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.

Under the center basket of this embroidered counterpane is the inscription “Bethiah D. Green” and on the basket at the top is “Begun October 2, 1796.” The date “1798” appears several times in the border.
Description
Under the center basket of this embroidered counterpane is the inscription “Bethiah D. Green” and on the basket at the top is “Begun October 2, 1796.” The date “1798” appears several times in the border. In addition to the many birds and floral motifs, other designs include the head of George Washington; his riderless horse; a milestone inscribed “12 miles to Boston;” and a pig. According to family tradition, this quilt was inspired by an event that Bethiah witnessed in 1789 when George Washington, passing through Weston, Massachusetts, was nearly thrown from his horse when a pig ran across the road.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1796-1805
1796-1798
maker
Green, Bethiah D.
ID Number
TE.E388872
accession number
182022
catalog number
E388872
This quilt top has a binding, but no filling or lining. Perhaps it was meant to be lined and quilted; instead the edges were bound, making it a light-weight bedcover.
Description
This quilt top has a binding, but no filling or lining. Perhaps it was meant to be lined and quilted; instead the edges were bound, making it a light-weight bedcover. Pieced and appliquéd techniques provide the frame for a central panel that resembles a small sampler.
Delicate silk embroidery depicts a leafy harp surrounded by hearts, trees topped with red crested birds, potted plants, and the inscription, “Elenor Dolen Roxbury.” Most likely it refers to Roxbury, Massachusetts. The quilt top was donated by a collector of early American domestic furnishings.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1850-1875
maker
unknown
ID Number
TE.E388875
accession number
182022
catalog number
E388875
“Shoo-fly” blocks, composed of roller-printed floral and geometric patterned cottons, provide the design for this quilt. The same large floral print cotton was used for both the bands separating the blocks and the ruffled flounce on three sides.
Description
“Shoo-fly” blocks, composed of roller-printed floral and geometric patterned cottons, provide the design for this quilt. The same large floral print cotton was used for both the bands separating the blocks and the ruffled flounce on three sides. The lining is pieced with three lengths of roller-printed cotton in a bold design, depicting a running mare and foal that appear to be in a field or partial wreath of flowers. The quilting is a diagonal grid pattern, 6 stitches per inch. The quilt was donated by a collector of early American domestic furnishings.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1850-1875
maker
unknown
ID Number
TE.E388878
accession number
182022
catalog number
E388878
This comfort, with a very thick cotton filling, was relined and retied after 1850.
Description
This comfort, with a very thick cotton filling, was relined and retied after 1850. The many printed fabrics that were used for the pieced-worked top make it significant.
In particular, vignette segments from a roller-printed fabric, "Shakspere's Seven Ages," were used for several of the blocks. The scenes were rendered in red on plain-weave ivory cotton fabric. This was an 1830-1840 adaptation of an earlier, popular 1805 plate print by John Slack, which, in turn had been copied from a series of engravings published in 1801. Several of the vignettes are printed with titles such as “Dotage,” “The Justise,” or “The School Boy,” and of course on a banner, “Shakspere’s Seven Ages.”
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1825-1850
associated person
Shakespeare, William
maker
unknown
ID Number
TE.E388879
accession number
182022
catalog number
E388879
Mary Winfield crafted this small quilt for her granddaughter, Julia A. Poole, of Dinwiddie Co., Virginia. Possibly it was intended as a doll quilt. The quilt is composed of 3-inch blocks, some pieced in the “Nine-patch” pattern, some plain.
Description
Mary Winfield crafted this small quilt for her granddaughter, Julia A. Poole, of Dinwiddie Co., Virginia. Possibly it was intended as a doll quilt. The quilt is composed of 3-inch blocks, some pieced in the “Nine-patch” pattern, some plain. Each plain block is quilted with a single flower or bird.
Mary W. Tucker was born about 1764 in Virginia. She married William Winfield III (1762-1837) on January 6th in either 1783 or 1787. She made another small quilt, also in the Collection, for the same granddaughter.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1835-1850
maker
Winfield, Mary
ID Number
TE.T02139.00A
accession number
57609
catalog number
T02139A
Mary Winfield crafted this small pieced quilt of diamond-shaped blocks for her granddaughter, Julia A. Poole, of Dinwiddie Co., Virginia. Possibly it was intended as a doll quilt.
