Textiles

The 50,000 objects in the textile collections fall into two main categories: raw fibers, yarns, and fabrics, and machines, tools, and other textile technology. Shawls, coverlets, samplers, laces, linens, synthetics, and other fabrics are part of the first group, along with the 400 quilts in the National Quilt Collection. Some of the Museum's most popular artifacts, such as the Star-Spangled Banner and the gowns of the first ladies, have an obvious textile connection.

The machinery and tools include spinning wheels, sewing machines, thimbles, needlework tools, looms, and an invention that changed the course of American agriculture and society. A model of Eli Whitney's cotton gin, made by the inventor in the early 1800s, shows the workings of a machine that helped make cotton plantations profitable in the South and encouraged the spread of slavery.

This red and white, reverse twill coverlet likely comes from the New Market, Maryland area. The weaver used reverse twill to create a block pattern. The coverlet was constructed from two sections woven as one length, cut, and seamed together.
Description
This red and white, reverse twill coverlet likely comes from the New Market, Maryland area. The weaver used reverse twill to create a block pattern. The coverlet was constructed from two sections woven as one length, cut, and seamed together. The pattern block is formed by the use of herringbone left to right twill as well as a diamond twill square. The pattern repeat measures five and a half inches by five and three-eighths inches. The coverlet is well matched at the seam. There is some loss and the overall condition is fair to poor.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
19th Century
ID Number
TE.T18025
catalog number
T18025.000
accession number
321786
Below family record, pyramidal monument (memorial to deceased sister) flanked by rosebushes and butterflies, under weeping willow tree, on ground-line worked in "crinkled" silk. To left of monument, verse in square outline, all lettering black.
Description
Below family record, pyramidal monument (memorial to deceased sister) flanked by rosebushes and butterflies, under weeping willow tree, on ground-line worked in "crinkled" silk. To left of monument, verse in square outline, all lettering black. Border of geometric flowering vine on all four sides. Silk embroidery thread on linen ground. STITCHES: cross, crosslet, satin, stem. THREAD COUNT: warp 28, weft 31/in.
Inscriptions:
"A Family Reccord
Nathaniel and Margaret Pof[s]ey
The Parent's of thof[s]e Children
SoPhia Maria Pof[s]ey born Oct 8th 1813
Fredrick Jerome Pof[s]ey born Feb 28 1815
Margaret Pof[s]ey born Dec 19th 1816
John Pittf[s] Pof[s]ey born Oct 12 1818
Mary Jane Pof[s]ey born Dec 3d 1820
Hester Ann Pof[s]ey born Dec 28 1822
Nathaniel Boliver Pof[s]ey born April 11 1827
Henry Clay Pof[s]ey born Aug 14 1829"
To left of monument in square:
"Weep not my frien
df[s]. af[s] you paff[ss] by.
af[s] you are now. f[s]o
once Waf[s] I. af[s] i
am now. So you
muf[s]t be. prepare
to meet me in
Eternity."
Embroidered on the monument are the following words:
"sacred
to The -
Memory of
Margaret Posey
Who died Feb 2
A.D. 1824 aged 8 YS
1 Month and 14 days
Below monument:
"Hester. Ann. Poseyf[s] Sampler Finished in the 15.th
year of her age. A.D. 1837."
Background:
Hester was born on December 28, 1822, to Nathaniel and Margaret Posey in Baltimore, MD. Nathaniel and Margaret Kemp were married on October 9, 1812, in Frederick, Maryland. Hester was a teacher and did not marry. She died November 7, 1916 in Frederick, MD.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1837
maker
Posey, Hester Ann
ID Number
TE.E365238
catalog number
E365238.000
accession number
124238
This is an overshot coverlet from mid nineteenth century, which features a patch pattern in the center. There are borders on three sides of the coverlet, formed by a fractional reduction of the central patch design.
