple design. Chevron pattern quilting is used for the vertical bands, and the border is quilted in a cable pattern. The whole imparts a quiet elegance typical of Quaker quilts of the 19th century.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1890-1891
maker
Smedley, Elizabeth Webster
ID Number
1984.1059.01
catalog number
1984.1059.01
accession number
1984.1059

1795 Eliza Bennis's "Irish Volunteers" Counterpane

Eliza Bennis appliqued her initials “EB” and date “1795” in the center of the outer border of this counterpane. Although in fragile condition, this appliqued and embroidered textile is noteworthy.
Description
Eliza Bennis appliqued her initials “EB” and date “1795” in the center of the outer border of this counterpane. Although in fragile condition, this appliqued and embroidered textile is noteworthy. The center panel (21+” high x 28+” wide) is an early Irish printed fabric known as “Irish Volunteers” or “Volunteer Furniture.” The copper-plate design, probably drawn by Gabriel Beranger, is a representation of a Provincial Review in Phoenix Park (June 1782) near Dublin. It was printed by Thomas Harpur at Leixlip, Ireland. This particular fabric may have held significance for Eliza as her husband, in 1779, was instrumental in the formation of a Limerick corps of Irish Volunteers.
Elizabeth (Eliza) was born in Limerick, Ireland, in 1725, daughter of Isaac and Alice Patten. Eliza married Mitchell Bennis (1720-1788) in 1745. They had four children that reached adulthood. Eliza is significant in the history of Methodism and corresponded with John Wesley, among others. Journal of Elizabeth Bennis 1749-1779, begun in her 20s, is an accounting of her spiritual progress after she joined the Methodist Society. In her later years she emigrated from Limerick to Philadelphia and possibly brought the “Irish Volunteers” fabric or counterpane with her. She died in 1802. In 1809 her son, Thomas, published a book of her correspondence.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1795
maker
Bennis, Eliza
ID Number
1985.0034.01
catalog number
1985.0034.01
accession number
1985.0034

1720 - 1734 Jane Alcock's Silk Applique Counterpane

According to family information, Jane Alcock made this counterpane in a convent school in England a few years before running away to Barbados and marrying William Atlee (1696-1744) on June 1, 1734. A few weeks later the couple settled in Philadelphia.
Description
According to family information, Jane Alcock made this counterpane in a convent school in England a few years before running away to Barbados and marrying William Atlee (1696-1744) on June 1, 1734. A few weeks later the couple settled in Philadelphia. Jane was born in 1695 in England and died in 1777 in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania.
The scrollwork-and-flower design is appliquéd, held in place by a linen-thread cord, on a dark blue satin ground. The elegant counterpane remained in the family until its donation in 1985.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1720-1734
maker
Alcock, Jane
ID Number
1985.0154.01
catalog number
1985.0154.01
accession number
1985.0154

1825 - 1850 Pieced Quilt with three block patterns

Found in Londonderry, Vermont, in a house dated about 1850, this quilt was purchased by the donor in the 1980s.
Description
Found in Londonderry, Vermont, in a house dated about 1850, this quilt was purchased by the donor in the 1980s. The many cotton fabrics used to construct this quilt give it value.
Ten-inch blocks of red-and-white floral printed fabric alternate with “Sixteen-Patch” blocks composed of many block- and roller-printed fabrics. Ten “Eight-pointed Star” blocks of block-printed red-and-white fabric are set near the outer edge. Three quilting patterns are utilized for the three different types of blocks, quilted 6-7 stitches per inch. Blue cotton triangles on the outer edges complete the well-planned quilt.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1825-1850
maker
unknown
ID Number
1985.0223.01
catalog number
1985.0223.01
accession number
1985.0223

1790 - 1810 Triangle-Pieced Child's Quilt

Of Scottish or American origin, this child’s quilt was used in the donor’s family. The quilt is constructed with thirty-five 4-5/8" blocks pieced of printed and plain triangles.
Description
Of Scottish or American origin, this child’s quilt was used in the donor’s family. The quilt is constructed with thirty-five 4-5/8" blocks pieced of printed and plain triangles. The fabrics have stripe, geometric, and floral motifs block-printed in rose and brown with penciled blue accents. The quilt is framed by a 4-1/4" border, block-printed with birds, flowers, thistles, and striped edges.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1790-1810
maker
unknown
ID Number
1985.0771.01
catalog number
1985.0771.01
accession number
1985.0771

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