This carefully thought-out example of the pieced “Log Cabin” or “Courthouse Steps” pattern was given as a gift of friendship from the Copland Family of Johnson Creek, Wis., to Clara Foy. She in turn gave it to her stepgrand daughter, the donor, in 1942 as a gift before she was married. The quilt was exhibited at a county fair where it won a blue ribbon and possibly was exhibited at the Wisconsin State Fair and other fairs.
The bedcover is composed of 7 ½-inch blocks made of many different late-19th-century roller-printed cottons. The blocks are framed by four rows of short printed cotton strips, with a 1 ¾-inch cotton border print on the inner edge and a different 1 ¾-inch cotton border print on the outer edge. The blocks and strips are constructed on muslin squares and rectangles. In each of the four corners of the border is a 7-inch block pieced in the “White House Steps” version of the “Log Cabin” pattern. Although the donor referred to it as a quilt, it has neither a lining nor a filling and is not quilted.
Clara Falcy, the recipient of this bedcover from the Copland Family, was born in Wisconsin in 1887. She married a Mr. Radditz and moved to Indiana. After his death, she married George L. Foy (about 1870-1933) in 1931 and they lived in Wisconsin.
The numerous fabrics in this version of the “Log Cabin” quilt make it an interesting contribution to the Collection.
This blue and white, jacquard, double-woven coverlet was woven in two sections, each 37.25 inches wide. The total coverlet measures 97 7/8 inches by 74 ½ inches. The centerfield pattern is composed of stylized dogwood flower medallions interspersed with bellflower-inspired carpet tiles. The side borders feature an meandering vine with irises. The bottom border features a scrolling floral vine associated with the LaTourette family of Fountain City, Indiana. This attribution is further confirmed by the flower in the cornerblock, which is the trademark of the LaTourette family. The appearance of the word "Year" indicates it was woven by Sarah LaTourette, or her brother Henry. John LaTourette. John LaTourette, the family patriarch, was born into a New York/New Jersey, Huguenot weaving family in 1793. He and his wife, Sarah Schenck moved West after their marriage in 1816, moving from Ohio to Fountain County, Indiana in 1828. It is here where John established his weaving business and taught daughter Sarah (b. 1822) and son, Henry (b. 1832) the art of Jacquard weaving. John died in 1848, and his children carried on the family business, weaving their last coverlet in 1871.
Five 24-inch pieced 8-Pointed Star blocks and four Railroad Crossing blocks were constructed using 27 different printed cottons. This quilt top was made about 1879 by Betty West, who was employed by Leonides C. Campbell and his wife, Mary, as a nurse for their children.
One of the children, Mary C. Watkins, wrote in 1939: “Betty West, our Negro nurse, made this quilt for my brother Kennedy and me. The many stitches made by stiff old fingers showes the real love she had for the two white children entrusted to her care. I treasured the quilt & have kept it all these years in loving memory of her.”
L. Hesse wove this Figured and Fancy, red, white and green, tied-Beiderwand coverlet in 1840. There is no location or customer indicated in the cornerblock, but we know from other extant coverlets that Hesse and his brothers, both named Frederick were active in Somerset Township, Perry County and Hocking Counties in Ohio. The centerfield pattern features the common “Double Rose and Starburst” motif which is accented by smaller geometric crosses and fylfots (swastikas). There is a double border featuring addorsed “Eagles and Fruit Tree” and eight-pointed stars along the sides and bottom of the coverlet. There is self-fringe along the sides. The coverlet was woven on a hand loom with a patterning device attachment (either barrel loom or Jacquard mechanism) made in two pieces seamed together up the center. The Hesse brothers were active in Somerset, Hocking, and Perry Counties, Ohio. Frederick A. (b. 1801), Frederick E. (b. 1827), and L. Hesse (b. 1809) were Saxon immigrants from what was then the Kingdom of Prussia. They settled in Ohio, each opening their own weaving business. The brothers have extant coverlets dating from the years, 1838-1862 collectively. This coverlet belonged to the great-grandmother of the donor. Although we do not know her name, the accession file tells us she was born around 1830 and from Ohio, helping to further situate this coverlet in the proper context.