Description
This is an overshot coverlet from mid nineteenth century, which features a patch pattern in the center. There are borders on three sides of the coverlet, formed by a fractional reduction of the central patch design. The wool yarns appear to be hand spun and dyed using plant-based dyes. The weaver used yellow along with dark and light brown yarns along with a coral colored yarn. The coral yarn may have been a different color when the coverlet was new and faded over time due to use, light, and age. There is a seam down the middle sewn with cotton thread. This coverlet was made in Maryland, possibly Street, Maryland and was woven by an unknown family member for the donor's grandfather, Samuel Sedgwick Scarborough (March 22, 1836-March 4, 1903). The coverlet passed to his son, the donor’s father. The Scarborough family came to Pennsylvania with William Penn and fought in the Revolutionary War. This coverlet is believed to have been woven by a member of the family as a loom was also passed down through the generations. The donor recalled her aunt making rugs on the old loom, which has since disappeared. The coverlet is in excellent condition and measures 94 inches by 80.5 inches. Overshot; Unusual colors, gold, brown, orange (may have been red).
Location
Currently not on view
date made
19th century
c. 1840-1850
maker
unknown
ID Number
TE.T15800
catalog number
T15800.000
accession number
297386
This blue and white, patterned turned twill coverlet is woven in the "Snail Trail," or "Cat Track," pattern with wavy linear border formed from a fractional reduction of the main pattern on all four sides.
Description
This blue and white, patterned turned twill coverlet is woven in the "Snail Trail," or "Cat Track," pattern with wavy linear border formed from a fractional reduction of the main pattern on all four sides. There are no hems along the top or bottom edges, but both are secured with an overcast binding stitch of natural 2-ply, s-twist z-spun cotton thread. This is the same yarn used in the warp and weft and likely originates from the last shot of the weft. According the accession file, this coverlet was woven in the Rockville, Montgomery County, Maryland area sometime during the nineteenth century. The wool in this coverlet is said to have come from sheep raised on the orginal owners farm.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
first half 19th century
date made
1800-1850
maker
unknown
ID Number
TE.T13808
catalog number
T13808.000
accession number
265578
This blue and white, Jacquard, tied-Beiderwand coverlet can be attributed to Jacob B. Gernand (1797-1871) likely between the years 1836-1839 in Graceham, Frederick County, Maryland.
Description
This blue and white, Jacquard, tied-Beiderwand coverlet can be attributed to Jacob B. Gernand (1797-1871) likely between the years 1836-1839 in Graceham, Frederick County, Maryland. This coverlet features a “Double Flower” carpet medallion centerfield, possibly a chrysanthemum, with a double “Tulip and Vine” and Greek key side border and stylized “Fruiting Hops Vine” bottom border. There is a self-fringe on the sides and bottom border. "MIDDLE/TOWN/FRED_K/COUNTY/MARY-" is woven into the lowers cornerblocks. It is these cornerblocks that help to attribute this coverlet to Gernand. Of the known weavers in Frederick County, Maryland, Jacob B. Gernand is the only weaver to abbreviate Frederick as “FRED_K.” Gernand purchased the rights to a patented Jacquard loom in 1835, and his only dated coverlet was woven in 1836. This coverlet measures 79 inches by 74 inches and is constructed of two panels with a center seam. Gernand used 3-ply, S-twist, Z-spun cotton for the warp and weft, 2-ply, S-twist, Z-spun wool for the pattern weft, and Z-spun cotton singles as a binding warp.
Jacob Gernand was born in Frederick County and married three times. His first wife was Elizabeth Williar. He married his second wife, Anna Theodora Becker in 1823, and his third wife was Sybilla Wilhide. He had children with each of his wives. Two of those children were also known weavers, Eugene J. Gernand and William H. Gernand (1823-1883). Jacob was very active in the Moravian Church and served as his local postmaster for many decades. The 1850 Maryland Census listed Jacob as a farm with real estate valued at $1450.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1836-1839
referenced
Uber, Frederick
Coride, Andrew
ID Number
TE.T17298
catalog number
T17298
T.17298
accession number
315253
By the 1840s a new technique [in the field] of needlepoint known as Berlin wool work was the rage. It arose in Germany at the beginning of the 19th century. New dyes became available and brightly colored wools could be worked in tent stitch on canvas.
Description
By the 1840s a new technique [in the field] of needlepoint known as Berlin wool work was the rage. It arose in Germany at the beginning of the 19th century. New dyes became available and brightly colored wools could be worked in tent stitch on canvas. The patterns were painted by hand on “point paper,” which today would be called graph paper. Some of the patterns were copies of famous paintings.