Description
Mary Winfield crafted this small pieced quilt of diamond-shaped blocks for her granddaughter, Julia A. Poole, of Dinwiddie Co., Virginia. Possibly it was intended as a doll quilt. Some of the diamond-shaped blocks are pieced in the “Nine-patch” pattern, others are plain white cotton.
Mary W. Tucker was born about 1764 in Virginia. She married William Winfield III (1762-1837) on January 6th in either 1783 or 1787. She made another small quilt, also in the Collection, for the same granddaughter.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1840-1850
maker
Winfield, Mary
ID Number
TE.T02139.00B
accession number
57609
catalog number
T02139B
This quilt, pieced in the “Brick Wall” pattern, is composed of 2¼” x 3” rectangles. The rectangles were pieced in strips and artfully joined so that light and dark colors form diagonal stripes creating a dramatic overall effect.
Description
This quilt, pieced in the “Brick Wall” pattern, is composed of 2¼” x 3” rectangles. The rectangles were pieced in strips and artfully joined so that light and dark colors form diagonal stripes creating a dramatic overall effect. A roller-printed cotton depicting a pastoral scene, was used for the lining. This particular fabric, probably English, includes a man fishing, a woman carrying a hayrake, and an amorous couple in front of a cottage.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1870-1880
maker
unknown
ID Number
TE.T04221
accession number
65628
catalog number
T04221
Mary L. Walcott constructed this quilt based on the “Wild Goose Chase” pattern using only plain red and polka-dotted red and white cottons. It is quilted at 7-8 stitches/inch using grid and chevron patterns. She made this quilt about the time her son, Charles D.
Description
Mary L. Walcott constructed this quilt based on the “Wild Goose Chase” pattern using only plain red and polka-dotted red and white cottons. It is quilted at 7-8 stitches/inch using grid and chevron patterns. She made this quilt about the time her son, Charles D. Walcott, was born. In 1907 he became the fourth Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1840-1860
maker
Walcott, Mary L.
ID Number
TE.T04592
accession number
69191
catalog number
T04592
Forty-two 8¾-inch blocks of pieced baskets with appliqued handles are set diagonally with 8¾-inch squares of roller printed cottons. These are framed with three 1½-inch borders.
Description
Forty-two 8¾-inch blocks of pieced baskets with appliqued handles are set diagonally with 8¾-inch squares of roller printed cottons. These are framed with three 1½-inch borders. The squares, one of the borders, and the binding are all the same small floral, roller-printed cotton. A squared spiral pattern (6 stitches per inch) was used for the quilting.
The quilt was in the Corwin family of Middle Hope, New York. Mother, Rachel Burr, and daughter, Celia, both have other needlework examples in the Collection.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1850-1875
maker
unknown
ID Number
TE.T06882
accession number
115031
catalog number
T06882
This padded and quilted blue satin square, produced by William Skinner and Sons, was probably a sales model used at their New York City store. The sample is padded and hand quilted in a 2¾-inch grid pattern.
Description
This padded and quilted blue satin square, produced by William Skinner and Sons, was probably a sales model used at their New York City store. The sample is padded and hand quilted in a 2¾-inch grid pattern. Extra filling in the unquilted borders makes them higher than the quilted surface.
In the early 20th-century, William Skinner and Sons was a prominent silk production and textile manufacturer. From 1874 the manufacturing business was located in Holyoke, Massachusetts. After the death of the founder, William Skinner in 1902, his sons took over the business. The family sold the business to Indian Head Mills in 1961. This square is an example of “Skinner’s Satins,” as they were popularly known.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1900-1950
maker
unknown
ID Number
TE.T07005
accession number
119013
catalog number
T07005
This “Variable Star” quilt, quite well worn, was found inside another quilt (TE*T07116.00A) in the Collection. Rachel Burr Corwin of Middle Hope in Orange County, New York, fashioned this quilt alternating 8-inch pieced blocks with 8-inch floral, roller-printed cotton squares.
Description
This “Variable Star” quilt, quite well worn, was found inside another quilt (TE*T07116.00A) in the Collection. Rachel Burr Corwin of Middle Hope in Orange County, New York, fashioned this quilt alternating 8-inch pieced blocks with 8-inch floral, roller-printed cotton squares. The same floral print was used for the 7-inch borders. The lining, plain-weave cotton, is plate-printed in blue with long-tailed birds, small birds, peonies and other flowers, a late 18th-century design. The quilting, 5-6 stitches per inch, consists of diagonal lines ¾-inch apart in opposite directions on alternate blocks.
