This green wool quilt, crafted in the late 18th-early 19th century has a lovely quilted motif of a large tree with flowers and branches stitched in feathered arcs reaching from the bottom edge of the quilt almost to the top. The tree is flanked by two long curving feathered vines and framed by bands of feathered quilting on the edges. Background quilting of parallel lines sets off the motif. Quilting is 6 stitches per inch.
Plain-weave green wool is used for the top, yellow plain-weave wool for the lining. The filling is wool as is both the sewing and quilting threads. This Massachusetts quilt by an unknown maker is a beautiful example of whole cloth wool quilting.
Marion Frick, a dressmaker, constructed this “Log Cabin” quilt in the “Barn Raising” pattern. The quilt has samples of many different silks; plain, pattern-woven, ribbed striped, plaid, dotted, and watered. Possibly she was able to amass the many silk scraps from dresses that she made.
The parlor throw is both hand and machine sewn. The 3/8-inch strips of silk are pieced in 3½-inch blocks. A 3¾-inch red silk border is machine stitched. The lining is red twilled cotton, hand quilted, with an inner lining of loosely-woven cotton. Diagonal grid quilting pattern was used for the lining and the front and back are turned in and machine-stitched through all layers.
Marion Frick was born in Northumberland, Pennsylvania, February 5, 1829, the daughter of John Frick and Anna Elizabeth Gotshall. She never married, but worked as a dressmaker and lived with her sister’s family. She died in October 1908 and is buried in the Lewisburg Cemetery, Lewisburg, Pennsylvania.
This silk variation of the “Log Cabin” pattern was used to make this parlor throw or quilt that was in the Macy family. The donor at the time of donation in 1971 remembered seeing it as a 10 year old on a bed in his family’s home in Ossining, New York.
The twenty 12-inch blocks are pieced with a wide variety of silks and satin. Fancy embroidery stitches (Herringbone, Feather, French knot, Straight, Daisy, Buttonhole, Stem, and Satin) embellish the blocks which are constructed on cotton squares. Each center of a “Log Cabin” block has a different embroidered motif. The blocks are framed by a 4 ½-inch border composed of 1-inch strips of many different silks. The top is attached to a black cotton satin lining which is quilted 7 stitches per inch. The resulting quilt of many colors is still impressive to view.
The pineapple motif, often associated with hospitality, was pieced-and-appliqued on sixteen 13-inch white blocks for this mid-19th century quilt. The blocks are framed by appliqued swags with small pineapples and buds, also of orange and green cottons. According to family information, it was made by the great-great-great aunt of the donor, unfortunately no name was given.
The central panel of red and white squares is the focus of this quilt. Thirty red squares are appliqued with white flowers, birds, and butterflies; 20 different motifs. The red and white squares are framed by a six-inch red strip with appliqued white leaves and crosses. According to the donor the center panel of this quilt was done in the late-18th-early-19th century and about 1920 the outer borders of red and white were added and the entire piece quilted. Four corner squares, red with white applique, complete the overall design. The quilting pattern consists of outline, feathered vine, and grid quilting, 9 stitches per inch. A few quilted motifs; hearts, birds, stars, leaves and animals further embellish the quilt.
In 1897, the year this quilt was begun, women's fashion was for long skirts as seen in the corner block of Edna Force Davis’s elaborately embroidered parlor throw. Over thirty years later in 1929, when Edna finished her project, the fashion had changed and skirts were now much shorter, as her embroidered figure on the opposite corner block indicates. In 1965 Hazel Davis, Edna’s daughter, donated her mother's wool parlor throw on which Hazel's own initials, “HLD,” appear.
Edna used wool for the many patches on this throw. She basted patches to an interlining of ticking; the edge of each patch was folded under, and joined with embroidery using wool yarns. The parlor throw was further embellished with many floral motifs. Other designs include birds, butterflies, sleeping babies, an anchor and chain, a rabbit, fans, and spider webs. Many of these were popular designs; others may have had meaning. Two motifs, an Odd Fellows symbol and a violin, were included---Edna’s husband played the violin and was a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, a benevolent fraternal organization.