This large Berlin wool work picture of George Washington is based on an original painting by Gilbert Stuart. The stitches used are half cross stitch and tent stitch with the face and hands worked in petit point. It is framed in a gold-leafed wooden frame with applied gold leaf corner decorations and an American eagle at the center of the top. The glass has a reverse-painted black mat with the embroiderer's name, school, and date and the subject of the picture in gold leaf across the bottom: "ELIZA J McCLENAHAN WASHINGTON St. JOHN'S ACADEMY." 1871.
The painting contains many symbols. The dress sword instead of a battle sword indicates a democratic form of government, and the pen and paper on the table signify the rule of law. The leg of the table is shaped like a fasces which is an ancient Roman symbol of power and authority.
Eliza was born November 1854, in Washington, District of Columbia, to James and Margaret Mc Clenahan. Her parents came to the United States from County Galway, Ireland, in a sailboat that took three weeks. Eliza was the oldest of five daughters and one son. She attended St. John’s Academy on Valley St. in Baltimore and studied canvas work and painting. Eliza taught school in Baltimore until her marriage to Michael J. Hook in 1882. They had five children: James, Robert, Margaret and Mary (twins), and Regina. Eliza died in July 1936.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1871
maker
McClenahan, Eliza J.
ID Number
TE.T15672
catalog number
T15672
accession number
297199
Family genealogy is centered above pair of weeping willow trees. At sides of sampler, vines with roses and buds twist around columns and continue upward forming an arch at top. One death record and worker's name at bottom, below weeping willow trees.
Description
Family genealogy is centered above pair of weeping willow trees. At sides of sampler, vines with roses and buds twist around columns and continue upward forming an arch at top. One death record and worker's name at bottom, below weeping willow trees. Brown guidelines under all free embroidery. Silk embroidery thread on linen ground. STITCHES: four-sided, crosslet, cross, satin, straight, chain, stem. THREAD COUNT: warp 28, weft 31/in.
Inscriptions:
"GENEALOGY
Simeon Skillin born Cape Elizabeth, Me May 31 1787.
Nancy Adams born Castine, Me Aug 26, 1789.
Married Aug 16 1812.
OFFSPRING
Edward P Skillin born Portland Me April. 28 1813.
Charles P Skillin born Portland Me Aug 18 1814.
George W Skillin born Portland Me Dec 18 1816.
Simeon Skillin born Portland Me May 12 1818.
Robert Skillin born Portland Me Oct 31 1819.
Sarah A Skillin born Portland Me Jun 29 1821.
Silas B Skillin born Portland Me Oct 29 1822.
Oliver P Skillin born Portland Me May 19 1824.
Eliza M Skillin born Portland Me Dec 25 1826.
Nancy P Skillin born Portland Me Feb 25 1829.
Silas B Skillin born Portland Me Aug 26 1830.
Mary Skillin born Portland Me July 17 1831.
Deaths
Silas B Skillin died
APr. 25, 1826.
By Sarah A Skillin
1835."
Background:
Sarah Adams was born on June 29, 1821, to Simeon and Nancy Adams Skillin in Portland, Maine. Sarah married Smith C. Hadlock, a fisherman, on July 14, 1843, and died in Maine on January 8, 1889. They had eight children—Harriet A., Emma C., Nancy A., Samuel, Oliver E., Cyrena A., Henry B., and Sarah G.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1835
associated dates
1982-12-02
maker
Skillin, Sarah A.
ID Number
1983.0617.03
catalog number
1983.0617.03
accession number
1983.0617
Collection consists of 18 appliqued quilt blocks. Many of which have inscriptions. The blocks are 9 1/2 -10" square. Each block is individually described below:A - Friendship Block. Fleur de Lis pattern with central open space.
Description
Collection consists of 18 appliqued quilt blocks. Many of which have inscriptions. The blocks are 9 1/2 -10" square. Each block is individually described below:
A - Friendship Block. Fleur de Lis pattern with central open space. Edges are turned under by whipstitching, 14 stitches per inch. Stitched to block is inked paper inscribed: "Hannah Hall".
B - Friendship Block. Stylized bows with a small, sawtooth-edged central open space. Background cotton is glazed. Raw edges are secured with buttonhose stitch, 30 per inch. Stitched ot block is paper inscribed in ink, "Miss Mary Warthman".
