This coverlet was woven by the LaTourette family, likely John LaTourette (1793-1849) in Fountain County, Indiana in 1842. John and his wife moved from New York and New Jersey first to Germantown, Ohio in 1816. The family moved again in 1828 to Fountain County, Indiana. By 1840, John had established a successful weaving business for himself and his family on their farm. John trained both his daughter Sarah (1822-1914) and son, Henry (1832-1892) to weave as well, and after John’s death in 1849 his children continued the thriving business until 1871. The family was of French Huguenot stock, migrating to New York at the end of the seventeenth century. This coverlet was woven in two panels on a hand loom with a Jacquard attachment. The family still possesses a photograph of the loom attachment sitting on the porch of the house in Indiana. The centerfield pattern is an elaborate floral carpet medallion arrangement. There are borders along three sides. The side borders feature flowering urns and floral motifs, and the lower border depicts scrolling floral designs. The LaTourette family all used the same rose cornerblock design. Sarah and Henry’s later coverlets incorporate the word “YEAR” in to the cornerblock designs differentiating them from those of their father.
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