Most of the embroidery is done with wool, mainly a soft 2-ply wool often referred to as “zephyr yarn.” Edna used satin, chain, stem, back, French knot, daisy, straight, weaving, seed, buttonhole, herringbone, and cross stitches to achieve her designs. “Edna Force Davis” is prominently embroidered in the border, completed in the 1920s, that frames the crazy-patch center. The lining is pink wool.
While many of the motifs and stitches are typical of fancy needlework of the period, Edna personalized her parlor throw with original designs, significant dates, and initials, as well as an embroidered verse. Phrases and short verses that had special meaning, such as the one below, are frequently inked or embroidered on needlework objects.
“There is so much good in the worst of us,
And so much bad in the best of us,
That it scarcely behooves any of us
To talk about the rest of us.”
This verse is often attributed to Edward W. Hoch (1849-1925), the seventeenth governor of Kansas, who merely printed it in the Record Marion, Kansas, of which he was editor. It appears in early 20th-century poetry books and anthologies and its origins are not known.
Edna Force was born July 27, 1871, in Hunterdon County, N. J. She married James Bennett Davis (1865-1935) of Fairfax County, Va., on February 15, 1893. They had two children, Hazel and Carl, and lived in Fairfax, Va. Edna died January 12, 1952, and is buried in the Pohick Cemetery, also in Fairfax. Her needlework skills and design sense make this crazy-patch parlor throw a unique addition to the Collection.
The large center block of this album quilt is inscribed in ink: “Hester Willard To her Sister Mary Norriston April 12 1842.” Hester’s sister would have been Mary H. (?) Taylor. Almost all of the other 68 pieced and appliquéd blocks contain an inked or stamped signature, and many are dated between 1841 and 1844. Additionally many are inscribed with verse from hymns or period literature expressing parting and remembrance. The signatures on the quilt blocks are those of relatives, neighbors, and friends. They lived either in Lower Dublin in Philadelphia County or in the city of Philadelphia, except for Mary’s sisters, Hester Willard and Emily Taylor, who lived in Norristown, Pa, a suburb of Philadelphia.
All of the 68 pieced and appliquéd blocks are different, creating the sampler effect. Both traditional motifs and delightful original designs are represented. These are arrayed around a 17 x 18 1/4-inch center square. An unfinished quilt top, evidence indicates that it was reassembled at some time. Four blocks have been enlarged with fabrics that appear to be of a later date (1875-1900). The fabrics are mainly roller-printed dress fabrics with some furnishing chintzes, there are no plain-colored cottons.
Mary was probably the daughter of Thomas and Susan Wright Taylor. Neither Thomas nor Susan is listed in the 1850 Census. Earlier, Susan is listed as head of household in the 1830 and 1840 Census for Lower Dublin, Philadelphia, Pa. Many of the Wright family members are buried in the cemetery at the Pennyback Baptist Church which was first named the Lower Dublin Baptist Church. It was the first Baptist Church in Philadelphia. We know no further information about Mary Taylor ---whether she had married, gone west, or died.
Laura Clark pieced 11½-inch blocks in a variation of the Log Cabin pattern also referred to as Pineapple or Chestnut Burr. Each of the blocks has a black center and corners. The pointed edges are bound in black velvet. The blocks are pieced with paper templates that are still in place over muslin foundation blocks, with a very thin cotton filling between the paper and the top fabric. The fabrics used include plain, striped, ribbed, pattern-woven, checked, printed, and brocaded silks as well as velvet, taffeta, cotton and ribbon. Many of the fabrics date from the 1850s and 1860s, but there are also fabrics from the 1870s and 1880s, suggesting that the piece was made in the 1880s using recycled fabrics. Herringbone, buttonhole, chain feather, cross and French knot embroidery stitches embellish the surface. The table cover is lined with a warp-printed, woven striped silk.