C - Friendship Block. FLeur de Lis pattern with central open space. Edges aare turned under and whistitched, 14 per inch. Center open space is stamped with floral garland surrounding the name, "Emmaline Evans".
D - Friendship Block. Fleur de Lis pattern with central open space. Edges are turned under and whipstitched, 12 per inch. Stitched to block is inked paper inscribed "Jane Hall, Philadelphia".
E - Friendship Block. Fleur de Lis pattern with central open space. Edges are turned under and whipstitched, 12 per inch. Stitched to block is inked paper inscribed "Mary Ann Dickinson, Du cannon, Pa."
F - Friendship Block. Fleur de Lis pattern with central open space. Edges are turned under and whiipstitched, 12 per inch.
G - Friendship Block. Fleur de Lis pattern with step outlined, on center square inscribed with the inked name, "Lydia Ann Warner" edges are turned under and whipstitched, 13 per inch.
H - Friendship BLock. Fleur de Lis pattern with central open space. Raw edges are secured with button hole stitch, 18 per inch. Stitched to block is inked paper inscribed: "May sorrow never on thee come/Mall thy joys increse/Unnumbered pleasures round thee bloom/And everlasting peace. Copied for Sarah H. Dickinson April 22nd 1849".
I - Friendship Block Fleur de Lis Pattern with central opeen space. Raw edges are secured with button stitch, 24 per inch. Stitched to block is inked paper inscribed, "Hannah H. Dickinson, Philadelphia".
J - Friendship Block. Fleur de Lis Pattern with central open space. Edges are turned under and whipstitched, 14 per inch. Signed in ink on back, "Louise A. (? indecipherable)"/
K - Friendship Block. Unfinished. Leaf pattern with central open space.
L - Honey Bee Block. Central solid square with 3 petal shapes on each corner. Ground fabric of glazed cotton is pieced. Edges of applique are turned under and whipstitched, 12 per inch.
M - Star & Leaf Block. Eight pointed central star with square open space in center surrounded by single and multiple leaf forms. Edges are turned under and finely whipstitched, 18 per inch.
N - Heart Block. Center heart with open space in center, four outward pointing heart shapes at each corner. edges are turned under and finely whipstitched, 20 per inch. Stitched to block is inked paper inscribed, "Lydia P. Wood, Mount Holly".
O - Clematis Block. Central four petaled form with four single petal shapes in each corner. Raw edges secured with button hole stitch, 30 per inch. Stitched to block is inked paper inscribed, "Sarah Hampton".
P - Star Block. Large single five-pointed center star with four smaller stars, one in each corner. Raw edges secured with button hole stitch, 32 per inch. Stitched to block is inked paper inscribed, "Mary Hampton".
Q - Garland of leaves and berries. Stitched to block are two pieces of inked paper inscribed, "John Hampton" and "John A. Hampton".
R - Chintz Applique Block. Motif of flower, buds, leaves and stem cut out of a printed cotton and appliqued to white cotton, with edges turned under using fine whipsti
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1849
ID Number
1992.0128.01A-R
accession number
1992.0128
catalog number
1992.0128.01A-R
The fan motif, often found on crazy-patchwork, is the dominant pattern for the twenty-five, 10-inch blocks composed of a variety of silk, satin, velvet, and taffeta fabrics. Both machine and hand-stitched blocks are joined with a chain stitch by machine.
Description
The fan motif, often found on crazy-patchwork, is the dominant pattern for the twenty-five, 10-inch blocks composed of a variety of silk, satin, velvet, and taffeta fabrics. Both machine and hand-stitched blocks are joined with a chain stitch by machine. The original binding or border was removed before it was donated to the Museum in 1963, by the Sewing Group, Emmanuel Episcopal Church.
Martha Ada Mumma was born July 7, 1859. She married Jacob Emmanuel Thomas (1852-1908) in 1879. They were both born and married in Washington County, Md., and later lived in Baltimore, where their two sons were born. Martha died in Maryland in 1943. Her parlor throw is an example of late 19th-century needlework, exhibiting both hand and machine stitching.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1880-1890
maker
Thomas, Martha Ada
ID Number
TE.T12914
accession number
245859
catalog number
T12914
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
Mary Pleasants Younghusband Brooke made this pieced and appliquéd quilt top at her home in Brooke Grove, Maryland, about 1835-1840.
