QUILT INDEX RECORD

18-14-36

Description:

Mary Gasperik made at least 4 Indiana Wreath quilts. It would seem that she picked this complicated and famous pattern precisely to demonstrate what a master quilter she was.

Where are the records for this quilt housed?

Mary Gasperik Legacy Project

Who documented this quilt?

Mary Gasperik Private Collection

Gasperik Legacy Project Number:

011

This is a:

Finished quilt

Quilt's title:

Indiana Wreath

Owner's name for quilt:

Indiana Wreath (Doris)

Brackman # or other source & #:

80.22, 80.23

How wide is the quilt?

73 inches

How long is the quilt?

99 inches

Shape of edge:

Straight

Shape of corners:

Straight

What color is the quilt?

Blue or Navy; Green; Red; White

Overall color scheme:

Bright or primary colors

Quilt's condition:

Excellent/like new

What is inscribed on the quilt?

MARY GASPERIK
1411 W. 174 Street
EAST HAZEL CREST
ILLINOIS

Method used to make the inscription:

Attached label

Time period:

1930-1949

When was the quilt finished?

1938-1945

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

1938-1945

Who estimated the quilt's date?

Merikay Waldvogel

Further information concerning dates:

Earliest estimated date is based on the fact that Indiana Wreath pattern #524 was offered in McCall's Needlework Magazine, Winter 1937-1938, pp 26-27. Mary Gasperik probably consulted this pattern when she designed her Indiana Wreath quilts. Use of a quilting pattern offered by Woman's Day in May, 1943 moves the estimated completion date to no earlier than 1943.

Describe the quilt's layout:

Medallion or framed center

Describe the borders:

Outer edges on all four sides have an applique floral and leaf vine that frame the quilt.

Fiber types used to make the quilt top:

Cotton

Fabric styles used in the quilt top:

Print; Solid/plain

Applique techniques used to make the quilt top:

Hand Applique

Embellishment techniques used to make the quilt top:

Embroidery; Other embellishment technique

Describe any unusual techniques used to make the quilt top:

extra layer of batting pads the applique grapes

Describe embellishment materials or techniques:

embroidered wheat in vase, below vase, and in birds' beaks

Materials used to make the back:

Cotton

What color is the back of the quilt?

Yellow

Describe the back:

Solid/plain

Materials used in the quilt binding:

Cotton

What is the width of the binding (measure on the top only)?

less than a half inch

What kind of filling is used in the quilt?

Cotton

How are the layers held together?

Hand quilting

Color of thread used in the quilting:

white

Quilting designs used, overall motifs:

Grid/crosshatch; Single parallel lines

Quilting designs used, decorative motifs:

Feathering; Vines; Other

Quilting designs used, background fills:

Grid/crosshatch; Parallel lines

Describe the quilting designs used:

Elaborate feather medallion and bunches of grapes. Fern leaves quilted both separately and spilling from small cornucopias.

Features or notes about the quilt's appearance, materials, or construction:

The four Gasperik Indiana Wreath quilts can be divided into two sets of two. Each pair uses the same set of fabrics. Quilts #011 and #043 use a set of polka dots prints of different colors. These two quilts also have wheat stalks embroidered under the vase. Quilts #032 and #063 employ a wider range of fabrics: the wreath's flowers are executed in floral prints. The grapes are made from a print of white stars on dark purple, cut such that the effect is of water glistening on a rounded surface.

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:

This quilt was a direct gift from Mary Gasperik to her son and daughter-in-law (Elmer and Doris Gasperik)

Why was the quilt made?

Art or personal expression

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

Describe the sources of the quilt's materials:

Gasperik's own fabric choices.

Where did the maker find their pattern?

Commercial/Published source: Book; Commercial/Published source: Pattern

Describe the source of the pattern:

Inspiration for the Indiana Wreath quilt made famous by Marie Webster who used a 19th century quilt in this pattern as the frontispiece of her quilt book.

McCalls produced a commercial pattern. Other designers including Rose Kretsinger made their own.

Commercial name of the pattern for the top:

Probably McCall's #524 Indiana Wreath published circa 1935.

The pattern for the three hovering blue birds may be borrowed from a quiltING pattern offered in a Nancy Page Quilting Club Column in the newspaper.

Where did the quiltmaker find the pattern for the quilting design on the quilt?

Published material

Describe where the quilting design pattern was found:

3 grape clusters and 2 elaborate feather medallions copied from Plates IV and V quiltING patterns by Rose Kretsinger in Romance of the Patchwork Quilt.
Coat of Arms quilting pattern pictured in Woman's Day Magazine, May, 1943, p. 42.

What is the commercial name of the quilting design used for this quilt?

Fern pattern C5573 from Aunt Martha's Answers to How Shall I Quilt It?

Describe anything about the design of the quilt that wasn't already recorded in a previous field:

McCall probably obtained its pattern #524 Indiana Wreath from a quilt businesswoman named Cecilia Knapp of Monroe Michigan.

The Winter 1937-38 issue of McCall's Needlework Magazine on pages 26-27 in an article titled "Cotton Prints" features, in text on page 26, pattern "No.524, Authentic - at least 100 years old! It's the Indiana wreath (facing page) and you mustn't miss it if you are a quilt-maker. Single bed size 72 x 100 inches; double, 84 x 100. Blue. Pattern, 45 cents."