Laura A. Baldwin was born in Rutland, Vermont in February 1834 and moved with her family to Pennsylvania as a young child. In about 1860 she married Chester B. Clark. Chester was born in Torringford, Connecticut in 1827 and had also moved with his family to Pennsylvania. In 1867 Laura and Chester Clark settled in Earlville, Illinois where they lived the rest of their lives. Chester was listed as a merchant and capitalist in the censuses and died in 1901. Laura's grandson, Chester Wells Clark donated the table cover to the Museum in 1951.
This pieced quilt consists of 5-inch blocks in the “Dutch Tile” or “”Diamond in the Square” pattern, set diagonally in 7-inch wide strips. These strips are separated by 7-inch strips of cotton printed in a series of geometric stripes. The fabrics are mainly geometric roller-printed cottons. The lining consists of three lengths of plain-woven ivory cotton. It is quilted 8 stitches per inch. The binding is a ½-inch (finished) straight strip of the same printed cotton used for the long dividing strips; seamed to the front, whipped to the lining. The variety of fabrics utilized contributes to the overall design of this quilt.
Purchased at a church bazaar in Fort Smith, Arkansas, this Bible-inspired rendition in fabric of the Garden of Eden is a testimony to the ingenuity and creativity of quilt makers in the second half of the nineteenth century. The donor's grandmother, Laura Doty Diffey, acquired the quilt in 1900. It is possibly the work of Sylvia S. Queen of Olathe, Kansas, as a quilt with similar vignettes, attributed to her, is in the Johnson County Museum in Shawnee, Kansas.
The center medallion of this quilt represents the firmament, with the sun, stars, and four phases of the moon. Artfully arranged around the center are scenes from the Old Testament: Adam and Eve, Eve tempted by the serpent, Eve giving Adam the apple, and, finally, Adam and Eve running out of the Garden of Eden. Appliquéd motifs of birds, butterflies, flowers, and fruit trees are interspersed. A flowering vine that grows from a double trunk at the bottom of the quilt frames the vignettes, leaving a space at the top. The scalloped edge echoes the curving vine. Plain and roller-printed cottons, and plain and checked silks are used for the appliquéd motifs, some of which are stuffed. Outline-quilting is used for the sun, moon, stars and larger flowers. The background is quilted in parallel diagonal lines, 3/8-inch apart, 8 stitches per inch.
Sylvia S. Queen was born in 1804 in Connecticut and lived for several years in Kankakee Township, LaPorte County, Indiana, where she is listed on the 1870 and 1880 censuses. From 1881 on, she lived in Olathe, Kansas. Sylvia made a will in 1891 while she was living with a granddaughter, Susan M. Sanford. The will mentioned a son, Faber M. Walker of Benton Harbor, Michigan. Born about 1829, he served in the Civil War for a short time. He was to receive “. . . the sum of one dollar . . . having received before this all I intended to give [him] . . .” Sylvia’s will states that most of her belongings were to go to her granddaughter “. . . if she lives with and takes care of me, as she has done ever since she came to live with me in the month of April 1891, as long as I live.” According to Sylvia’s obituary in the Olathe Mirror May 14, 1896, she had “been an invalid for a number of years . . . She was possessed of some ability as a poet and many of her friends have her writings as mementos . . . . She was an ardent Christian and gave liberally to the church.” Sylvia died May 9, 1896, at the residence of Mr. and Mrs. Edwin Sanford, and is buried in the Olathe Cemetery in Kansas.
Nine-inch square “Nine-patch” blocks are set diagonally with a 5-inch sashing. The roller print cotton with a floral motif on a dark brown ground used for the sashing contrasts with the floral, geometric, stripe, and check motifs of the cottons used for the blocks. The lining consists of plain-woven orange cotton. The filling is cotton and it is quilted 6 stitches per inch. No separate binding, the front is turned to the lining and whip stitched. The quilt is an example of late 19th century quilting and fabrics.