Description
Mary Pleasants Younghusband Brooke made this pieced and appliquéd quilt top at her home in Brooke Grove, Maryland, about 1835-1840. In 1910-1920, the donor (Mary Farquhar Green), her mother (Edith Brooke Green), and grandmother (Anna Farquhar Brooke) added the embroidery, lined the top, and hemmed the edges. Although family tradition held that the piecework and appliqué were done in 1797, the roller-printed cottons that were used for the piecework indicate a later date.
Mary Younghusband was born in Virginia and married Roger Brooke V in 1804. It is said that her father, Isaac Younghusband, left her a shilling to buy a piece of rope to hang herself for marrying a Quaker. Mary and Roger had five children. Mary died in 1840.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1835-1920
maker
Brooke, Edith
Farquahar, Anna
Younghusband, Mary Pleasants
ID Number
TE.T12884
accession number
245319
catalog number
T12884
This album style quilt top belonged to Susan and Henry Underwood of Baltimore, Maryland. The quilt top is composed of twenty-five 17½-inch blocks. Seventeen are signed or initialed by Underwood family members and friends associated with the Methodist Church.
Description
This album style quilt top belonged to Susan and Henry Underwood of Baltimore, Maryland. The quilt top is composed of twenty-five 17½-inch blocks. Seventeen are signed or initialed by Underwood family members and friends associated with the Methodist Church. Susan and Henry were married in the First Methodist Episcopal Church in Baltimore on August 5, 1830.
Album quilts, so popular in the mid-19th century, were frequently made by groups of women for presentation to a friend or relative upon a special occasion or as a token to honor a highly regarded member of the community. The blocks on this quilt top include traditional pieced and appliqued patterns, and original designs. One block is dated and inscribed: “I love to see the falling leaf/ To watch the waning moon/ I love to cherish the belief/ That all will change so soon/ Henry Johnson/Baltimore March 9th/ 1844."
The blocks or assembled quilt top were given to Susan and Henry, with Susan expected to finish the quilt. The top, never lined or quilted, was passed down through the family to the donor, Susan Underwood's great-granddaughter.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1844
maker
unknown
ID Number
TE.T15321
catalog number
T15321
accession number
293236
Jane Winter Price pieced this example of the “Carpenter’s Wheel” pattern in the second quarter of the nineteenth century and quilted her initials, “JWP,” into a white triangle at the lower edge of the quilt.
Description
Jane Winter Price pieced this example of the “Carpenter’s Wheel” pattern in the second quarter of the nineteenth century and quilted her initials, “JWP,” into a white triangle at the lower edge of the quilt. According to family information, she may have made this quilt during a previous engagement when she lived in Maryland, before the death of her fiancé. “Keate Price McHenry from her Mother” is written in a corner of the lining. Catherine (Kate) Price McHenry was Jane’s daughter, born in 1856 in Arkansas.
Thirty “Carpenter’s Wheel” pieced blocks are set diagonally with alternate white blocks on this elaborately quilted example of mid-nineteenth-century needlework. The blocks are 11½ inches square, and the blue-ground chintz border is 7½ inches wide. The white squares are quilted, 15 stitches per inch, with sprays of flowers and grapes against a background of diagonal lines 1/8 inch apart. Double clamshell quilting is found in the white triangles inside the border. Both the pieced blocks and the border are quilted 9 stitches per inch. The wide border effectively frames the artistic placement of pieced blocks and finely quilted white blocks and triangles.
Jane Winter Price, born in 1818 in Maryland, was the daughter of Catherine Winter Dunnington II (1790 -1863) and Richard Price (b 1771). Catherine was married in 1813, but widowed in 1823. In 1838 she, along with her two living children, Jane and George Richard Price, left with others for Alabama. Jane married Josiah W. McHenry (b.1815) in 1849. In 1860 they lived in La Pile, Union County, Arkansas, with their four children, Catherine (b. 1850), Barnabas (b. 1852), George (b. 1854) and Jane C. (b. 1856) and Jane’s mother, Catherine, then aged 70. By 1870, they were living in Homer, Louisiana, where Jane died in January 1899.
