QUILT INDEX RECORD

18-14-20

Description:

This unfinished top uses a pattern called Giant Dahlia designed by Hubert Ver Mehren/Home Art Studios of Des Moines, Iowa and offered through Needlecraft Magazine in 1935 as both a pattern and a kit, and also as a pattern in newspaper ads. Giant Dahlia became his most widely copied quilt design. Gasperik probably bought the pattern and made her own fabric selections. Ver Mehren designed square quilts, and Gasperik was determined to make rectangular quilts. This created problems for her.

Where are the records for this quilt housed?

Mary Gasperik Legacy Project

Who documented this quilt?

Mary Gasperik Private Collection

Gasperik Legacy Project Number:

015

This is a:

Quilt top with unfinished edge

Quilt's title:

Giant Dahlia

Owner's name for quilt:

Giant Dahlia

How wide is the quilt?

78 inches

How long is the quilt?

94 inches

Shape of edge:

Sawtooth

Shape of corners:

Sawtooth

What color is the quilt?

Pink; White

Overall color scheme:

Light or pastel colors

Quilt's condition:

Excellent/like new

Time period:

1930-1949

When was the quilt finished?

1935

Family/owner's date for quilt:

1935

Date estimated by an antique dealer, quilt historian or appraiser:

1935

Who estimated the quilt's date?

Susan Price Miller

Further information concerning dates:

Estimated date is based on offering of Hubert Ver Mehren Giant Dahlia pattern in Needlecraft Magazine, July, 1935.

Describe the quilt's layout:

Medallion or framed center

Describe the borders:

The pieced border for making Giant Dahlia pattern #398 from H. Ver Mehren is designed to surround a 84" square medallion. Gasperik wanted to make a rectangular quilt and she appliqued her pieced dahlia onto a rectangular white ground. The Ver Mehren pieced border apparently did not furnish enough elements to surround Gasperik's rectangle. Obviously, she had trouble making it fit and she abandoned the project.

Fiber types used to make the quilt top:

Cotton

Fabric styles used in the quilt top:

Print; Solid/plain

Piecing techniques used to make the quilt top:

Hand Piecing

Quilt top made by:

Gasperik, Mary

Quilted by:

Gasperik, Mary

Where the quilt was made, city:

Chicago

Where the quilt was made, county:

Cook County

Where the quilt was made, state:

Illinois (IL)

Where the quilt was made, country:

United States

How was this quilt acquired?

Inheritance

Tell the story of how the quilt was obtained:

Selected by Doris Gasperik during a division of Gasperik quilts after Mary died.

Why was the quilt made?

Personal enjoyment

The quilt was made to be used for:

Bedding, special occasion

Quilt is presently used as:

Keepsake/memento

Describe present uses of the quilt:

Mary's grandchildren regard her quilts as a unique collection to be preserved and appreciated.

Where did the maker get their materials?

Purchased new

Where did the maker find their pattern?

Commercial/Published source: Magazine

Commercial name of the pattern for the top:

Giant Dahlia, pattern designed by Hubert Ver Mehren was offered through Needlecraft Magazine in 1935.

Exhibitions where this quilt was displayed:

None

Publications (including web sites) where this quilt or maker was featured:

Merikay Waldvogel and Barbara Brackman. Patchwork Souvenirs of the 1933 Chicago World's Fair, (Nashville, TN: Rutledge Hill Press, 1993)102-103.

Merikay Waldvogel "One American Dream Comes True", Quilters Newsletter Magazine, March 2008, 46-49.

Related items such as diaries, obituaries, wills, household inventories, or pictures of the quiltmaker:

Needlecraft: The Home Arts Magazine, July 1935, page 24.

Susan Price Miller, "Hubert Ver Mehren and Home Art Studios," Uncoverings 2000, Volume 21 of the Research Papers of the American Quilt Study Group, pp 107-136.

Ownership of this quilt is:

Private

Quilt owner's name:

Elmer Gasperik Heirs - Kathy Jacob contact

Quilt owner's country:

United States

Person filling out this form is:

Relative of quiltmaker; Author/researcher

If you are a relative of the quiltmaker, how are you related? The quiltmaker is my:

Grandmother

Describe the relationship to the quilt's maker:

Grand-daughter Susan Salser began this research effort in 1991, after she and her two sisters divided up the quilts which belonged to their mother (Elsie Gasperik Krueger) who died in 1988. Her ongoing research has been fruitful and interesting.

Quiltmaker's maiden name:

Mihalovits, Maria

Quiltmaker's gender:

Female

Quiltmaker's birth date:

01/25/1888

Quiltmaker's birthplace, country:

Hungary

Quiltmaker's date of death:

05/25/1969

Quiltmaker's ethnic background/tribal affiliation:

Hungarian

Quiltmaker's educational background:

Elementary School

In which kind of environment did the quiltmaker live?

Rural

Quiltmaker's city:

Chicago

Quiltmaker's county:

Cook

Quiltmaker's state:

Illinois (IL)

Quiltmaker's country:

United States

Quiltmaker's father's name:

Mihalovits, Istvan

Quiltmaker's father's birthplace:

Hungary

Quiltmaker's father's ethnic/tribal background:

Hungarian

Quiltmaker's mother's name:

Mihalovits, Vidoszava

Quiltmaker's mother's birthplace:

Hungary

Quiltmaker's mother's ethnic/tribal background:

Hungarian

Quiltmaker's spouse's/spouses' and/or partner's/partners' ethnic/tribal background:

Hungarian

Quiltmaker's spouse's/spouses' and/or partner's/partners' occupation:

Milk Dealer/Grocery Store Owner/Butcher

Number of children:

3

How many of the quiltmaker's children were girls?

1 (Elsie 1909-1988)

How many of the quiltmaker's children were boys?

2 (Elmer and Stephen)

How did the quiltmaker learn to quilt?

From guild or club member; Self-Taught

When did the quiltmaker learn to quilt?

Age 40-49

Why does the quiltmaker quilt?

Pleasure; Other

Other notes on how the quiltmaker learned, and how and why they quilt:

Mary Gasperik made quilts because it was her life passion and greatest talent. As opportunities arose, she entered contests and exhibited them publicly. She also made special quilts for her family.

Does/did the quiltmaker belong to a group? Name of the group?

Tuley Park Quilt Club and Detroit News Quilt Club

Does/did the quiltmaker belong to a group?

Southside Chicago and Detroit MI

What are the main activities of the group?

Chicago group met to quilt and held periodic quilt shows; Detroit group held national exhibits and contests.

Estimated number of quilts made by this quiltmaker:

more than 50

Does/did the quiltmaker sell quilts?

no

Does/did the quiltmaker teach quilting?

no

Artist statement or biography of quiltmaker or quilt group:

See introductory essay.

Who photographed this quilt?

Don Gonzalez

Access and copyright information:

Restricted

Copyright holder:

Hank Finn