Lengths of fabric, printed to imitate patchwork, were used to make this mid-19th century quilt. Cotton was roller-printed in blue, brown, red-brown, and olive drab to make up the pattern for the simulated patchwork also referred to as “cheater cloth.” The quilt is lined with white cotton fabric and is quilted.
This patriotic quilt in red and green was the inspiration for Edith Magnette’s watercolor (Plate 227) that was part of the Index of American Design project (1935-1942). Edith Magnette rendered over 50 items for the Index , many of them textile-related.
The quilt was originally owned by Mrs. Charles Gramm and made by her grandmother. It was lent to the project by Louise Zotti, and donated by her to the National Museum of American History.
The central eagle motif, surrounded by 8-pointed stars, is typical of patriotic symbols of the mid-19th century. The blocks on the border are in the “Oak Leaf and Reel” pattern, also typical of the period.
Matilda Whisler appliquéd this variation of the “Whig Rose” pattern in the mid-19th century. She accentuated the pattern with outline quilting on all of the appliquéd motifs. Quilted feathered plumes (“Princess Feather”), diagonal lines ¼-inch apart, and clamshells on the outer edges further enhance the design. Finely quilted at 7-10 stitches per inch, hers is a typical example of the red and green quilts popular in that period.
Matilda Kramer was born in Frederick County, Va., on 18 March 1817. She married Henry Whisler, a native of Rockingham County, Va., in 1818. According to census information, they lived in Rockingham County and had three daughters and a son. Henry was a shoemaker. His son, Cambias (1846-1909) followed his father in the shoemaking trade. Henry died in 1885, and Matilda on 15 September 1898. Both are buried in Trissell’s Mennonite Church Cemetery in Rockingham County.
In 1942, the donor, one of Matilda’s daughters, wrote: “In 1861 my mother made a very beautiful quilt which is still in excellent condition. . . . I shall be glad to donate it.” Matilda’s carefully crafted quilt in the “Whig Rose” pattern was considered a “desirable specimen” by the Museum.
A poppy motif dominates this pieced, appliqued and embroidered quilt, probably assembled by Cynthia Hobby (1770-1863) and quilted by her granddaughter Mary Elizabeth Hitchcock Seamans (1839-1881). Twenty-five 15½-inch blocks are framed by a 9-inch border that has appliqued clusters of cherries with leafy stems and is edged with pieced sawtooth bands. Fine quilting, 12 stitches per inch, outlines all the appliqued motifs. Diagonal grid and diagonal line quilting further enhance the blocks and border on this well designed quilt.
This is one of three quilts donated by the same family.
Composed of eighty-one blocks, this parlor throw is an example of contained crazy-patchwork popular in the late 19th century. Each block has a cross-shape center outfined by black silk piecing. The cross shapes are pieced from an assortment of multicolored silks.
The piecing is secured with a variety of fancy stitches; buttonhole, detached chain, herringbone, feather, straight, and couching. A machine-quilted (commercially available) silk lining, in a scrolling vine pattern, provides weight and depth to the parlor throw. The precisely stitched parlor throw is completed by a 5 ¼-inch green velvet border edged with a heavy green braid.
The quilt was in the Bates family of New Haven, Conn., and was donated by a family member.
Fifty-six squares were embroidered, painted, crazy-patched, assembled, and surrounded by a 9-inch plush border. The blocks represent the states and territories of the United States at the time the bedcover was made; some are dated 1883 and 1884. The bedcovering was made for William Wilson Corcoran (1798-1888), whose initials, WWC, are embroidered in the center of the gold silk lining. It hung for many years in the Louise Home, a charitable institution for elderly women in need, which he established in 1870. Among his many other accomplishments is the founding of the Corcoran Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C.