This quilt is among several items that G. Ruth McHenry donated to the Smithsonian in 1961. It had been given to her by her aunt, Kate (Catherine) Price McHenry. Catherine Price McHenry was the daughter of Jane Winter Price, who probably made this quilt before her marriage to Josiah W. McHenry in 1849.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1825-1850
maker
Price, Jane Winter
ID Number
TE.T12697
accession number
238478
catalog number
T12697
This vividly colored quilt was made sometime after 1860 by the sisters of Joseph Long of Washington County, Md.
Description
This vividly colored quilt was made sometime after 1860 by the sisters of Joseph Long of Washington County, Md. Red, yellow, blue and white 3-3/4-inch hexagons are set in concentric rings.
The pieced hexagons on some of the rings are quilted with hexagons, others with floral motifs. The concentric rings are framed by a 9-inch border consisting of three bands, one white and two red. The red bands are quilted in a chevron pattern and the white band in a feathered vine.
The quilting is 9 stitches per inch. The quilt has a cotton filling and the lining is brought to the front and machine-stitched to form the binding. While family information indicates an 1847 date, the 3x2-ply S-twist cabled cotton thread that is used for the machine piecing and hand quilting suggests a later date.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1860-1900
maker
unknown
ID Number
TE.T15695
accession number
296914
catalog number
T15695
An appliquéd eagle motif is the central focus of this patriotic quilt of the early 19th century. The eagle has arrows in one talon, an olive branch in the other, symbolizing both desire for peace and readiness for war.
Description
An appliquéd eagle motif is the central focus of this patriotic quilt of the early 19th century. The eagle has arrows in one talon, an olive branch in the other, symbolizing both desire for peace and readiness for war. It is a version of a symbol adopted by a resolution of the U.S. Congress in 1782 for the official seal.
Surrounding the 30 x 29-inch center are alternating blocks of pieced eight-pointed stars and plain white blocks. It is quilted at 8 stitches per inch. The “American Eagle” quilt was in the Dove-Cator families of Baltimore and Harford Counties, Md.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1800-1825
maker
unknown
ID Number
TE.T15316
catalog number
T15316
accession number
293022
This album quilt from the mid-19th century is constructed of 49 blocks; the majority of them are signed in ink or cross-stitch. On some of the blocks Maryland towns of Westminster, Emmitsburg, and Taney Town are named and ten blocks state dates of 1843, 1844 or 1845.
Description
This album quilt from the mid-19th century is constructed of 49 blocks; the majority of them are signed in ink or cross-stitch. On some of the blocks Maryland towns of Westminster, Emmitsburg, and Taney Town are named and ten blocks state dates of 1843, 1844 or 1845. According to donation information the quilt belonged to Pink Phillips, mother of the donor, Marion Taylor. Pink may have been a family name.
The “Lily” motif, popular in the 19th century, is also known as “Peony,” “Cactus Flower,” or “Tulip” pattern. The red and green roller-printed cottons used for the motif are also typical of the period. The blocks are framed by a green and white saw-tooth border.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1843-1845
maker
unknown
ID Number
TE.T16834
accession number
1978.2412
catalog number
T16834
An elaborate eagle and an American flag block adorn this patriotic example of a mid-19th-century album quilt. Baskets of fruit and flowers, wreaths, and cornucopias, all typical motifs of the period, complete the quilt.
Description
An elaborate eagle and an American flag block adorn this patriotic example of a mid-19th-century album quilt. Baskets of fruit and flowers, wreaths, and cornucopias, all typical motifs of the period, complete the quilt. Some of the most extravagantly decorated blocks appear on a distinctive group of presentation quilts that were made in or near Baltimore, Maryland, and are now popularly known as Baltimore album quilts.
The quilt contains both hand and machine quilting. A two-thread chain-stitch machine was used to outline some of the appliquéd motifs and anchor the bias binding on the edges. The background was hand-quilted with feather plumes, clamshells, and diagonal grid patterns, 8-9 stitches per inch.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1845-1852
quilter
unknown
ID Number
TE.E363155
accession number
117457
catalog number
E363155
This silk quilt, delicately appliquéd and embroidered with baskets and sprays of fruit and flowers, was made by Mary Jane Green Moran when she was a young bride in Baltimore, Maryland.