This late 18th – early 19th century quilt is pieced in a framed-center pattern. The 13-inch outer border on three sides is a plate-printed cotton. The fanciful flowers, birds, and insects create a dynamic pattern. The fourth side has a large square in a blue floral print on either corner creating a contrast to the mainly brown and beige colors of the other fabrics. The geometric layout of the central portion directs attention to the octagonal center.
The border is a quilted pattern of a vine-with-flower motif. Additionally, the maker seems to have stitched freeform floral designs in each of the triangular pieces. Unfortunately nothing is known of the maker or owner, but the quilt has a wonderful array of fabrics, stunningly assembled.
This blue and white double-cloth, Figured and Fancy coverlet was possibly made in Scipio, New York in 1830. There are “Double Lily” carpet medallions in the centerfield, and three borders depicting fruit trees, pine trees, and trees with no leaves. It is possible that this border pattern is attempting to represent the changing of the seasons from bare to leaf, to fruiting, and back again. The lower two corner blocks have this woven in: "E.V/Valen/tine/Scipio/N.Y. 1830". According to the donor, the coverlet was made for her grandmother, Mrs. Elizabeth Hilliker Valentine (1782-1874). The weaver of Scipio coverlets has yet to be discovered. There is no evidence of active weavers working in Scipio; however, there are numerous weavers in Cayuga County. Many of these weavers advertised in local newspapers with several different locations where customers could order their coverlets, drop off their wool yarn, and then pick up the finished coverlet. It likely that the Valentine family placed the order for this coverlet at a local general store of inn, where the yarn and order was taken to a weaver or small manufactory in the county.
This quilt, a variation of the “Irish Chain” pattern, was made for Mary T. Barnes’s dower chest in 1850. She married Gen. John Bratton Erwin in 1866. Blocks pieced in red, green, and white cottons were set such that the “chain” runs both horizontally and vertically. Both plain and printed fabrics were used for the border which is quilted with parallel diagonal lines. An inked inscription, “Mary T. Barnes 1850” is in the upper left corner block. Mary’s two daughters donated the “Irish Chain” Quilt in 1933.
Mary T. Barnes, the only child of Dixon Barnes (1816-1862) and Charlotte Brown Barnes, was born 16 October 1840 in Lancaster County, S. C.. Her mother died when Mary was six. Her father, Col.l Dixon Barnes, commanded the 12th South Carolina Infantry during the Civil War. Colonel Barnes died as a result of wounds during the Antietam Campaign when Mary was about 22.
After her marriage in 1866, she and John Bratton Erwin (1834-1916) settled on her plantation in Lancaster County, S. C. John, trained as a lawyer, fought in the Civil War. After he married, he managed Mary’s large estates. They had six children of whom three lived into adulthood. In 1876 John Erwin was elected to the U. S. House of Representatives and in 1886 to the Senate. Mary died in 1893 and John in 1916. Both are buried in the Camp Creek Methodist Church Cemetery, Lancaster County, S. C.
This “Monk’s Belt,” orange, blue, brown, and white coverlet was repurposed during its life as the batting for a quilt. The pattern of this coverlet, known as “Monk’s Belt,” is a checkerboard repeat about five inches long and four inches wide, consisting of two, quarter-inch-wide blocks, with an inch-high horizontal band made up of stripes of blue/yellowish-tan/blue separating each row of blocks. The alternately woven yellow-tan and dark brown weft yarns create the block and stripe pattern. This coverlet was found inside an 18th-century quilt. It is believed to be one of the oldest coverlet in the collection--possibly as early as the 1770s. The coverlet measures 86 inches by 61 inches and was constructed from two panels. There are borders along three edges created from fractional reductions of the main pattern.
This quilt was among several pieced-work quilts, quilt blocks, and other household textile items that were donated in 1932. It is the work of Celia Corwin, the daughter of Rachel Burr Corwin, whose quilts are also in the Collection.