One side of this reversible crib or child’s quilt is pieced in the “Flying Geese” pattern. Rows of 4 ¾-inch triangles alternate with 3-inch strips of printed cotton. The other side is composed of 2 ½-inch strips of 3 different printed cottons. It is machine pieced and machine quilted (18 stitches per inch). A diamond quilting pattern was formed by a 1 ½-inch diagonal grid. The binding is a 5/8-inch bias strip of roller-printed cotton folded over the edge and machine-stitched through all layers.
Agricultural fairs flourished in the mid-nineteenth century and exhibitions of women's needlework skills drew large audiences as they competed for prizes and recognition. A bronze medal, designed by William Barber, was inscribed, “Awarded to Mrs. Joseph Granger for the best Crib Quilt – Worcester, Mass. 1878” by the New England Agricultural Society. A certificate from the office of the New England Agricultural Society states that: “Mrs. Joseph Granger Worcester, Mass. received a Bronze medal awarded at the New England and Worcester Agricultural Fairs, held in the City of Worcester, Mass. September, 1878, for the best Crib Quilt.” Mrs. Joseph (Caroline) Granger’s granddaughter, Claire L. Meyer, donated the quilt, medal, and certificate to the Smithsonian in 1972.
A note with the quilt, written by one of Caroline Granger’s children, states: “Mother’s quilt all hand quilted she made her own designs with a pin. She got first prize at the Sturbridge fair and every time she showed it at the New England fair – there was even questioning that it was machine made so every body had to examine it closely.” Another note, in different hand, that was with the quilt states: “Couverture de berceau piquee a la main por Mmes Joseph Granger qui importa le primier prix – (Medaille d’or) ‘New England Fair’ de 1878.”
The all-white child’s quilt, according to the note referred to in French as a “cradle cover,” is made of cotton. The stylized floral center medallion on a diagonal grid background is finely quilted, 12 stitches per inch. The 9-inch border is quilted with an undulating vine and flowers on a background of parallel diagonal lines. Caroline Granger’s design and precise hand quilting are definitely of prize-winning quality.
Marie Caroline Lamoureux was born on March 3, 1850 in St-Ours, Richelieu, Quebec, Canada. She was the daughter of Antoine Lamoureux and Marie Elizabeth Moge. On January 30, 1873, she married Joseph H. Granger in N. Grosvenordale, Connecticut. They lived in Worcester, Massachusetts, and had twelve children. Two children, born in 1873 and 1875, died before their first birthdays. A daughter, Marie Ida, was about two when Caroline’s quilt won a prize in 1878 and another daughter, Alam Victoria, was born in late 1878. Caroline died on June 9, 1936.
Claire L. Meyer, the Granger’s granddaughter, wrote; “Many thanks for your letter of July 7, 1972 regarding a crib quilt made by my grandmother a hundred years ago. I am also enclosing for your consideration a quilt machine stitched by my grandfather! . . . I hope it will be worthy of the national collection.” The two quilts are worthy, and provide an interesting contrast between the precise handwork of Mrs. Caroline Granger and the equally precise machine stitching of Mr. Joseph Granger.
Margaret Langford pieced this version of “Star of Bethlehem” also known as “Harvest Sun” or “Prairie Star” in the later part of the 19th century. The nine pieced blocks are set off by 14-inch and 7¼-inch plain white squares to create a dramatic overall design. It is quilted, 10 stitches per inch, with outline and diagonal grid patterns. Three sides have a 2½-inch printed cotton border.
Margaret O’Sullivan was born in 1852, to Jeremiah (1814-1884) and Elizabeth “Betty” Osburn (1824-1876) O’Sullivan in Spencer County, Kentucky. She married Larkin R. Langford on October 8, 1867. They lived in Anderson County, Kentucky. She died on April 13, 1894, in Spencer County, Kentucky. Another of her quilts, in the “Spider’s Web” pattern, is in the collection of the Kentucky Historical Society.