On page 27 a picture of Cecilia Knapp faces a picture of a completed Indiana Wreath quilt, and the entire text on this page is about Mrs. Knapp and her quilt business. In part this text reads: "Before very long Mrs. Knapp began taking orders for quilts, giving advice on color combinations, and recommending good materials to use. Very often women will make their own quilt tops and turns them over to her to finish with the quilting designs. We're glad to say that Mrs. Knapp finds among her customers many users of McCall quilt patterns, who like them for their beautiful designs and the helpful instructions on quilt making that come with each pattern. On these pages we are showing two beautiful quilt patterns in applique work that are well worth the time it takes to make them. The gorgeous Indiana wreath, No. 524, (shown above) is an authentic old-timer. It is quite perfect in a lovely combination of plain percales and the quaint Peter Pan Old Colony prints. With this pattern the graceful feather motifs for quilting are included... If any of our readers wish to buy either of the two quilts (No. 524 and No. 514) with applique basted on, all ready for sewing, write for particulars to McCall Needlework Department, 230 Park Avenue, New York, N.Y."

I think that this joint featuring of pattern No. 524 together with Cecilia Knapp, together with the fact that Gasperik kept an actual Cecilia Knapp business card, suggests that Gasperik got her Indiana Wreath pattern directly from Mrs. Knapp. Both women were active members of The Detroit News Quilt Club Corner and probably met when Gasperik attended the Detroit News Quilt Shows in 1935, 1937, 1938 and 1940. It should be noted that Gasperik did not use Knapp's feather quilting pattern, but rather seems to have used an adaptation of Kretsinger's Plate IV feather medallion which was in May 1943 offered as "Coat of Arms" by Women's Day Magazine.

Exhibitions where this quilt was displayed:

The Quilts of Mary Gasperik, Ravenswood Historic Site, Livermore, CA, March 14-15, 1992.

This is one of the 23 Mary Gasperik quilts exhibited in the Carnegie Room of the Marion Indiana Public Library July 16-17, 2021 in connection with the ceremony honoring the induction of Mary Gasperik into The Quilters Hall of Fame as their 2021 Legacy Quilter honoree. Mary Gasperik Quilters Hall of Fame Induction Exhibit.

Contests entered:

Illinois State Fair 1953, Second Place. In The East Hazel Crest News of September 23, 1953, it mentions a second place ribbon was placed on her “Indiana Wreath”. Since the clipping was collected by Doris Gasperik, it's a clue that it was Doris' Indiana Wreath that won this ribbon. However, the ribbon was not found in the collection of Kathy Jacobs (Doris and Elmer's daughter), so it can't be confirmed definitively that this was the Indiana Wreath quilt that took Second place in 1953 at the Illinois State Fair.

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:

Quilts: Their Story and How to Make Them, Marie D. Webster, Doubleday, Doran & Company Inc., 1928, frontispiece is a hand-tinted photograph of the 1858 quilt made by Elizabeth J. Hart. Also see text about 'Indiana Wreath' on pages 84-86.

Romance of the Village Quilts, Mary A, McElwain, Susan Salser private collection.

McCall Indiana Wreath pattern envelope and instruction sheet; Winter 1937-38

McCall magazine with Indiana Wreath pattern featured. Salser has not been able to locate an actual McCall pattern No. 524 although she has a color copy of the Winter 1937-38 McCall Needlework Magazine pages 26-27 as well as a photocopy of a page from a 1938 McCall countertop catalog listing the McCall Indiana Wreath pattern No. 524.

Business card which belonged to Mary Gasperik, which reads "Cecilia Knapp, Quilts and Patchwares by The Woman Who Makes Them, 712 S. Monroe St., Monroe, Mich. PATTERNS AND STAMPINGS". Mary Gasperik archive, care of Karen Finn.

Coat of Arms quilting pattern pictured in Woman's Day Magazine, May, 1943, p. 42. Susan Salser private collection.

The East Hazelcrest News issue No. 18, dated Sept. 23,1953, published by American Legion Post 1139 mentions that "one of the women of our village, Mrs. Stephen Gasperik, was awarded 2 first prizes & a second prize at the Ill. State Fair for her quilts. The 2 first were given for her "Delectable Mountain" quilt & "Bridal Bouquet". The second place ribbon was placed on her "Indiana Wreath”. Last year she won a 1st & two 3rds. Quilting is almost a lost art, requiring a tremendous amount of patience & skill with a needle." Elmer Gasperik heirs, private collection.

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:

The four Indiana Wreath quilts (#011, #032, #043 and #063) were made to demonstrate the quilter's mastery of her art at a time when she was doing her best work. One alone would make a powerful statement. Four of them constitute a tour de force. She made quilts to exhibit in shows held by her Tuley Park quilt club in Chicago, the Detroit News quilt show in Detroit, many Illinois State Fairs, at least one Indiana State Fair. She entered quilts in at least 2 Chicago department store contests. She made at least one quilt and one quilt top specifically for the 1939 New York Worlds Fair quilt contest. She also made children's quilts specifically for grandchildren and great-grandchildren; and wedding and wedding anniversary quilts for her son Elmer and grand-daughter Karen. Primarily, she wanted to make quilts because it was her life passion and her greatest talent. The occasions and venues to show them presented themselves. It should be noted that prior to Mary's emigration to America in late 1904, at age 16, she was an apprenticed needleworker in her native Hungary. The intricate and colorful floral embroideries traditional to Hungary lend themselves especially well to applique, the quilt style Mary preferred.

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?

Chicago IL 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

Who photographed this quilt?

Don Gonzalez

Access and copyright information:

Restricted

Copyright holder:

Hank Finn

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