A wide variety of plain-weave and roller-printed cottons were used for the cross-and-square design, a variation of the “Economy” pattern. The thirty 13-inch blocks are framed with a 4½-inch polka-dot sashing and border. The lining is composed of four lengths of roller-printed stripe fabric. Linear quilting, 5 stitches per inch, completes the quilt.
Celia Corwin, daughter of Samuel and Rachel Burr Corwin, was born April 13, 1816, in Orange County, New York. She never married and died December 23, 1884. The Textile Collection also contains a sampler that she made in 1830.
According to donor information, Ruth Ann Stottlemyer crafted this quilt while staying with her brothers on a farm in Goose Creek, Piatt County, Illinois. Five 24 ½-inch blocks, with triangular blocks filling in the edges, are appliqued with roses, leaves, buds, and stems in a pattern known as “Whig Rose” or “Democrat Rose.” These are framed by a 9-inch border appliqued with scalloped swags held by roses and ribbons. Outline quilting delineates all the appliqued motifs; the spaces between are closely filled with quilted sprays of flowers, feathered scrolls, leaves, and buds. It is finely quilted at 14 stitches per inch.
Ruth Ann Stottlemyer (Stottlemeyer) was born on September 2, 1843 to Jonathan Recher Stottlemyer (1820-1896) and Susannah Blickenstaff Stottlemyer (1823-1893) in Maryland. According to census information in 1880, she is listed as “keeping house” on the farm of her brother in Illinois. She died in Washington County, Maryland on August 9, 1903. Ruth Ann is buried in Beaver Creek, Maryland.
“1896” was cleverly incorporated into the overall design of this Alphabet themed quilt top. The maker's name, Elva Smith, is appliqued across the top. Notably the “S” in her name and the “S” of the alphabet are both backward. Thirty 8-inch square white blocks with machine stitched appliqued letters of the alphabet and “1896” alternate with 20 dark colored print fabric square blocks, set on the diagonal. Dark print fabric triangles complete the 55-inch x 68-inch center. The center is framed by an 8-inch strip of light colored fabric with 20 stars appliqued on three sides and “ELVA SMITH” across the top. A 3-inch strip of dark-colored print fabric completes the border. It is turned under and sewn with a running stitch. There is no filling or lining.
Quilt making can be a teaching tool as well as a useful household item. Might this quilt top have been the result of a young girl’s early needlework efforts? Unfortunately there is no information on Elva Smith nor is it certain the quilt is from New York, although applique letters are most common in New York quilts.
The focal point, an appliqued basket of flowering branches, is surrounded by an undulating flowering vine and a 2 ½-inch band of printed cotton. These are in turn framed by an 8-inch border appliqued with a leafy undulating vine, another 2 ½-inch band of printed cotton, another 13-inch border with appliqued motifs and a final outer band of printed cotton. Quilted, 9-10 stitches per inch, with a variety of leaf motifs and background of diagonal lines and clamshells. This quilt is a fine example of the frame-within-a-frame overall design.
This counterpane, or whole-cloth quilt is made of lengths and fragments of cotton, block-printed in England with a palm-tree-and-pheasant motif. A design very popular in the early nineteenth century. The printed fabric dates from 1820-1830, although the quilt was made in the mid-19th century. The lining consists of 36 pieces of plain-woven cotton with several different thread counts. A few pieces have rows of needle holes from previous use.
Written in ink on one piece is "E.L. (?) Hale P.” The quilting pattern consists of diagonal lines about 1 inch apart; 5-6 stitches per inch. The binding is a ¾-inch (finished) straight strip of roller-printed brown striped cotton seamed to the front, whipped to the lining. This quilt is an example of recycling fabrics, possibly bed furnishings, in the mid-19th century.