Description
This silk quilt, delicately appliquéd and embroidered with baskets and sprays of fruit and flowers, was made by Mary Jane Green Moran when she was a young bride in Baltimore, Maryland. The blocks are set diagonally and separated by a white silk sashing appliquéd and embroidered with bud-and-leaf vines, echoed by the undulating leafy vine in the border. The silk top is closely quilted, 12 to 15 stitches per inch, to a muslin backing. It was said that 1,001 skeins of silk thread were used in the quilting. A woven and knotted golden-colored silk fringe is stitched to three sides of this example of mid-nineteenth- century needlework.
Mary Jane (Mrs. Dr. Moran) exhibited her needlework at various fairs and exhibitions. Her entries won awards. It was noted in one Maryland Exhibition in 1851 that the silk quilt with scarlet lining she made and exhibited "is entitled to notice for the labor and industry evinced." This quilt in the Collection is a fine example of her work.
At the time of Mary Jane Green’s marriage in 1846 to Dr. Jonathan J. Moran, he was a resident physician at Washington University College Hospital in Baltimore. It was in that capacity that he attended the dying Edgar Allan Poe in October 1849. Dr. Moran in later years wrote several versions of those last hours that he spent with Edgar Allan Poe, and lectured on the topic as well. From the accounts, it appears that Mary Moran also nursed the dying Poe, reading to him as well as preparing his shroud.
After the closing of the hospital in 1851, the Morans moved to Falls Church, Virginia, where they were both active in the community and the Dulin Methodist Episcopal Church. Dr. Jonathan Moran became the first mayor of Falls Church in 1875 and served until 1877. He died in 1888, and Mary Jane died the following year.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1845
quilter
Moran, Mary Jane Green
ID Number
TE.T07140
accession number
123393
catalog number
T07140
This flax spinning wheel is missing the pitman, and the name "Joseph Gregg" appears on the front of the wheel. Possibly from Maryland.Currently not on view
Description
This flax spinning wheel is missing the pitman, and the name "Joseph Gregg" appears on the front of the wheel. Possibly from Maryland.
Location
Currently not on view
maker
unknown
ID Number
TE.T17270.000
catalog number
T17270.000
accession number
318965
Eliza Jane Baile lovingly stitched and inscribed this cotton album quilt top, finishing a few weeks after her marriage to Levi Manahan in 1851. Original patterns of wreaths of strawberries and flowers are framed by a strawberry vine along the quilt border.
Description
Eliza Jane Baile lovingly stitched and inscribed this cotton album quilt top, finishing a few weeks after her marriage to Levi Manahan in 1851. Original patterns of wreaths of strawberries and flowers are framed by a strawberry vine along the quilt border. Three blocks incorporate inked inscriptions within scrolls. On one corner, one may read “E J Baile. Commenced June 1850” and on the opposite corner, “Finished October 30 185l.” A third scroll has the following sentiment carefully penned:
“Sweett flowers bright as Indian Sky
Yet mild as Beauty’s soft blue eye;
Thy charms tho’ unassuming shed /
A modest splendoure o’er the mead.”
Great attention was given to the completion of this quilt. The sawteeth of the border are individually appliquéd and the strawberries stuffed. All of the motifs have outline quilting, with closely quilted background lines, 10 stitches to the inch. The overall design is further enhanced with embroidery and small details drawn in ink or watercolor.
Eliza Jane Baile, the daughter of Abner Baile (1807-1894) and Frances Pole Baile (1813-1893) was born February 13, 1832, in Maryland. According to Eliza’s obituary, her mother was a descendent of Edward III, King of England. At age nineteen, Eliza married Levi Manahan ((1824-1893) on October 11, 1851. They reared eight children on a farm near Westminster, Carroll County, Maryland.
Eliza was not only an accomplished quilter, she was also known as a folk artist. One of her oil paintings, Stone Chapel of the Methodist Church is at the Historical Society of Carroll County. Other paintings are owned and treasured by her descendents. An active member of the Stone Chapel United Methodist Church, Eliza also founded a Ladies Mite Society and served as president for 50 years. Mite Societies were voluntary organizations that were established in the nineteenth century to raise monies for mission work.