Rachel Burr, daughter of Samuel Burr and Sibyl Scudder Burr of Massachusetts, was born March 3, 1788. She married Samuel Corwin of Orange County, New York, October 14, 1809. They had four children. Needlework examples by one of their daughters, Celia, are also in the Collection. Rachel Burr Corwin died March 14, 1849, in Orange County, New York.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1840-1860
maker
Corwin, Rachel Burr
ID Number
TE.T07116.00B
accession number
121578
catalog number
T07116B
Twenty-four roller-printed cottons were used to construct this example of an “Irish Chain” pattern. The plain white and pieced blocks are framed by a roller-printed glazed floral chintz.
Description
Twenty-four roller-printed cottons were used to construct this example of an “Irish Chain” pattern. The plain white and pieced blocks are framed by a roller-printed glazed floral chintz. The pieced blocks are quilted with diagonal lines, the white blocks with clamshells, and the border with chevrons.
According to family information, Margaret Willis crafted the “Irish Chain” quilt near Leonardtown, Maryland. Margaret Lowry was born in Virginia in 1794. She married John S. Willis (1790-1878). Margaret died in 1844 and is buried in Mercer County, Missouri.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1840-1850
maker
Willis, Margaret Lowry
ID Number
TE.T08320
accession number
152645
catalog number
T08320
This precisely pieced and stuffed-work quilt was crafted by Catherine and Anna Shriver of Funkstown, Maryland, in the mid-19th century.
Description
This precisely pieced and stuffed-work quilt was crafted by Catherine and Anna Shriver of Funkstown, Maryland, in the mid-19th century. The circular designs, currently referred to as the “Sunburst” or “Mariner’s Compass” pattern, are set off by elaborate stuffed quilting, 9 stitches/inch. The same printed cotton was used for the design and the saw-toothed border that frames the quilt.
Anna, born October 23, 1821, and Catherine, born February 12, 1826, were the daughters of Elizabeth Grosh and Daniel Shriver. Catherine married Frisby Knode in 1845. Ann did not marry. Both died young, Anna on May 24, 1853; Catherine on March 15, 1854. The quilt was inherited by Catherine and Frisby’s son, William Shriver Knode, who passed it on to his daughter, Nina. She in turn requested that upon her death it be given to a museum for safekeeping. When she died, in 1940, her husband, William F. Heft, gave it to the Museum in her name.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1835-1850
maker
Shriver, Catherine
ID Number
TE.T08433
accession number
157749
catalog number
T08433
Catherine Hutchins used 4,872 fabric scraps to piece 168 six-inch blocks for her “Log Cabin” Quilt. Plain, plaid, printed, and pattern-woven wool and cotton fabrics were utilized. Each of the blocks has a red center.
Description (Brief)
Catherine Hutchins used 4,872 fabric scraps to piece 168 six-inch blocks for her “Log Cabin” Quilt. Plain, plaid, printed, and pattern-woven wool and cotton fabrics were utilized. Each of the blocks has a red center. She effectively assembled the varicolored light and dark fabrics to create an overall pattern of light and dark 8 ½-inch squares. The lining consists of 6-inch strips of the same floral-patterned roller-printed cotton with three different ground colors.
Catherine Huff, grandmother of the donor, was born in 1813. She married Stephen Hutchins (1814-1903) and lived in Cape Porpoise (Kennebunkport), Maine. She died in 1903.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1850-1899
maker
Hutchins, Catherine Huff
ID Number
TE.T08473
accession number
158248
catalog number
T08473
This cotton quilt top was found at a fair in Montgomery County, Maryland. The appliquéd designs of the blocks are similar to many found on Maryland album quilts of the mid-19th century.
Description
This cotton quilt top was found at a fair in Montgomery County, Maryland. The appliquéd designs of the blocks are similar to many found on Maryland album quilts of the mid-19th century. One block is signed in ink, “Rebecca Diggs.”
A log cabin with a barrel marked “Hard Cider” and a raccoon on the roof appears on another block. Variations of this motif were popular at the time and commemorated William Henry Harrison’s “log cabin and cider” presidential campaign of 1840. The symbols were originated by the opposition party, but Harrison turned the tables and utilized them to identify himself with the common man. He won the election only to die of pneumonia a month after his inauguration.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1840-1845
maker
unknown
ID Number
TE.T08755
accession number
163105
catalog number
T08755
“It [quilt] was made 125 years ago in Charleston, S.C., by my great-grandmother, Susan Ladson McPherson. It is in perfect condition as it has evidently never been used, only hoarded as an heirloom.