With an astute arrangement of the colors of the diamond shaped pieces, a framed center design was achieved on this example of a mid-nineteenth century silk quilt. Silk diamond-shaped patches, 2-1/4 inches long, are pieced in straight vertical rows. A wide variety of silks are represented; plain, ribbed, checked, brocaded, printed, pattern-woven, plaid, and striped. The “frame” is an 8-inch brown silk border, quilted in a wave pattern. There is outline quilting on most of the diamonds. It is quilted at 8 stitches per inch. The quilt has a cotton filling and is lined with a plaid cotton. This colorful silk quilt was said to be found in Bremen, Maine, but no other information was given.
This example of a late 18th-early 19th-century bedcover is quilted in a pattern of repeating large feathered clamshells, 7 stitches per inch. The quilt was made with glazed indigo wool, has a wool filling, and wool/cotton lining. Both sewing and quilting threads are 2-ply blue wool. The edges of the front and original lining were turned in and stitched with blue wool. It has had much wear and a second lining of a cotton/silk fabric was added at later date.
The fabric for this quilt was dyed blue with indigo, one of the oldest dyes used for textiles. Glazing, a process involving the use of a hot press on wool fabric, resulted in a smooth, lustrous fabric surface. Little of the glaze remains on this quilt.
This quilt tells two stories. The original quilt consists of pieced vertical strips of block- and roller-printed cottons dating from the 1830-1850s. It was filled, lined with a plain woven brown cotton, and quilted.
An “Eight-pointed Star” pattern was used for a new top to cover the original, older, worn out quilt. Seven-inch “Star” blocks are set diagonally with 7-inch squares of printed cottons; framed with a 4-inch border of striped cotton. This top consists of roller-printed cottons of geometrics, florals, and stripes. The “new” top was quilted to the “older” quilt, but in a different pattern. Both are quilted at 7 stitches per inch. The edges of the older quilt were cut off and a binding of ¾-inch straight strips of 4 different roller-printed cottons is seamed to the front, whipped to the lining. The quilt is an example of recycling an older quilt by adding a more fashionable new top.
This well-worn, white-work quilt bears an inked inscription: “Picked up by Horatio G. Coykendall Lieut. And Adj. 18th Wis. Infty in South Carolina during Shermans March to the sea.” Donated by his granddaughter in 1970, she wrote: “My grandfather was a captain serving until Sherman and was on Shermans march thru Georgia to the sea. This quilt was picked up on this campaign and he has written in one corner this fact.”
The quilt is stuffed and corded. A center motif of crossed sprays of narrow-leaved vines is encircled by a meandering vine with leaves and clusters of berries. A 12-inch band of diagonal grid quilting frames the design.
Horatio G. Coykendall was born December 7, 1840, in Peoria County, Illinois. He served in several Illinois and Wisconsin military units during the Civil War. According to a Memoriam published by the Military Order of Loyal Legion of the United States Minnesota Commandery (Circular No. 7 Series 1906), he fought in many campaigns including Lexington, Shiloh, and the siege of Vicksburg. After the war he was involved in railroad building and was described as a man “of an iron will and great energy of character, which made for success in business . . . In the home life he was exemplary, kindly and sympathetic, a consistent Christian and worthy citizen.” He died at Rochester, Minnesota, March 22, 1906.
This hexagon pieced quilt is either of English or American origin. Two and a half inch hexagons in yellow- and green-ground, roller-printed cottons are arranged in concentric circles, each with a red and white printed center. Nine patches have been replaced, and the binding appears to be a later 19th century fabric. The lining consists of three lengths of plain-woven ivory cotton. The filling is cotton. The quilting pattern outlines each hexagon; 8 stitches per inch. A 7/8-inch (finished) straight strip of twilled polished cotton, seamed to the front, whip stitched to the lining, was used for the binding. This hexagon pieced quilt is an example of a popular technique used for some of the oldest quilt patterns.
A floral block-printed fabric was used to make this quilted counterpane. Three panels of cotton, block-printed in brown, red, and pink with penciled blue were sewn with linen thread to create the center. This was framed by a band of trees also block-printed on cotton. "S . B 6" is cross-stiched on the lining. It was quilted in a chevron pattern, 9 stitches per inch, and finished with an ivory silk tape binding.
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.