Eliza died June 25, 1923, age 91, at her home in Westminster and is buried at the Stone Chapel Cemetery. As her obituary in the Daily News, Frederick, Maryland, notes, “Her Christian character endeared her to many friends. She was well known as an artist.” In 1954, Eliza’s youngest daughter, Addie, donated her mother’s quilt to the Smithsonian. Eliza's artistic abilities are well represented in the “Bride’s Quilt” she designed and made for her marriage.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1850-1851
maker
Baile, Eliza Jane
ID Number
TE.T011149
accession number
202673
catalog number
T11149
This quilt top was made at Vaux Hall, a plantation near Baltimore, Md., owned by Charles Jessop. The center square, composed of motifs printed about 1800 and appliquéd with linen thread, has been attributed to Mary Gorsuch Jessop.
Description
This quilt top was made at Vaux Hall, a plantation near Baltimore, Md., owned by Charles Jessop. The center square, composed of motifs printed about 1800 and appliquéd with linen thread, has been attributed to Mary Gorsuch Jessop. The corners, with chintz motifs printed about 1830 and sewn with cotton thread, were added later.
The sixteen block-printed motifs applied to the center square are the work of John Hewson (1744-1821), one of the few 18th-century American textile printers who have been identified. Persuaded by Benjamin Franklin to leave England before the Revolutionary War, Hewson set up his printing works on the banks of the Delaware River near Philadelphia. There he worked with such skill and success that the British, who sought to eliminate competition for their products, posted a reward during the Revolutionary War for his body, dead or alive.
Hewson survived to demonstrate fabric-printing, aboard a float, in the Grand Federal Procession held on July 4, 1788, in Philadelphia, to celebrate the adoption of the Constitution. William Bagnall ‘s The Textile Industries of the United States , published in 1893, states, “President Washington was accustomed to point with patriotic pride to domestic fabrics worn by Mrs. Washington and printed at the works of . . . Hewson.”
Mary Gorsuch, born in Baltimore County, Md., in 1767, married Charles Jessop (1759-1828) in 1786. Their son, William, was born in 1800 about the same time that Charles bought 200 acres of land and built Vaux Hall. Mary died in 1830. William’s wife and Mary’s daughter-in-law, Cecilia Barry Jessop, may have added the corners to the quilt top in 1830. William inherited Vaux Hall and lived there until his own death in 1866 (or 1869). Vaux Hall, named for gardens in England, was destroyed in the 1930s in the construction of a dam for Baltimore.
The quilt top was placed in a trunk with other finished family quilts and put in commercial storage. At a later date it was discovered that the lock of the trunk was broken and the finished quilts missing, leaving only this quilt top. The quilt top is significant for the John Hewson prints that were used for the appliqué.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1800-1850
maker
Jessop, Mary Gorsuch
Barry, Cecelia
ID Number
TE.T15295
catalog number
T15295
accession number
292866
Augusta Elizabeth Duvall was a botanist and appropriately enhanced her crazy-patch parlor throw with embroidered floral motifs.
Description
Augusta Elizabeth Duvall was a botanist and appropriately enhanced her crazy-patch parlor throw with embroidered floral motifs. This is an example of contained crazy-patch; nine 22-inch squares are divided by black velvet ribbon within an outer border of pink-dotted blue velvet ribbon. Each of the blocks contains a silk square, set diagonally, with a large floral design and the corners have smaller floral motifs—all different.
Augusta Duvall was born about 1843 in Maryland. She married Dr. Thomas C. Bussey about 1900, but they divorced a few years later. She died in Baltimore, Maryland, in 1932.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1875-1899
maker
Bussey, Augusta Elizabeth Duvall
ID Number
TE.T13517
accession number
257805
catalog number
T13517
Also known as the “Seamstresses’ Quilt,” this red and green example of mid-19th century quilting was in the George Slothower family of Baltimore County, Maryland. He was a wholesale dry goods merchant and the owner of two cotton mills: the Powhatan and Pocahontas Mills.
Description
Also known as the “Seamstresses’ Quilt,” this red and green example of mid-19th century quilting was in the George Slothower family of Baltimore County, Maryland. He was a wholesale dry goods merchant and the owner of two cotton mills: the Powhatan and Pocahontas Mills. Apparently at the time this quilt was crafted, resident seamstresses, usually of German or Dutch origin, made the family clothing and most likely this quilt.
The center basket of flowers is framed by floral-and-leaf panels and borders, each accented with red saw-tooth bands. Echo quilting highlights each of the motifs on this appliquéd quilt.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1840-1860
maker
unknown
ID Number
TE.T17989
accession number
323475
catalog number
T17989
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

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