Description
“It [quilt] was made 125 years ago in Charleston, S.C., by my great-grandmother, Susan Ladson McPherson. It is in perfect condition as it has evidently never been used, only hoarded as an heirloom. I have no daughter to leave it to and it is too large and elaborate for everyday use.” So wrote the donor in 1943.
The original quilt had the center floral wreath encircled by rose vines with a few appliqued flowers around the edge. At a later point appliques were removed (evidenced by many needle-holes) and others added to the center (scrolled frames and vases of flowers) as well as roller-printed cotton borders.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1840-1860
maker
McPherson, Susan Ladson
ID Number
TE.T08886
accession number
165195
catalog number
T08886
“This quilt was made in Nashville Tenn. I began just before the Civil War, the day Tenn. seceded I stitched the U.S.
Description
“This quilt was made in Nashville Tenn. I began just before the Civil War, the day Tenn. seceded I stitched the U.S. Flag in the center of the quilt, my father being a loyal man he had to leave home or be forced in the Confederate service, I carried the quilt through the rebel lines to the federal to Cincinnati we remained in Cincinnati until the fall of Fort Donelson then we returned home to Nashville. After the battle of Stone River Gen’l Rosecrans suggested I make an autograph quilt of it & at his headquaters [sic] his was the first name placed in the flag and the second was James A. Garfield and most of his Staff Officers names were placed around the flag. Gen’l Winfield Scott in 1863 at West Point wrote his name. I was visiting my Brother who was a Cadet at the Point. `Then Abraham Lincoln 1863 his son Robert Lincoln in 1881. P.H. Sheridan U.S. Grant Brig Gen’l L. Thomas Adjt Gen’l U.S.A. Maj Gen’l George H. Thomas Benj F Butler Chester A. Arthur. S. H. Wilson. Gen H. W. Blair W. T. Sherman J. St. Clair Morton. Jas McLear Horace Maynard. Col Bowman Supt West Point 1863. Jas S Negley. A McDowell McCook J.A. Garfield Chief of Staff. Jas McKibben. Col Arthur Ducat. C. G. Harker. W.WS. Averill Wm McKinley. Nelson N Miles. Leland Stanford. Theodore Roosevelt. Sen Jos R. Hawley. This quilt was saluted by 20000 troops at the funeral of Pres Lincoln. Hung over the East door of the rotunda when Pres Garfield’s body lay in State, has been hung out at different Inaugurations. It has the line of Gen’ls & Lt Gen’ls. It has other names but these are the most prominent. The different ones that have had charge of it when on exhibition have not been very careful with it. I have never thought of disposing of it, but having lost my home through fire, I wish to rebuld [sic] & this is the only way I can see to raise money. Mary A. Lord.”
Mary Hughes Lord’s undated description of her own quilt.
Among the “prominent” signatures on Mary’s quilt is that of James Morton, who gave her the album in which she kept her photograph as well as those of family and friends, and many of Civil War soldiers. James was killed at the battle of Petersburg, Virginia, on June 17, 1864, but Mary saved his letters and official service documents.
Mary Hughes was born in Nashville in 1848. She was seventeen years old in May 1865 when she married Henry Edward Lord, who had served in Tennessee with the Indiana Volunteers (1861-1864). They lived in his home in Brooklyn, New York, and later in the Washington, D.C., area. Mary died in Baltimore, Maryland, in 1926. Her quilt was never sold, but instead passed to her daughter, who brought it to the Museum in 1943.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1860-1865
maker
Lord, Mary Alice Hughes
ID Number
TE.T08900
accession number
166550
catalog number
T08900
Twenty-five blocks, each of a different fabric, are pieced in the “Schoolhouse” pattern for this “Friendship” quilt. The names of 25 women are inscribed in ink by the same hand. Research on the names revealed that they all had connections to Addison County, Vermont.
Description
Twenty-five blocks, each of a different fabric, are pieced in the “Schoolhouse” pattern for this “Friendship” quilt. The names of 25 women are inscribed in ink by the same hand. Research on the names revealed that they all had connections to Addison County, Vermont. The oldest was born in 1808, the youngest in 1866, with most born in the 1830s and 1840s. Some were teachers. Many are buried in Vermont, mainly at East Shoreham Cemetery.
In 1906, as a token of friendship, the quilt was passed along to the donor’s mother by a neighbor in Dubuque, Iowa. The neighbor’s mother was the maker of the quilt.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1870-1890
1880-1885
maker
unknown
ID Number
TE.T11117
accession number
201463
catalog number
T11117
This fine example of a framed center quilt belonged to the Alston family and came from the Fairfield-on-the-Waccamaw plantation near Georgetown County, South Carolina.The center is composed of three block-printed squares.
Description
This fine example of a framed center quilt belonged to the Alston family and came from the Fairfield-on-the-Waccamaw plantation near Georgetown County, South Carolina.
The center is composed of three block-printed squares. These were specifically designed and produced in the first half of the 19th century to be used as quilt centers or for cushion covers. The center of the quilt is framed by five borders cut from printed floral stripe cottons, each with a tiny geometric band. A sixth border is appliquéd with flowers and birds cut from various glazed chintzes.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1820-1840
quilter
unknown
ID Number
TE.T11666
accession number
225700
catalog number
T11666
Named the “The Pocahontas Quilt” by the family of the maker, Pocahontas Virginia Gay, it is a wool counterpane that displays both her design and needlework skills. The thirty-six 11-inch blocks are appliquéd with motifs cut mainly from wool fabrics.
Description
Named the “The Pocahontas Quilt” by the family of the maker, Pocahontas Virginia Gay, it is a wool counterpane that displays both her design and needlework skills. The thirty-six 11-inch blocks are appliquéd with motifs cut mainly from wool fabrics. These are further embellished with embroidery, silk fabrics, ribbon, and details in pencil or ink.
Pocahontas based her motifs on popular illustrations of sentimental vignettes and Southern heroes, as well as the Victor dog trademark adopted in 1901 by the Victor Talking Machine Company. Proud to be a seventh-generation descendant of Pocahontas and John Rolfe, she included a likeness of the Indian princess as she appears in a 17th-century engraving frequently reproduced in genealogies.
Pocahontas Gay, or “Aunt Poca” as she was known to family, was born in Virginia on September 5, 1831. She was the daughter of Neil Buchanan Gay and his wife Martha Talley. She never married and remained connected to the family home, Mill Farm in Fluvanna County, Va. She died on October 14,1922.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1900-1905
maker
Gay, Pocahontas Virginia
ID Number
TE.T11694
accession number
225103
catalog number
T11694
The unknown maker of this quilt chose a traditional pieced pattern, but the fabrics make it memorable. The stars are all pieced of plain and patterned silk diamonds, with the center of the large star composed of black velvet alternating with gold-embroidered ivory satin.
Description
The unknown maker of this quilt chose a traditional pieced pattern, but the fabrics make it memorable. The stars are all pieced of plain and patterned silk diamonds, with the center of the large star composed of black velvet alternating with gold-embroidered ivory satin. The combination of plain and patterned silks in the black background adds to the overall dramatic effect.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1880-1900
maker
unknown
ID Number
TE.T12091
accession number
54020
catalog number
T12091
The date “June 3 1836” and initials “W.B.” in the center panel are plainly evident on this quilted and stuffed white counterpane. Unfortunately no further information was given at the time of donation. Does the date signify an engagement or wedding date?
Description
The date “June 3 1836” and initials “W.B.” in the center panel are plainly evident on this quilted and stuffed white counterpane. Unfortunately no further information was given at the time of donation. Does the date signify an engagement or wedding date? Is “W.B.” the maker or a person honored?
The white-work counterpane is an example of stuffed work using a method of spreading apart the threads in the lining and inserting cotton stuffing. In this way the motifs such as the plumes, sunflowers, daisies, and undulating vines are given a dimensionality. Precise quilting, 10 stitches per inch, further enhances the elegance and overall design of this bedcover.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1836
maker
unknown
ID Number
TE.T12170
accession number
231271
catalog number
T12170
A variation of the “Irish Chain” and “Sawtooth” bands are used to frame the four “Tulip”motifs on this 19th century red and green quilt. Outline quilting is used for the motifs at 8-9 stitches per inch.
Description
A variation of the “Irish Chain” and “Sawtooth” bands are used to frame the four “Tulip”motifs on this 19th century red and green quilt. Outline quilting is used for the motifs at 8-9 stitches per inch. A combination of straight and diagonal grid quilting enhances the overall design of this pieced and appliqued quilt.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1850-1875
maker
unknown
ID Number
TE.T12175
accession number
231442
catalog number
T12175
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

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